Name Tamihana Rauparaha Died 1876 | Role Writer | |
Books Life & Times of Te Rauparaha | ||
Tāmihana (born Katu) Te Rauparaha (1820s – October 1876) was a notable New Zealand Māori leader, Christian evangelist, assessor, writer and farmer. He was born in Pukearuhe, Taranaki, New Zealand, the son of the great Ngati Toa leader Te Rauparaha and his fifth and senior wife, Te Akau of Tuhourangi.
Tāmihana was strongly influenced by Church Missionary Society teaching. In 1842 Tāmihana worked as a missionary in the South Island, easing fears of renewed conflict from his father's old enemies. The following year he married Ruta Te Kapu in Otaki. In October 1850 he sailed for England, where he was presented to the Queen Victoria. On his return Tāmihana became supportive of the idea of a Māori King to unify tribes. Initially he joined the King movement in opposing the selling of Maori land to the government, but when a chief of Te Āti Awa, Wiremu Kīngi got into conflict with the government over the sale of land at Waitara, he broke with the movement and sided with the government over issues of land and sovereignty.