Titokowaru

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Titokowaru

• Source
• http//www.newzealandwars.co.nz

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The South Taranaki War 1868-69

• 'Titokowaru's War' (?)
• The war fought in South Taranaki between 1868 and
  1869 is sometimes given a name like 'Titokowaru's
  War.' For example, in the 1920s, historian James
  Cowan called it 'Titokowaru's campaign'. 
• Labels like 'Titokowaru's campaign' name the
  conflict after Titokowaru, who led the Maori in
  their fight against the Armed Constabulary and
  settler Volunteer Units. However, these days, the
  tendancy is not to name such wars after one or
  other of the sometimes many protagonists
  involved. 
• A better (though less exciting) name might be the
  rather obvious one - the South Taranaki War of
  1868-1869.

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How did the war start?

• On 19 June, 1867, during a short skirmish, two
  surveyors and a military settler were killed by
  Maori at Ketemarae, a large bush clearing near
  Normanby. These days, the Ketemarae Marae of
  Ngati Ruanui stands near the site of the
  killings.
• The Maori involved in the skirmish fled to Te
  Ngutu O Te Manu, the bush stronghold of
  Titokowaru. At the time, Titokowaru was well
  known to settlers, though he had given them
  little cause to think that, one day, he might
  lead a war of Maori against them. But tensions
  were high in the area. Titokowaru refused to hand
  over the Maori involved in the killings to the
  authorities. War was the result. 

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Why was there war?

• Why were tensions so high in South Taranaki in
  1868? 
• To answer this, we need to go back by about 8
  years. Following the earlier war in North
  Taranaki of 1860/61, the lands of Maori 'deemed
  to have been in armed rebellion against the
  Crown' were confiscated. Titokowaru's war was
  substantially a war fought against the
  enforcement of these land confiscations. 
• Titokowaru's fighting force mainly came from
  Ngati Ruanui and Nga Ruahine, two southern
  Taranaki tribes.

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• The Land confiscations, enforced after 1863. 

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End of the war

• On 2 February Titokowaru abandoned his pa at
  Tauranga Iki and fled inland, into the Ngati Maru
  country behind Waitara. Thus ended the South
  Taranaki campaign.

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Tauranga Ika, site of Titokowaru's last pa,
abandoned in 1869 bringing the war to an end.
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Questions

• Complete these questions after watching episode 4
  of NZ Wars
• 1. When was the war?
• 2. Why did the war start?
• 3. How and why did Titokowarus support grow?
• 4. What did Titokowaru achieve?
• 5. How did the war end?