He ariki ihorei a Te Matakātea nō Ngāti Haumiti, karangatanga hapū o te iwi Taranaki. Nōna ka whānau, ki Taranaki pea, i ngā tau tīmatanga o te rau tau 1800–1899, ka mōhiotia tōna īngoa ko Moki. Nō ngā tau e rua tekau mai i 1820, i mau ia ki roto i ngā whawhai o tana iwi, e ārai atu ana i ngā takatakahanga a Waikato. Nō muri i te toanga o Waikato i Maru, i te take o Taranaki i te tau 1826, ka riro ko ia hei rangatira mō ngā tāngata 120, me ā rātou whānau. E noho ana rātou i raro i te maru o Te Namu, he wāhi e tata ana ki Ōpunake, i te hekenga o ngā mōrehu o Taranaki ki Kapiti i te tau 1827. I whiwhi pū ai a Moki rātou ko tana iwi, nā ngā Pākehā hoko harakeke kua whakanoho ki Ngāmotu i te tau 1828. He wāhi e tata ana ki Nū Pāremata (New Plymouth) o nāianei. I te karapotitanga a Waikato i a Te Namu i te tau 1833, ka kitea te tau o Moki ki te mau pū, kātahi ka kārangarangatia ia ko Te Matakātea, arā, ko te kanohi torotika. Ka hoki whakamuri a Waikato; kāti kua kite kē a Te Matakātea, he whakatā tēnei mō te wā poto noa iho. Kātahi ka ārahina tana iwi ki ētahi pā e toru, kāore i tino tawhiti atu i te kōngutu awa o Kapuni, i te rohe o ana whanaunga o Ngāti Ruanui.
Kātahi ka uru a Te Matakātea ki ētahi raruraru rerekē noa atu. I te paenga o te kaipuke a te Harriet, i te Ikaroa (Cape Egmont) i Āperire o te tau 1834, ka tautohetohe ngā tāngata o te kaipuke me te tangata whenua. E waru ngā rā i muri o te paenga, ka tae atu a Te Matakātea i te awa o Kapuni, ka manaakitia a Betty Guard rātou ko ana tamariki ririki e rua. Nō te hokinga mai o te Alligator me te Isabella i New South Wales, ki te tiki mai i a rātou, ka tahuna a Te Namu ki te ahi. Hei whakamahea i ngā whakaaro, ka pūhia a Waimate ki te matā; ko tētahi tēnei o ngā pā i te awa o Kapuni.
Nō te hokinga mai o te ope taua o Waikato i te tau 1836, e ārahina ana e Te Wherowhero rāua ko Te Wahanui. Ka whakahuihuitia e Te Matakātea ngā mōrehu o Ngāti Ruanui tae atu ki tana whanaunga tata, ki a Hukunui Manaia ki te pā o Waimate, ka mutu, 350 ngā tāngata o te ope nāna i ārahi. Ka kōkiritia a Waikato kia whakamātauhia tō rātou kaha; ka hinga i a ia he rangatira ko Te Waka te īngoa. He mea titi te māhunga ki te pou o te pā. Nō te whakaekenga o Waikato, ka pūhia e ia tō rātou rangatira a Taipuhi; ko tō rātou hokinga whakamuri tērā. Nā ana puhipuhinga i te aonga ake o te rā, ka hoki whakamuri anō te hoariri, kātahi ka taki whawhai i waho atu o te pā. Kei mau ai a Te Rei Hanataua, te tino rangatira o Ngāti Ruanui. Nō te hemonga rawa kē o ngā toa e 60, tae atu ki ngā rangatira e waru, kātahi anō a Waikato ka hoki. E ai ki tētahi kōrero, nō muri o tēnei pakanga, ka hohouhia te rongo e Te Matakātea rāua ko Te Wherowhero.
Ko Te Matakātea tētahi o ngā rangatira o Taranaki i haere ki te āwhina i Ngā Rauru i te Ākuhata o te tau 1840. Ka werohia ngā iwi o Taranaki e Iwikau Te Heuheu Tūkino III, te rangatira o Ngāti Tūwharetoa. E noho āwhina ana a Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi o Whanganui i a Taranaki me te tohutohu atu o ēnei ki a Ngāti Tūwharetoa kia kaua e whawhai. Kātahi a Iwikau ka whakanoho i te pā mahue o Pātoka e tata ana ki Waitōtara. Nā te mea e werohia ana a Te Matakātea kia pakanga rātou, ka noho ia ki Te Ihupuku. I tāorotia a Ngāti Tūwharetoa; ka mate a Tauteka i a Te Matakātea; he rangatira nui tēnei. Ka kāwhakina e ia ētahi wāhine o Ngāti Tūwharetoa; ā, nō te whakaratanga ka tukuna. Ka patua a Kereopa rāua ko Te Mānihera, he mihingare nō Taranaki, i te tau 1847; ka ea tēnā mate.
Tae rawa ki te tau 1841, kua hoki kē a Te Matakātea ki Te Namu ki te kāinga i iriiria ia, e te minita, e John Mason i te 24 o Oketopa; tango tonu ia hei īngoa mōna ko Wiremu Kīngi. Nō te tau o muri mai, nō te 25 o Ākuhata, i iriiria e Mason tētahi Wiremu T. Matakātea anō; ko te whakaaro he tama tēnei nā tērā. Nō te hokinga mai o te āiotanga, ka hoki a Te Matakātea ki uta ki te kāinga o Umuroa; e whakatupu witi ana tana iwi i reira, ka mutu, ka whakangakungakutia hei parāoa i roto i ngā mira pīkau haere. I tīmata a Te Matakātea ki te whakawhitiwhiti kōrero mō te hanga mira mahi parāoa i Ākuhata o 1852. Hou rawa ake ki te tau 1855, kua tū tana toa i Umuroa. Nō te tīmatanga o te tau 1857 e hanga huarahi ana ia mā waenganui o tana rohe. Ka puta ngā hua o ana witi me ana rīwai, ka whakatūria e ia he kāreti ki Umuroa mō ngā tamariki e 400.
I mau atu a Te Matakātea ki roto i ngā riri i tīmata i Taranaki i te tau 1860. He whanaunga nōna a Te Waitere Kātātore, tētahi o te hunga tautohe i te riri o Puketapu i ara ake i runga i te hoko whenua i te tau 1854. Nā runga i te kōhurutanga o Kātātore i Hānuere o 1858, ka piri atu a Te Matakātea ki a Wiremu Kīngi Te Rangitāke i te karapotitanga o te pā o Te Karaka i te awa o Waitara; nō Hūrae, nō te tukunga o Īhāia Te Kirikūmara kia rere ana, ka tahuna te pā. Ka pakaru te riri i Waitara, ka ārahina e Te Matakātea tana ope taua ki te pā o Kaipopo, i Waireka, i raru ai rātou i te pakanga i reira i te 28 o Maehe 1860.
Nō waenganui o te tau 1862, kua whakahē a Te Matakātea i te Kīngi Māori, kua kore hoki ia i tino paingia e ētahi o ngā iwi o Taranaki. Nō taua tau anō, ka pae te Lord Worsley i Te Namu i te 1 o Hepetema, ka ārahina e ia ngā pāhihi me ngā tāngata whakahaere i te waka ki Nū Pāremata. Ka tukuna, hei koha ki a ia, ngā toenga o te waka me ngā taonga o runga; nō muri nei, ka tukuna mai he poti karekare mōna i Poihākena (Sydney). Kua oati mai a Kāwana Hōri Kerei (George Grey), e kore ōna whenua e murua nā tana noho tahanga mai i te pakanga tuarua o Taranaki. Heoi, nō te pakanga a Meiha Tianara Trevor Chute i te tau 1866, ka tahuna e ngā hōia te kāinga o Te Matakātea i Nuku-te-apiapi; nō muri, ka utua ia mō taua tahunga. Ka tae ki te Hepetema o 1866, ka takoto te kōrero a J. C. Richmond, te minita mō ngā take Māori, tērā e whakahokia te whenua 44,000 eka te rahi, mai i Moutoti ki Taungātara ki a Ngāti Haumiti; kāti, kāore tonu te mana o aua whenua i āta whakawhitihia, nō te tekau tau atu i 1880 rā anō.
Ka hui a Te Matakātea rāua ko te tangata a te kāwanatanga, a Te Pāriha (Robert Parris), ki Umuroa i te tau 1867; ka oti te kōrero kia tukuna te 2,000 eka hei tūnga mō te tāone o Ōpunake. Nō te 1865 rawa i noho ai ngā hōia Pākehā ki reira, kua hoatu hoki e Te Matakātea tana poti karekare hei hīnga ika mā rātou. Nō muri, ka apohia noatia iho e te kāwanatanga. I āwhina ia i a Te Pāriha i te tau 1869, ki te hanga i te huarahi rere ai i te takutai moana. Heoi, nō te tekau tau atu i 1870, i tautoko ia i a Te Whiti-o-Rongomai III, ā, nō te tau 1879, ka uru ia ki roto i ngā mahi totohe ki te parau i te whenua i te takiwā ki Manaia. Ka mau hereheretia ia; he kore nōna i whakaae ki tā te minita mō ngā take Māori, a William Rolleston, kia tukuna ia, ka noho ia ki te whare herehere tae noa ki Oketopa o 1880. Ahakoa rā, kāore tēnei raruraru i waiho hei whakapōrearea i te tuaritanga o ngā whakaaetanga ā-pukapuka a te Karauna, ki ngā whenua o tōna iwi. Nō Mei o 1883, ka riro i a Te Matakātea rātou ko ētahi 20 tāngata te whakaaetanga ā-pukapuka ki te whenua, 7,223 eka te nui, mō te hapū o Ngāti Kahumate; ka riro anō i a rātou me te 30 tāngata anō te whakaaetanga ā-pukapuka ki te whenua 6,186 eka te nui mō Ngāti Tamarongo. E rua ēnei poraka i te rohe o Ōpunake.
Ka mate a Wiremu Kīngi Te Matakātea i te 14 o Pēpuere 1893; he toa ki ngā whawhai, kātahi ka uru pū ki te āiotanga.