Kawiti Te Ruki 1845 1884

edmondsallan - Hello - On Sunday, 11 January, the British troops entered the pa. It appeared deserted, although Kawiti and a small group remained. (There are confusing accounts that either they, or the rest of the force, were at prayer.) Detachments of Kawiti's men had slipped away previously, in a tactical move, aimed at enticing the troops to follow into the bush, where they could easily be picked off. A strong defensive position had been prepared at the rear of the pa. The feigned retreat was partly successful. The British suffered a total of 45 casualties, while Maori killed and wounded numbered about 30. The pa, like Ohaeawai, was abandoned. It had served its purpose: blood had been spilled and therefore it would never be used again. The battle was not an outright victory for the British. Nevertheless, at the end of January Kawiti and Heke negotiated a peace. Kawiti is said to have pressed a kotuku feather into the hat of the senior British officer, as a gesture of accord. An important part of the peacemaking was Kawiti's reconciliation with Tamati Waka Nene. The divisions in Nga Puhi, and Nga Puhi's failure to support him in the war, were the subject of a now famous takuate (lament) which Kawiti sang, it is said, at Ruapekapeka. The lament acknowledged that the ancestors of Nga Puhi had arrived in many different canoes. Each ancestor had formed his own tribe, who selected their chief, who in turn was the guardian of his own territory. A chief had the right to refuse to support another.
After the peacemaking Kawiti moved to Waionui and later to Pakaraka. Some sources say that he was baptised, by Henry Williams, on 20 February 1853. He was thought to be about 80 years of age when he died at Waiomio on 5 May 1854; his tangi continued for a year. Afterwards his remains were placed with those of his ancestors in Te Pouaka-a-Hineamaru. His son, Maihi, succeeded him as leader of Ngati Hine. Before his death Kawiti warned his people to hold fast to the treasures of their ancestors, and to wait 'until the sandfly nips the pages of the book [the treaty]; then you will rise and oppose'. Descendants have taken this as a special injunction to act, when treaty promises are not upheld.
A marae complex, a loving memorial to Kawiti, was erected at Waiomio Caves by Kawiti's great-grandson, Tawai, who did not live to see its completion; his whanau added his name to the meeting house along with that of his father, his grandfather, and Kawiti. The meeting house name now reads: Tawai, Te Riri, Maihi, Kawiti.
I know some of you know it all or have heard it all before , or may be some of us have forgetten what some of our extended family did in their day . I think may be we should consider -- say , 75 years or more into the future or sooner when , our mokapunas may want to know their Heritage / Ancestry . It may be worth keeping these journals and hand them on when the time comes , I am , what are you going to do ????
Till wemeet again - Regards - edmondsallan