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Story: Take whenua – Māori land tenure

Te Rauparaha approaches Kaiapoi

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Te Rauparaha approaches Kaiapoi

Ngāti Toa chief Te Rauparaha and his war fleet head for Kaiapoi, in a drawing by William Menzies Gibb. Ngāti Toa led a number of raids on land in the South Island, and in some areas claimed land on the basis of raupatu (conquest). This type of right always needed to be accompanied by occupation.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: 1/4-MNZ-0652; F

by William Gibb

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Paul Meredith, Take whenua – Māori land tenure – Discovery, ancestral right and conquest, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/18385/te-rauparaha-approaches-kaiapoi (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Paul Meredith, published 1 March 2009.