Marae History
| Whakapaa atu ki teetehi o ngaa pane kikorangi nei kia titiro ake ki ngaa hiitori o te marae o Waahi Paa. |
| Click on a heading to read more about the history of Waahi Paa |
| Ko ngeetehi o ngaa korero nei, he mea taakoha mai ngaa Pourangahau Paakeha i nohotahi i waenga i te whaanau o Waahi ki te tirotiro, ki te ako, me te tuhituhi hoki i ngaa ahuatanga a te Maori |
| Some of the korero in this history segment has been given from reports of Anthropologists that were invited and lived at the marae within the whaanau of Waahi, where they studied the concepts of Maori at Waahi and in turn helped us to achieve better thing for our people |
TE POUKAI O WAAHI
THE MAORI COMMUNITY OF WAAHI MARAE
THE PEOPLE AND THEIR LAND
WAAHI MARAE WAAHI MARAE AND KIINGITANGA
THE MAORI POPULATION OF THE HUNTLY AREA
NGAATI MAHUTA
THE MAORI COMMUNITY OF WAAHI MARAE, HUNTLY
Located on the bank of the Waikato River near the Borough of Huntly and adjacent to the construction site of the Huntly Power Station, Waahi is the principal Marae of Ngaati Mahuta of Waikato and home of the Kaahui Ariki, the paramount family in the King Movement, led by the Maori Queen, Te Atairangikaahu. The Marae functions as the focus of much of the community life of Ngaati Mahuta who is the most numerous tribe in the Huntly area. As the home of the Kaahui Ariki since the 1890’s, it also functions as a focus for all the tribes of the Waikato-King Country and beyond who are affiliated to the King Movement. The long association with Kiingitanga gives this Marae special significance in the Maori world. This document attempts to explain the relationship of the Maori people to the land in the Huntly area and the development of Waahi Marae. It also provides some information about the Waahi Marae community and a preliminary assessment of the effects of the construction of the Huntly Thermal Power Station next door to their Marae (refer: map 1).
THE PEOPLE AND THEIR LANDThe Waikato River flows north from the Hamilton basin across the steep hill country of the Hakarimata Ranges and Taupiri Mountain through the Taupiri Gorge to the low-lying, swampy lands about Huntly (refer: map 2). To the west of the river is Lake Waahi and to the east Lake Hakanoa. When Maori settlers first came to this area, tuna (eels) were plentiful in both lakes. In order to conserve the tune supplies from both lakes, a rest period between fishing seasons was proclaimed by the local chief. He signified this by driving a pou-rahui (flax stick) into the ground. At the end of the rest period he heralded the start of a new fishing season by lowering the pou-rahui to ground level in front of the assembled people. In time, however, the groups living on the east and west banks quarreled over the size of their respective eel catches. Friction developed and there was thereat of bloodshed. The chief gathered his people together and said, “this quarrelling must cease. Behold I have driven the pou-rahui into the ground. When I cease speaking I shall lower it. From this day when our pou-rahui is lowered we will dance a haka of joy to show that we are all free from our bond not to fish for tuna. To commemorate this event the eastern lake shall be named Hakanoa. From today all eels taken from both lakes shall be divided evenly between our two groups and to record this the western lake shall be called Waahi.”Because of these events the Maori name given to the Huntly area was Raahui Pokeka. Another version of the origin of this name is that it denotes a place of rest where warriors could rest and practice the arts of war between the acknowledged battlegrounds or Rangiriri and Taupiri.By the early 1700’s, Ngaati Mahuta was well established in the Huntly-Ngaaruawaahia area. Waahi was an eeling camp and the main settlements were around Taupiri. During the early 1800’s, Pootatau Te Wherowhero, chief of Ngaati Mahuta, established his reputation as a fighting chief. This and his high genealogical descent from Hoturoa, commander of the Tainui Canoe, and Te Putu, a great fighting chief of Waikato, led to his being acknowledged as paramount chief among the tribes of the Waikato. In the 1840’s Pootatau’s villages were scattered through the Waikato, particularly at Taupiri and Ngaaruawaahia, and at Taharoa and Kaawhia. At this stage the influence of Pootatau Te Wherowhero was such that Governor Grey, concerned about hostility between European settlers and local Maoris in Northland and Wellington, asked him to place the embryo town of Auckland under his mana as a means of preventing any attack. Pootatau was persuaded to settle at Mangere and 121 people at Ngaati Mahuta signed an agreement to this effect in 1849.
WAAHI MARAE
There had been a settlement at Waahi during the 1850’s for King Mahuta had been adopted by his grandfather, Manuhiri, and was raised there at this time. It is not known exactly when the settlement was re-established as a Marae after confiscation. Records held in the Department of Maori Affairs (Parish of Pepepe Lot 42 and 42 X 1 Block Order File 711/W) indicate that the first registered owner of the land on which the Marae is located was Honana Maioha. He obtained a title as a result of a Crown Grant in 1870.Honana died in 1905 and in his will left three-quarters of the shares in the block to his brother, Patara Te Tuhi, and a one-quarter share to Hota Wi Tara. Patara died five years later and will his interests to Hota Wi Tara. In 1917 Hota died in his will his interests were left to Tuhokai Takirua Hota during his lifetime and to his children in equal shares thereafter. It seems that Tuhokai’s children, Wati and Tiahuia, succeeded to his interests and after partitioning the land, Tiahuia agreed to vest the portion the Marae is on to Koroki, or some other Trustee he might wish to nominate. In support of the vesting application, Tonga Mahuta, Te Puea Herangi, and others, said that Waahi was an old papakainga, which had been occupied as a Paa for many generations and it was the home Mare of the Maori Kings.In 1945, Te Aa Takirua and Wati Te Tuhi succeeded to Lot 42 and a few months later a partition application was agreed giving Wati Te Tuhi, alias Wati Tarahawaiki, 5 hectares (12 ½ acres) and Takirua, 15.2 hectares (37 ½ acres). Upon Wati’s death, Koroki, the fifth Maori King, succeeded to her interest. On 7 September 1955, this land was set aside as a reserve for the purpose of erecting new houses for the community. On 29 November 1966, a succession order to Koroki’s title was granted to Te Atairangikaahu, the Maori Queen.
WAAHI MARAE AND KIINGITANGADuring the 1890’s, Waahi became established as the principal Marae of Ngaati Mahuta. Because he had been raised there as a child, King Mahuta confirmed the status of Waahi as the principal Marae of the King Movement by virtue of establishing his residence there. His successor, Te Rata, who held office from 1912 to 1933, lived there. King Koroki succeeded Te Rata and also lived at Waahi until 1952. The annual Coronation Celebrations were held there from the 1990’s on, and receptions for delegations from tribes affiliated to the King Movement were held there. Government delegations of various kinds and the Governor-General and his party were received there. Distinguished visitors were carried by war canoe across the Waikato River from Huntly and landed on the riverbank adjacent to Waahi Marae as part of their ceremonial welcome to the Marae.During the 1920’s, under the leadership of Princess Te Puea Herangi, a settlement was founded at Turangawaewae in Ngaaruawaahia. Other settlements of Waikato people were also established at this time but Ngaaruawaahia had special symbolic significance as the location of the centre of the King Movement before the 1863 war. Te Puea planned Turangawaewae as the ceremonial headquarters of the Movement and its name, meaning, a place to stand”, symbolizes the re-establishment of Ngaati Mahuta and other Waikato tribes in their ancestral lands. The elaborately carved meetinghouse, Mahinaarangi, was opened in the late 1930’s and many receptions were held there.In 1940 a decision was made to transfer the Coronation Celebrations from Waahi to Turangawaewae. The dining hall and cookhouses at Waahi were in such poor condition they were no longer adequate to cope with the numbers of people coming to the celebrations, and were demolished. King Koroki approved the arrangement and so Turangawaewae quickly developed as the ceremonial centre, although it was intended that the Coronation Celebrations be returned to Waahi when adequate facilities had be constructed. Koroki retained his residence at Waahi, preferring the privacy there. Thus, although much of the outward ceremonial and more elaborate buildings are at Turangawaewae, Waahi retained its important spiritual role as the home of the Kaahui Ariki, the paramount family, and this gives it a status above that of an ordinary Marae. The appearance of Waahi Marae belies its importance. Located on the bank of the Waikato River, it is within the area designated by the Waikato Valley Authority for flood protection works. Until such works are completed, no building permits can be issued in flood-prone areas. But the elders of Waahi Marae have resisted any flood protection schemes, which would disturb in any way the sacred ground of the Marae. They also want to be assured of adequate compensation and complete reconstruction of buildings affected by any flood protection works.The lack of development on the Marae has not detracted from its importance.Through the 1940’s ceremonial war canoe landings were held there. The last canoe landing was in 1972when the Hob. Duncan McIntyre was welcomed to the Marae. The annual Poukai, a gathering unique to the King Movement held over a weekend in October, attracts up to 2,000 people. Some 600 people are housed and fed over the 3 to 4 days of a tangi. Visiting football teams from outside the district are accommodated on the Marae. Catering for these numbers obviously imposes a strain on the resources of the local people for it is expected that as far as possible, traditional Maori foods will be served. Functions are held there on average at least once a month. Many of these hui (gatherings) are normal for any Marae. As the home of the Kaahui Ariki, Waahi also serves as a meeting place for more than the usual number of committees (many of the important committees that administer the various functions at Turangawaewae are based at Waahi) and delegations from other tribes seeking informal meetings with members of the Kaahui Ariki. The comment has been made that the destruction of Waahi would destroy the whole King Movement.To some observers the organisation and rituals of the King Movement, or Kiingitanga, may seem an anachronistic survival from nineteenth century circumstances. But the events of over a century ago – war, confiscation of land, withdrawal as refugees and resettlement – are but as yesterday in the perceptions of Waikato tribes. Kiingitanga and the figure of the Queen herself are both an expression of past grievances and injustices and symbol of Maori values and institutions, which are threatened by Pakeha domination. The principal function of the Ariki, the leader, in modern times is hei pupuri i te mana, to hold on to Maori prestige.The philosophy and activities of Kiingitanga provide its adherents with an alternative set of symbols and values, another life style from the 40-hour week, quarter-acre section and house with mortgage, and other trappings of modern urban living. The Poukai gatherings, Coronation Celebrations, life crises rituals and other hui, provide a network of occasions within which people come together to laugh, sing, play, work, and talk about those things which they feel are important. Winiata (1958) summarized the significance of the King Movement in modern times: The Maori King Movement stands as a bulwark for Maori and values. It is a Mauri o te Maoritanga – a bulwark. Its function in New Zealand society is to conserve elements of Maori culture and thereby bring to mind those values in any society that cannot be turned into cash terms though of any inestimable worth in systems of living anywhere. Again, the King Movement provides a section of the Maori people with a social and cultural background in which to frame their lives in a wider society that is often cold, forbidding and even antagonistic. This more intimate covering for their spirit keeps them warm in the wider atmosphere about them. |
Waahi and Turangawaewae functions as both geographic and symbolic centres of the wider network of the King Movement. The main categories of gatherings are the Coronation Celebrations and the Poukai, an annual cycle of visits by the Queen and her party to Marae’s affiliated with the Movement. Map 3 indicates the Marae where Poukai were held in the 1975 – 76 cycles from September 1975 to June 1976. Poukai have also been held at Murupara and Te Whaiti in past years but the only Tuhoe Marae to stage a Poukai in 1975 – 76 was Kokohinau, in Te Teko. The Poukai at Huria (Judea), an Ngaati Ranginui Marae in Tauranga, was discontinued until the new dining facilities are completed around about 1977. In addition to King Movement functions, the Queen attends, or is represented, at most major Maori gatherings in the country. The Queen and her party of elders and old women are probably the most active hui-goers in the country, attending 80 or more gatherings in a year compared with an average 20-25 for active elders in other areas. Waahi Marae is more than just the Marae of Ngaati Mahuta of the Huntly area and out migrants who return for specific occasions. It also functions as a centre of a much wider Maori network of relationships with other tribes and regions.
THE MAORI POPULATION OF THE HUNTLY AREA
There are two main features in the distribution of Maori population in and around the Huntly Borough: the dominance of Ngaati Mahuta and the concentration on the west bank of the Waikato River. Historically, the European coalmining town of Huntly was on the east bank of the river and Maori settlement was on the opposite side. Until a bridge was built in 1913, the only access to Waahi was by ferry; the main road and Main Trunk Railway followed the east bank. Since the Second World War, there has been expansion of Huntly Borough across the river, particularly with the construction of a large state housing area in Huntly West, and with it expansion of European settlement. But there has been very little penetration of Huntly East By Maori families (refer: map 4). Thus, to some extent, the Waikato River is still the historical dividing line between the two communities. With the construction of the Power project housing on the Baker Block, the European element in Huntly West has increased.
NGAATI MAHUTAWaahi Marae is the focus of Ngaati Mahuta but only about 10 households are located around the Marae itself. Another 26 households are in the adjacent Taniwharau and Miria Te Kakara Streets. A further 24 households are located in the state housing area of Huntly West and another 6 scattered in other streets of Huntly West. Only two Ngaati Mahuta households are located in the Huntly Borough east of the river. Small clusters of 4 households are located at Hukanui, north of Rakaumanga. The structure of this community of 72 households is discussed in more detail below.Outside the Huntly area there are Ngaati Mahuta at Taharoa, descendants of people settled there by Potatau in the nineteenth century. Other “expatriate” groups are more recent departures of whole households to live in Auckland, Wellington, and Hamilton. In addition to this more permanent migration, there is a “floating” population of young, mostly single, people who have moved to Auckland and Wellington to find jobs. The numbers of Ngaati Mahuta in Auckland and Wellington probably total about 100 – 200 in each city, but more detailed information on these migrants is not available. Ngaati Mahuta and other Waikato kin long resident in Auckland have formed the tangata whenua of Mangere Marae by virtue of the earlier association with Waahi and Kiingitanga is maintained, Mangere operates in a highly urbanized context.
TE POUKAI O WAAHI
I te tau 1967, i whakatuungia te Poukai ki Waahi hei tohu whakamahara i te Koroneihana o Kiingi Korokii.I tau ki a Waahi te mana whakahaere o ngaa hui matua katoa o te Kiingitanga. I huri teenei, hei te tuunga o Te Puea i te Marae o Tuurangawaewae i ngaa tau 1950 hei whakatinana i teeraa o ngaa Tongi a TawhiaoKo Arekahanara tooku haona kaha, Ko Keemureti tooku oko horoi,
Ko Ngaruawaahia tooku Turangawaewae. Noo te tuunga o Turangawaewae me ngaa whakahanganga ki Waahi, ka whakarite e Te Puea kia huunuku i te Koroneihana ki Ngaaruawaahia. I teenei waa i tuku i a Turangawaewae marae hei tuuranga waewae mo ngaa hui a iwi, aa, ka waiho maa Waahi e tuu hei kainga tuuturu mo te Kiingi.Teera te huatau i huhua ake, kia whakarite i teetehi raa Poukai ki Waahi, heoti, i mau puumau te hau kainga ki te kupu oohaki a Kiingi Korokii. 'Waiho a Waahi hei kainga mooku'.Hei te hokinga o Kiingi Koroki ki Hawaiki raa anoo, ka whai a Te Marae Paki, te kotiro a Tonga Mahuta, te whakarite i teetehi Poukai ki Waahi hei tohu whakahoonore i toona Koroneihana. I wherawherahia te take nei ki teetehi hui ki Maahinaarangi, naa te kaha waananga o ngaa kaumaatua i teenei kaupapa i whakataungia e raatou i te raa, hei Poukai ki Waahi.I titia ki te ngaakau o Te Marae kia noho puumau teenei kaupapa ki Waahi, naa te manako o marae kee ki teenei o ngaa raa hei Poukai maa ratou. Koiraa i rokiroki ai ki te kookoo o mahara o te rahi, maa teenei e whakahoki mai i ngaa tuu aahua o te Koroneihana ki Waahi. Naa wai raa, naa te kaha tautohetohe i te kaupapa, kaatahi a Te Arikinui ka whakaae kia whakatuungia i teenei Poukai ki Waahi Paa.
Naa teenei, ka kookiri a Te Marae me toona teina a Hera i ngaa whakanekeneke me ngaa whakanukunuku o teenei Poukai. I waiho maa raaua e arahi i nga whakahaerenga o te raa. Ko te hoko me te whakarite i ngaa kai me te whakatau i ngaa kaupapa katoa e paa ana ki teenei Poukai.I teenei wa, kua whakaritea i eenei whakahaerenga i raro i te Koomiti whakahaere i te Poukai o Waahi. No reira, teenaa koutou katoa.He pou Atua, he pou tangata, he puna kai, he Poukai
Page last updated 8 Jul 2009
