item details
NameCap badge, 16th (Waikato) Regiment
ProductionUnknown; manufacturer(s); 1912-1916
Classificationinsignias, badges
Materialsbrass
DimensionsOverall: 35mm (width), 40mm (height), 13mm (depth)
Registration NumberGH017819/24
Overview
This unit's cap badge is on display at Te Papa in Gallipoli: The scale of our war.
The 16th (Waikato) Regiment was formed in 1911 as a Volunteer infantry regiment in the Auckland Military District. The Regiment's insignia shows a Maori warrior’s raised arm grasping a taiaha (customary weapon) , symbolising the bravery of Maori warriors. The Crown represents loyalty to the monarch and the fern leaves symbolise New Zealand.
The Regiment's motto ‘Ka whawhai tonu ake ake’ / ‘We will fight against you for ever’ – is the famous battle cry of Rewi Maniapoto, who fought British forces in the Waikato in 1864.