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Badges of Maori units in the First World War

Badges of Maori units in the First World War

Badges of the Native Contingent (left) and New Zealand (Maori) Pioneer Battalion.

The crest of the Native Contingent includes two traditional Maori weapons, the taiaha and tewhatewha, crossed through a crown. The motto 'Te Hokowhitu a Tu' signified the 140 warriors of the war god, Tu-mata-uenga.

The Pioneer's badge features a Maori warrior's face above a crossed pick and axe, flanked by fern leaf fronds and the words 'NZ Pioneers'.

Christopher Pugsley, Te Hokowhitu a Tu: the Maori Pioneer Battalion in the First World War, Reed, Auckland, 1995

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How to cite this page: 'Badges of Maori units in the First World War', URL: http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/media/photo/badges-of-maori-units, (Ministry for Culture and Heritage), updated 3-Mar-2010

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