Ko Te Hura te toa rangatira o Ngāi Te Rangihouhiri i te wā e noho ana tēnei hapū hei ringakaha mō Ngāti Awa. He maha ngā kāinga i nohoia e rātou i te takiwā ki Te Awa-a-te-Atua ka ahu atu ki Ōtamarākau. Ko tana pā tūwatawata i Matatā. Ko te nohoanga i Ōtītapu, i Kawerau. E huaina ana i te pātere a Tamapahore e kī rā:
Kei Ōtītapu ko te pūmautanga o Te Rangihouhiri
I whakawānangatia ai e Tama[pahore] –
Ko koe tōku ariaritanga,
Ko koe tōku ruruhau…
Ko Te Rangihouhiri II te tipuna o Te Hura.
E ngaro ana te wā i whānau ai a Te Hura. Ko ngā kōrero mōna i tīmataria mai i te tekau tau mai i 1860, i te wā e huri haere ana ngā mea katoa. Nō reira hoki ka whakatakotoria ngā kaupapa a te kāwana, a Hōri Kerei (George Grey), i te tau 1861, kia whakaurungia ngā rūnanga Māori ki roto ki ngā whakahaere kāwanatanga, ka taka ai ki raro i ngā ture hou. I tino whakaae tonu a Te Hura, ka tautokona, ka āwhinatia e ia ērā āhuatanga.
Whāia ka puta ake ngā ākonga a Te Ua Haumēne, a Pātara Raukatauri rāua ko Horomona o Taranaki i te tau 1865. E kauwhau haere ana i te whakapono Pai Mārire mai i Te Awa-a-te-Atua. Tere tonu te whai atu a Te Hura. Huri katoa ngā kaihautū o Ngāi Te Rangihouhiri, o Ngāti Hikakino; me Te Tāwera i muri mai. Huri ana rātou huri katoa ngā hapū. Ka tae te rongo ki ngā whanaunga i Whakatāne, huri katoa hoki ērā. Ko tō rātou rangatira ko Wēpiha Apanui tonu tētahi i tere te huri ki te Pai Mārire.
Ēngari a Te Rangitukehu me tōna hapū o Te Pahīpoto o Ngāti Awa ki Rangitāiki i tū kē. Kore rawa i hou atu ki ngā hui a Pātara rāua ko Horomona. He take nui tonu i kore ai a Te Rangitūkehu i tautoko i a Ngāi Te Rangihouhiri. Ko te wahine a Te Hura ko Roka, nō Te Pahīpoto. Ka pāngia e te māuiui ka whakapaengia e Te Hura nā te tohunga o Te Teko, nā Te Whakareke, i mākutu. Nā runga i ā rāua tautohetohe. Ka whakatika a Te Whakareke ki te whakaora i a Roka. Ka heria ki te repo kia riro mā ngā wīwī e whakahoki te mate ki tōna takenga mai. Ka tukuna ana karakia, ka pēpēhia ngā wāhi mamae, kāore tonu i taea. Ka mate a Roka i te aonga ake.
I te kaha o te whakatakariri o Te Hura, ka tū atu ki te pupuhi i a Te Whakareke. Kei tū kē ai ko tana taina ko Te Mētera Te Tii. Ahakoa ko ia te mea iti o rāua, ka rere mai a Te Mētera ki te whakaita i tana tuakana, kia tōtika anō ana mahi. Ka riro mā te whakamā e patu a Te Hura, me te ngaua hoki e te pōuri me te mamae. E takoto tonu ana hoki te tūpāpaku. Heoi i whakamau tonu ia ki a Te Whakareke, ā, ka patua e ia. Nā reira, ka whakamau ko Te Pahīpoto ki a ia.
I te wā i huri ai a Ngāti Awa ki te Pai Mārire, e taki noho manawapā ana ka riro ō rātou whenua. Kua ngarue te whenua i ngā pakanga i Taranaki, i Waikato e Te Moana-a-Toi-te-huatahi (Bay of Plenty), ā, kua takoto kē mai hoki te ture a te kāwanatanga, te Ture mō te Whakanoho i te Hunga Mārie (New Zealand Settlements Act) o 1863; ē āhei ai rātou ki te muru i ngā whenua Māori hei whakanoho i ngā Pākehā. Kua rangona te wawara ka riro mā Kuini Wikitōria (Victoria) tonu e tango ngā whenua, ka kore ai he tahuritanga ake mō te iwi Māori.
Nō te 1 o Hūrae 1865, ka haere a Te Hura me tana rahinga ki te hui i Tauaroa, he pā i Matatā anō. Nō reira ka whakatakotoria te aukati kia kaua e uru mai ngā Pākehā me ā rātou haumi o Te Arawa ki te apo whenua. I te 21 o ngā rā, ehara, puta kē mai ana ko tana whanaunga tonu ko Te Mautaranui (James Francis Fulloon) ki Whakatāne i runga i te kaipuke, Kate. I ahu mai i Tauranga e haere ana ki Ōpōtiki ki te hopu i te hunga nā rātou i kōhuru a Te Wākana (C. S. Völkner) i te 2 o Maehe. Ahakoa i whakatūpatoria atu a Te Mautaranui kaua hei wāhia te aukati, kāore i aro ake. Ka whakaekea te Kate e Ngāti Awa, ka tohea a Te Mautaranui kia hoki ki waho i te aukati. Tē aro mai. Patua ana. He tapu hoki tērā mea te aukati. Ka wāhia, ka takahia ana, he tangata tonu hei utu. Mehemea ia i whakarongo ka tukuna pai noa atu ia. Ka taka ki te 2 o Hepetema, ka puta te pānui a Kāwana Kerei ka tau te rangimārie mehemea ka tukuna atu e Ngāti Awa ngā tāngata nā rātou i kōhuru a Te Wākana rāua ko Te Mautaranui. Mehemea ka kore e tukuna atu, ka murua he whenua. E rua ngā rangi i muri mai, ka puta anō he pānui ki Ōpōtiki, ki Whakatāne – ka riro mā ngā hōia e hāpai ngā ture. Ka tīmata ngā mahi hōia i te 4 o ngā rā o Hepetema.
Nō konei ka whakamātautauria a Te Hura. Kotahi mano ngā hōia i tukuna mai e te kāwanatanga ki te wāwāhi i te aukati a Ngāti Awa. Ko te hokowhitu a Te Hura, kāore i neke atu i te 250. Ka peia haere rātou i ngā pā i Matatā, ka rērere ki te pā i Te Teko, ko Te Kupenga te īngoa. Te tūnga mai o ngā hōia a te kāwanatanga me ō rātou haumi o Te Arawa, kei raro e putu ana. Ko Te Arawa e whai ana kia ea ōna mate o ngā pakanga ki a Te Rangihouhiri pakeke i Tauranga. Tērā atu anō ētahi tautohetohenga i tua atu.
Ko tā te meiha, ko Te Mea (W. G. Mair) i whai ai kia taiaritia rawa a Ngāti Awa, kia heke te mana o Ngāti Awa, kia pūmau te mana Pākehā ki te whenua. Mate ana ko Ngāti Awa, kore rawa hoki i taea e Te Hura. Nō te rarunga, ka whakaparahakotia e tana iwi, ka taunuhia, ka tāwaihia hoki e Te Arawa i te tukunga o Te Hura me ngā mōrehu i a rātou i Te Kupenga. He aha koa, he mate kē anō kei te tū mai.
Ka riro ko Ngāti Awa hei papa mō ngā whakararu a te kāwanatanga. Hei tauira mō te kaha o te Pākehā ka taka ana te iwi ki raro i ōna waewae. E 37 rātou i whakawākia, ko Te Hura rāua ko tana tuakana ko Hēpeta me tana tama me Te Akaōtau ētahi. Ko te whakawā tuatahi nā te rārangi āpiha o te Kōti Ture Hōia tū ki Ōpōtiki. Ka whakataungia me pupuhi a Te Hura me te nuinga o ana tāngata.
Ehara, kāore kē i āhei rātou ki te whakawā i ngā Māori rā, ko tā te ture mā te kōti kē o te rohe tērā mahi. Ka kawea ki Ākarana, ka whakawākia i te Kōti Matua (Supreme Court) i a Maehe o te tau 1866. I kīia e 50 ngā tau o Te Hura i taua wā. Ko ō rātou hara ko te whakaekenga i te kaipuke Kate, me te patunga i a Te Mautaranui. Āpiti atu, ka whakapaengia he kaikaiwaiū ki te Kuini. Heoi ki a James Prendergast, te rōia matua a te kāwanatanga, he mahi ngāwari noa iho te whakamātau i tō rātou kaikaiwaiūtanga. Ahakoa kāore i kitea he tūpāpaku, ā, kāore hoki i āta kitea e patu tangata ana, tekau rātou i whakataungia kia whakamatea mō te kōhurutanga i a Te Mautaranui. Kore rawa i aro he aha i riro ai mā te ture e whakawā. Ko rātou rātou – taketake ake nō Ngāti Awa katoa. Ko Te Mautaranui kē i hara ki tana iwi i raro i te awe o Te Hura. Ko te tikanga mā te iwi anō e whakatau ōna mate. Taukuri rā ia ē!
Ka taka ki te 10 o Mei 1866, ka hurikoarohia te āhuatanga ki a Te Hura, ki a Hēpeta, ki a Te Akaōtau kia hereheretia rātou ā mate noa. Ka riro mā Te Hura e waha te taumahatanga me te whakamā o Ngāti Awa whānui. Ko ia hoki te amokapua i te takanga ki te hē. Ko Te Hura te papa. Nō konei ka pā te aroha ki a Te Rangitūkehu. Ko tana huringa mai ki te tautoko i te hunga e whai ana kia tukuna a Te Hura mā i te whare herehere. Ko Hēpeta i pāria e te mate kohi ka heria ki te hōhipera. Nō te 26 o Noema ka mate. Ēngari i kīia kore rawa he riwha i tōna tinana, ā, 'i mate tara whare noa iho, ehara kē nā te mate kohi.' Ko Te Akaōtau kua pakari, kua māia. Kua 25 ōna tau i taua wā.
Ko ngā whenua o Ngāti Awa kua murua raupatutia. Ka riro i te Karauna 194,120 ngā eka. Kātahi ka tukuna ki a Te Arawa te 87,000 eka i Ōtamarākau. Ā, puta rawa mai a Te Hura i te whare herehere kua tukuna kē e te Kāwana he whenua ki a Ngāti Tūwharetoa, ki a Ngāti Raukawa me ētahi iwi atu hoki. Ahakoa i whakahokia mai he wāhanga o aua whenua, i te mutunga e 60 paiheneti, arā, neke atu i te 116,220 eka i riro. Takahia rawatia te mana o Ngāti Awa. Tokorua ngā tamāhine a Te Hura, ko Taiparoro rāua ko Mereana Raukete. Kei te mau tonu ngā whakaahua o aua wāhine, me tō Te Akaōtau, me tō Taitewe, tamāhine a Te Mētera. Heoi anō te kōrero mō te wahine tuarua a Te Hura, i Tauranga e noho ana i a ia i te whare herehere i Mautini (Mt Eden). Ka mutu tonu ngā kōrero mō Te Hura.
Ina tonu, nō te 14 o Tīhema 1988 – kua pahemo nei ngā tau 123, ka murua te hara i a Te Hura mā katoa e te Pāremata. Nā kātahi anō ka mārama te pīkautanga a Te Hura i te tau 1865. I ārahina e ia a Ngāti Awa ki te pakanga mō tō rātou rangatiratanga. Whāia ka hinga ka murua ō rātou whenua, e noho pōhara tonu nei ngā uri i nāianei. Hei a Ngāi Te Rangihouhiri kātahi anō ka ara ake ngā ua. Tangi ana te mapu ki a tuahangata.