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Overview
This waka taua (war canoe) called Teremoe once belonged to Te Reimana Te Kaporere and Matene Rangitauira, leaders from the upper Whanganui River. They had become involved in Pai Marire, a Māori religious movement committed to the defence of Māori territorial and political independence. Its followers were popularly known as Hauhau.
Battles on the Whanganui River
In 1864 and 1865 Teremoe took part in battles on the Whanganui River between Pai Marire and their lower river relatives who were loyal to the government. The first was at Moutoa Island, when Pai Marire used Teremoe to carry their dead and wounded from the battlefield. The second was at Ohautahi, where the prominent Whanganui chief Hoani Wiremu Hipango was killed. The waka did another tour of duty later in 1865 when Pai Marire besieged the garrison stationed at Pipiriki. By 1869 the breach within the Whanganui iwi had been mended, and the Pai Marire and kawanatanga (government) sides, led by Major Kemp, worked together to chase guerrilla leader Te Kooti from the upper reaches of the river.
Many uses
Teremoe had a crew of up to thirty. As well as being used for warfare, it was also used as river transport and as a fishing canoe.
Gifted to the Dominion Museum
In 1930 Teremoe was bequeathed to the Dominion Museum by Hoani Wiremu's son Waata and his wife Ema. It was restored, with new sideboards and seating planks carved by Thomas Heberley of Te Atiawa. Heberley also added a tauihu (carved prow) from Matata in the Bay of Plenty, and a taurapa (stern post) from Papaitonga in the Horowhenua. These are recorded in Te Papa's collections as separate objects.
This extract originally appeared in Te Ata o Tū The Shadow of Tūmatauenga: The New Zealand Wars Collections of Te Papa (Te Papa Press, 2024) on page 241.
This extract was authored by Matiu Baker.
Teremoe was one of the waka commanded by Te Reimana Te Kaporere and Mātene Te Rangitauira at the battle of Moutoa in May 1864 and was used to transport warriors from Tāwhitinui kāinga to the island for the battle. After the battle, lower-river Māori took the craft to transport the dead, the wounded and captives, downriver to Whanganui.1
The building of a waka taua called for enormous labour over an extended period of time, and involved the whole community. Because of this immense investment of collective tribal resource, waka, especially waka taua, were highly prized; bestowed with personal names, they were considered to possess great mana and tapu.
Many of the most revered waka taua came to represent the body corporate, symbolic of the identity of the hapū or iwi or the person of its chief. It was common on the death of a chief for his waka to be dismantled, the hull painted in kōkōwai and decorated with elaborate kōwhaiwhai designs and feathers, and erected upright in the ground as a waka whakamaumaharatanga, a memorial, to the deceased leader.
On 11 February 1865, Teremoe formed part of the lower-river fleet at the assault of Ōhoutahi, where the senior rangatira Hoani Wiremu Hīpango was wounded. He died two days later. It was also present later in 1865, when Pai Mārire forces besieged the garrison stationed at Pipiriki.
By 1869 the breach within the Whanganui iwi had been mended, and former Pai Mārire and government forces, led by Te Keepa Te Rangihiwinui (Major Kemp), worked together to chase Te Kooti from the upper reaches of the river. This was the last time Teremoe was used in the conflicts. After the wars it continued to be used for river transport and as a fishing canoe.
In 1930 Hoani Wiremu Hīpango’s son, Waata, and his wife, Ema, agreed to gift Teremoe to the nation in preparation for the opening of the new Dominion Museum building in 1936. It was restored, and new sideboards and seating planks were carved by Thomas Heberley of Te Āti Awa. Heberley also added a tauihu from Matatā in the Bay of Plenty, and a taurapa from Papaitonga in the Horowhenua. These are recorded in Te Papa’s collections as separate objects.
Teremoe has remained on permanent display since 1936 until the present day in Te Papa, exciting the imaginations of generations of New Zealanders and international visitors with its grand proportions, elaborately ornate carving and illustrious history.
1 Whanganui tohunga whakairo Hōri Pukehika related that other waka taua present at Moutoa were lost, naming Turiwaea, Waitatapia and Te Rangaatu-tū-te-tawha, and saying: ‘These were the canoes of these chiefs and their tribes in that battle.’ Te Rangaatu-tū-te-tawha was later taken to Pūtiki at Whanganui, but became loose from its mooring and drifted out to sea, to be lost forever. ‘Famous Maori war canoe’, Dominion, 22 February 1930.