Te Whiti o Rongomai
Te Whiti o Rongomai III was born to father Hone Kakahi, the great-great- grandson of Takarangu and Rau-mahora, and mother Rangi-kawau, the daughter of Te Whetu of the Taranaki hapu Patukai. Both his parents were of influential Maori patronage. Te Whiti was born into the Te Ati Awa tribe and is said to have been born during the ‘musket wars’ at Otaka pa. There are differentiating accounts on his birth with some saying he was born at the Otaka pa around the time of the battle of Otaka (1832) between enemies besieging Te Ati Awa. Other traditions have been told that he was born around 1816 or 1817 and was a young man present at the siege at Otaka. Due to the defeat at Otaka, Te Whiti and his family are said to have moved south to Taranaki or Waikanae, later moving and taking up residence at Hopuhopu and Tarakihi with the Patukai people in the early 1840s. This move was under the leadership of his uncle Paora Kukutai and Aperahama Te Reke. Growing up, Te Whiti was believed to hold a special spiritual authority[1] and special care was taken of him to ensure his safety. This spiritual authority was acknowledged when Maori elders entrusted in him traditional knowledge. It is said that Wesleyan minister Minarapa Rangihatuake and a Christian influence may have been introduced by former slaves who probably introduced Te Whiti to the Bible. During this time, Tikanga Hou, a new religion was introduced into the area in 1845. The surrounding Christian influence and his growing status as a teacher of Christianity (taking on the baptismal name of Eureti) probed Te Whiti and Tohu (who shared the same visions of spirituality and mission) to found a new settlement in the late 1840s. Here they established Parihaka. Wanting to withdraw from pressures of coastal life[2], they founded the settlement on values of wanting to inform of God's word, further spreading the news of Christianity to Maori. It is believed that both Te Whiti and Tohu partook in the Taranaki Wars, however they did not participate in violent contact. After the establishment of the settlement, Te Whiti started talks, with fellow Parihaka Maori, on the confiscation of their land and frequently discussed the grievances they were faced with by European settlers and the government. On the Invasion of Parihaka, Te Whiti was arrested and detained in New Plymouth for six months when he was eventually sent to jail. Upon this trial, Te Whiti was charged with ‘wickedly, maliciously, and seditiously contriving and intending to disturb the peace’.[3] Following the death of Tohu, in 1907, Te Whiti died 11 months later on 18 November 1097 at Parihaka. His wife, Hikurangi, died during his last imprisonment. They were survived by Nohomairangi, their son, and daughter Ngaruaki or Pereni.
[1] http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2t34/te-whiti-o-rongomai-iii-erueti
[2] http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2t34/te-whiti-o-rongomai-iii-erueti
[3] http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2t34/te-whiti-o-rongomai-iii-erueti
[1] http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2t34/te-whiti-o-rongomai-iii-erueti
[2] http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2t34/te-whiti-o-rongomai-iii-erueti
[3] http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2t34/te-whiti-o-rongomai-iii-erueti