tukaroto potatau matutaera tawhiao

Personal details

Full Name:

  • Tūkāroto Pōtatau Matutaera Tāwhiao

Lifetime:

  • ?26 Aug 1894
Biography

Tāwhiao's father Pōtatau was the first Māori King, and on his death in 1860 Tāwhiao inherited the kingship and the spiritual leadership of his people. He was king for the next 34 years, including the most turbulent period in New Zealand's race relations history.

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Events In History

Articles

Māori King movement - 1860-94

  • Māori King movement - 1860-94

    King Tāwhiao's reign was dominated by the Waikato War and the fallout from it.

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  • Page 2 – Build-up to war

    Like his father, King Tāwhiao had no intention of becoming involved in the war in Taranaki. The government, however, remained unconvinced of this. In July 1860 Governor Gore

  • Page 4 – Raupatu

    Under the terms of the New Zealand Settlements Act 1863 the government confiscated huge areas of Māori land in late 1864.

  • Page 5 – Maintaining Te Kīngitanga

    By the early 1870s, the Kīngitanga was struggling. Living conditions within the Rohe Potae (the Māori King's territory) were poor. Allies such as Ngāti Hauā had resumed selling

  • Page 6 – Tensions ease

    It was clear by the 1870s that the Kīngitanga could no longer fight a war. Attempts were made to ease relations between the king and the colonial government.

  • Page 7 – The death of Tāwhiao

    Tāwhiao died on 26 August 1894. He was buried at Taupiri after a tangihanga attended by thousands.