Portrait of Te Pehi Kupe by John Sylvester

Te Pēhi Kupe (–1828) was a

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

rangatira In Māori culture, () are tribal chiefs, the leaders (often hereditary) of a (subtribe or clan). Ideally, were people of great practical wisdom who held authority () on behalf of the tribe and maintained boundaries between a tribe's land ( ...

and war leader of

Ngāti Toa Ngāti Toa, also called Ngāti Toarangatira or Ngāti Toa Rangatira, is a Māori people, Māori ''iwi'' (tribe) based in the southern North Island and the northern South Island of New Zealand. Ngāti Toa remains a small iwi with a population of ...

. He took a leading part in the

Musket Wars The Musket Wars were a series of as many as 3,000 battles and raids fought throughout New Zealand (including the Chatham Islands) among Māori people, Māori between 1806 and 1845, after Māori first obtained muskets and then engaged in an inte ...

. Born at

Kāwhia Kawhia Harbour () is one of three large natural inlets in the Tasman Sea coast of the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located to the south of Raglan Harbour, Ruapuke and Aotea Harbour, 40 kilometres southwest of Hamilton. Ka ...

, Te Pēhi Kupe was the elder son of Toitoi, son of Pikauterangi, and in the senior line of descent from Toarangatira, after whom Ngāti Toa is named. Te Pēhi's mother was Waipunāhau of

Ngāti Mutunga Ngāti Mutunga is a Māori iwi (tribe) of New Zealand, whose original tribal lands were in north Taranaki. They migrated, first to Wellington (with Ngāti Toa and other Taranaki hapū), and then to the Chatham Islands (along with Ngāti Tama) ...

in northern

Taranaki Taranaki is a regions of New Zealand, region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano Mount Taranaki, Taranaki Maunga, formerly known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the ...

. In his portrait painted in the mid-1820s he looks about 30, so it is estimated that he was born around 1795. In 1819 he and other Ngāti Toa joined northern tribes on a war expedition that raided as far south as

Wellington Harbour Wellington Harbour ( ), officially called Wellington Harbour / Port Nicholson, is a large natural harbour on the southern tip of New Zealand's North Island. The harbour entrance is from Cook Strait. Central Wellington is located on parts of ...

. After the Ngāti Toa party's return to Kāwhia, their region was attacked by

Waikato The Waikato () is a region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipā District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, the nort ...

and

Ngāti Maniapoto Ngāti Maniapoto is an iwi (tribe) based in the Waikato-Waitomo region of New Zealand's North Island. It is part of the Tainui confederation, the members of which trace their whakapapa (genealogy) back to people who arrived in New Zealand on th ...

. Ngāti Toa were defeated and migrated to Taranaki. From there they migrated to

Horowhenua Horowhenua District is a territorial authority district on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand, administered by Horowhenua District Council. Located north of Wellington and Kāpiti, it stretches from slightly north of the town of ...

in 1822. Te Pēhi led the force that captured

Kapiti Island Kapiti Island (), sometimes written as Kāpiti Island, is an island nature reserve located off the west coast of the lower North Island of New Zealand and within the Kāpiti Coast District. Parts of the island were previously farmed, but it is ...

from

Muaūpoko Muaūpoko is a Māori iwi on the Kāpiti Coast of New Zealand. Muaūpoko are descended from the ancestor Tara, whose name has been given to many New Zealand landmarks, most notably Te Whanganui-a-Tara (Wellington). His people were known as ...

and

Ngāti Apa Ngāti Apa is a Māori iwi (tribe) in Rangitikei District of New Zealand. Its rohe (traditional tribal lands) extend between the Mangawhero, Whangaehu, Turakina and Rangitīkei rivers. This area is bounded by Whanganui River in the north-west ...

. When Ngāti Apa made a surprise attack on Ngāti Toa at

Waikanae Waikanae (, ) is a town on the Kāpiti Coast, north of the Wellington, New Zealand. The name is a Māori language, Māori word meaning "waters" (''wai'') "of the flathead grey mullet, grey mullet". The area surrounding the town is notable fo ...

, four children of Te Pēhi were among the 60 of them killed, leaving Te Pēhi wanting revenge. In 1824 he managed to brazenly force passage on a ship to England, where he was presented to

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

, learned to ride, recorded his

moko Moko may refer to: * Moko (dolphin), a male bottlenose dolphin that associated with New Zealanders from 2007 to 2010 * Moko (mythology), a character in the mythology of Mangaia in the Cook Islands * Moko, Burkina Faso, a village * Moko drums, Asia ...

and had his portrait painted. He was given presents, which he sold in Sydney on his return journey to purchase muskets and ammunition. By then his fellow Ngāti Toa chiefs

Te Rauparaha Te Rauparaha ( – 27 November 1849) was a Māori rangatira, warlord, and chief of the Ngāti Toa iwi. One of the most powerful military leaders of the Musket Wars, Te Rauparaha fought a war of conquest that greatly expanded Ngāti Toa south ...

and

Te Rangihaeata Te Rangihaeata ( 1780s – 18 November 1855) was a Ngāti Toa chief and a nephew of Te Rauparaha. He played a leading part in the Wairau Affray and the Hutt Valley Campaign. Early life Te Rangihaeata, a member of the Māori iwi Ngāti Toa, was ...

had made peace with Ngāti Apa, but Te Pēhi attacked and plundered a Ngāti Apa

pā The word pā (; often spelled pa in English) can refer to any Māori people, Māori village or defensive settlement, but often refers to hillforts – fortified settlements with palisades and defensive :wikt:terrace, terraces – and also to fo ...

anyway. He was part of Te Rauparaha's 1828 raids on the South Island. After sacking the pā at

Kaikōura Kaikōura (; ) is a town on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand, located on New Zealand State Highway 1, State Highway 1, north of Christchurch. The town has an estimated permanent resident population of as of . Kaikōura is th ...

and

Omihi Omihi or Ōmihi is a rural community in the Hurunui District of the Canterbury Region, on New Zealand's South Island. It is located 21km north-east of Amberley, New Zealand, Amberley. Translated from Māori language, Māori, it means place of ( ...

they went further south to the major Ngāi Tahu pā at

Kaiapoi Kaiapoi is a town in the Waimakariri District of the Canterbury, New Zealand, Canterbury region, in the South Island of New Zealand. The town is located approximately 17 kilometres north of central Christchurch, close to the mouth of the Waimak ...

, where they announced that they wished to trade. In fact the Ngāti Toa intended to attack the inhabitants of

Kaiapoi Pā Kaiapoi Pā is a historic pā (fort) site just north of the Waimakariri River in Canterbury, New Zealand. The pā was a major centre of trade and nobility for Ngāi Tahu in the Classical Māori period. Established around 1700, the pā was sa ...

in the morning. The Kaiapoi people were told of Ngāti Toa's intentions, and were already aware of the attacks on their people at Kaikōura. Several Ngāti Toa chiefs entered the pā to trade. Ngāi Tahu and Ngāti Toa accounts of what happened differ, but the outcome was that Ngāi Tahu killed Te Pēhi, Pōkaitara and Te Aratangata in the pā. Te Pēhi was killed by Tangatahara. This incident led to the revenge raids by Te Rauparaha in 1830 with the capture of

Tama-i-hara-nui Tama-i-hara-nui (17?? – 1830/1831) or Tamaiharanui, also known as Te Maiharanui, was a New Zealand Māori chief of Ngāi Tahu and its Ngāti Rakiāmoa hapū. He was "strong and ruthless" and was a central figure in the 1820s Kai Huānga ( ...

from

Takapūneke Takapūneke, with the location also known as Red House Bay, is a former kāinga—an unfortified Māori village—adjacent to present-day Akaroa, New Zealand. Takapūneke was a major trading post for the local iwi (tribe), Ngāi Tahu, as there wa ...

near present-day Akaroa and the three-month successful siege of KaiapoiKaiapoi
Christchurch City Libraries and sacking of Ōnawe the next year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Te Pehi 1790s births 1828 deaths Musket Wars Ngāti Toa people 19th-century Māori tribal leaders