Whārangi 1: Haurongo
Te Rau, Kereopa
?–1872
Nō Te Arawa, nō Ngāti Rangiwewehi; he pononga nō te Pai Mārire
I tuhia tēnei haurongo e Steven Oliver, ā, i tāngia tuatahitia ki Ngā Tāngata Taumata Rau i te 1990. I whakahoutia i te o Hune, 2014. He mea whakamāori nā Ngā Tangata Taumata Rau.
Kāre i te mōhiotia ngā mātua o Kereopa Te Rau me tōna rā whānau, ēngari kei te mōhiotia nō te tekau tau mai i 1840 ka iriirihia a ia hei Katorika e te pirihi, e Te Reina (Euloge Reignier). Nō konei tōna īngoa a Kereopa (Cleophas). Te āhua nei i tū rawa a ia hei pirihimana i Ākarana (Auckland), i ngā tau tekau mai i 1850. Otirā, nō ngā pakanga i Waikato i te tīmatanga i te tekau tau mai i 1860, tū kē ana a ia i roto i te ope taua a Kīngi Tāwhiao. Ko te whakapae, nā konei i mate ai tana wahine me ana tamāhine tokorua. Arā, i te tāorotanga a te taua a te kāwanatanga i Rangiaowhia, tata atu ki Te Awamutu, i te 21 o Pēpuere 1864. Ao ake, ka kite ia i te matenga o tana tuahine i Hairini, he pā i kō tata atu o Rangiaowhia. Ko te tipunga tēnei o te kino ki a Kereopa.
Nō muri i te hinganga o Waikato i waenganui i te tau 1864, kitea rawahia atu a Kereopa i Taranaki, kua tū hei kaikawe i te rongopai a Te Ua Haumēne, arā, i te Pai Mārire. Takarawa ki a Tīhema 1864, ka tonoa rāua ko Pātara Raukatauri ki te whakapaoho i ngā rongo o te Pai Mārire kingā iwi o Te Tai Rāwhiti. Hoatu ana hoki te kōrero kia kaua rāua e pā ki te Pākehā, ēngari nō Ōtipa i raro ake o te awa o Rangitāiki, ka tohe a Kereopa ki te iwi o reira kia homai he Pākehā hei whakarau māna. Kāre i whakaaetia. Nō Whakatāne, ka tono anō ia i tētehi pirihi Katorika; ka pērā anō te kōrero. I Ōpōtiki ka whakaaetia tōna hiahia e Te Whakatōhea. Ko te minita, ko Te Wākana (C. S. Völkner) te papa, i runga anō i ana mahi harihari kōrero ki a Kāwana Hōri Kerei (George Grey). Ahakoa ngā kupu whakatūpato a Te Whakatōhea kia whakamutua ngā mahi kaiwaiū a Te Wākana, kore rawa i arohia ake. Ka riro nā tana whakaminenga tonu i patu. He mea tārona ki te whiro e tata ana ki tana whare karakia i te 2 o Maehe 1865. Ka hātopea te ūpoko, ā, ka whakatika atu a Kereopa ka kainga ngā whatu. Kotahi hei whakatau i te kāwanatanga, kotahi hei whakatau i te Kuini me ana ture. Rere ana te wehi me te kanga i te Pākehā, piki ana te mana o Kereopa. Tērā pea he hiahia tonu nō Kereopa ki te ngaki i ngā mate o ērā o tōna whānau i hinga ki Hairini ki Rangiaowhia hoki, i te mea nā Te Wākana hoki i whakamōhio atu te tātai o Rangiaowhia ki a Kāwana Kerei.
He maha tonu i whakapono ko Kereopa te kaiwhakakīkī i mea kia patua a Te Wākana kia hemo. Ahakoa tana tautoko kia tāronatia kāore ia i te tāronatanga, nā reira, ko tōna tikanga e noho hara kore ana ia. Nā te taenga ake o te ope Pai Mārire i Ōpōtiki i whakaūruhi te aituā. Otirā, he whiwhi tonu ngā take i kōhurutia ai a Te Wākana. Muri tonu iho i Ōpōtiki, ko te haerenga o te ope o Kereopa ki te whakapaoho i te kupu a Rura ki ngā iwi o Tūranga (Gisborne) me Te Urewera. I whakamate rawa a ia ki Waikato i a Mei 1865, ēngari ko Ngāti Manawa, ko Ngāti Rangitihi ngā mānuka huapae i te huarahi i Te Tāpiri me Ōkupu, arā, ki ngā mānia o Kaingaroa. Ka roa te pakanga, ehara ka whati a Ngāti Manawa rāua ko Ngāti Rangitihi. Ko ngā haumi a Kereopa, ko Tūhoe. Mōkiri, tū ana ngā maire o Te Arawa; ko te kaihautū ko Te Mea (W. G. Mair). Ka rere te weta o te taua a Kereopa. Kore noa iho a Waikato i tutuki. Ki tētahi kōrero, nō te pakanga ki Te Tāpiri, ka kainga e Kereopa ngā whatu o te ika-hui-toru o Ngāti Manawa. Ka rua ai ōna kainga whatu. Mau tonu atu tōna īngoa ko Kereopa Kaiwhatu.
Kāre i roa ka taka a Whakatāne me Ōpōtiki ki raro i ngā hōia Pākehā, ā, ka whāia te hunga nā rātau a Te Wākana i whakamate. Ka pānuitia te ture hōia ki reira, ā, ka pānuitia hoki he utu inā mau hereheretia a Kereopa mā. Ko te rerenga o Kereopa ki ngā maunga me ngā ngāherehere o Te Urewera. I reira ka tāwharautia e Tūhoe, ka whakanōhia i Te Roau, he kāinga kei runga i tētehi karahiwi, i Te Miromiro, ki Ōhāua-te-rangi, he kāinga nō Ngāti Rongo i te raki o Ruatāhuna; ko tōna pūtake kei te awa o Whakatāne. Mahea ana te kitea o ngā huarahi e takahia ai e te taua.
E rima tau a Kereopa e noho ana i konei, e kauhau ana i te PaiMārire, me te taka anō hoki o Tūhoe ki tēnei tikanga. Ehara, ko Te Kooti tēnei me tana rongopai te haere maiki roto o Te Urewera i ngā marama o te tau 1868. Ka piki te hāhi Ringatū, ka heke te Pai Mārire me te mana o Kereopa, ā memeha noa. Atu i 1869 ki 1872, e whāia ana a Te Kooti e ngā taua Pākehā me ana kūpapa. Tutū ana te puehu ki Te Urewera. Kua warewarehia ake a Kereopa, ko te ika nui ko Te Kooti. Ēngari, ko te utu mamae ana.
Nō ngā marama whakapaunga o 1870, ka kite iho ngā rangatira o Tūhoe i te tino māuiui o te iwi. Kua tata kē te tae ki te whakangaromanga. Ka kōrerohia te hohou i te rongo, ka ara ake anō a Kereopa. Ko te kōrero hoki a te kāwanatanga e kore e mau te rongo, kia maunu rawa te tāwharau i a Kereopa. Kāre tēnei i pai ki aTūhoe. Kōrero atu, kōrero mai; mau tonu te kāwanatanga, ka whati a Tūhoe. Me pēhea hoki? Kua pau ngā kāinga i te ahi, kua mōwai te whenua, kua mate kai ngā mōrehu. Ka unuhia te tāwharau a Tūhoe. Ka tau te kōrero kia riro anō mā Tūhoe a Kereopa e tiki, i te mea nāna i manaaki, māna anō hoki hei tuku, kia mau ai hoki te mana o te kupu. Whakaae ana te kāwanatanga ka katia te tatau pounamu. Ko te haerenga oTūhoe ki te tiki i a Kereopa.
Nō Hepetema 1871, ka tae he tira o Tūhoe ki te kāinga o Kereopa, ka kōrerorero rātau. Ka whakaae a Kereopa, kia riro ko ia hei utu mō ngā toto o Tūhoe, i rere ai i roto i ngā pakanga. Ka mana tērā kōrero. Nō te haerenga o Kereopa ki tōna wharepuni ki te whakaemi i ana taonga, kātahi ka rere. Huri rawa ake te hoa, kua tawhiti kē. Kua takahia e Kereopa tana kupu. Heoi, ko te whāinga a Tūhoe. Ka rere, ka rere, e, papā ana i a Te Whiu Maraki he toa kaitaua nō Tūhoe. Ka mau ka whakahokia ki Ruatāhuna, ka hoatu ki a Rāpata Wahawaha rāua ko Kāpene Poata (Thomas Porter).
Nō te 21 o Tīhema 1871, ka tū a Kereopa ki te aroaro o te Kōti Matua (Supreme Court) i Ahuriri (Napier). Ka whakawātia mō te kōhurutanga i a Te Wākana. Ahakoa kāore e taea te whakaū i te kī nāna a Te Wākana i whakamate, whakarongohia ana te kōrero atētehi Pākehā. E ai ki a Samuel Levy, ko Kereopa tētehi o ngā kaiārahi i a Te Wākana ki te rākau i tāronatia ai a ia. Ko te rarunga tēnei o Kereopa. Ahakoa ngā takutaku atu a Te Koreneho (William Colenso) ki te Kōti kua ea kē tēnei hara i ngā mea kua whakamatea kētia, me ngā whenua kua raupatutia, he aha te aha. I noho a te none, a Mary Aubert o te mīhana o Te Reina i Ahuriri, i te taha o Kereopa i tōna pō whakamutunga, ka whakamatea rā ia. Tāronatia ana a Kereopa i te 5 o Hānuere 1872 i Ahuriri.
Nō te tau 2014 ka whakaputaina he murunga whakapae mō Kereopa Te Rau, hei wāhi o te whakatau i waenga i te Karauna me Ngāti Rangiwewehi i raro i te Tiriti o Waitangi.