General Chute's March

Two days into a march from South Taranaki, General Chute must have thought war was balmy. He was stuck in thick bush and his men were wet, cold and hungry.

General Chute was a British officer in the New Zealand Wars. He wasn't frightened of bush fighting. Perhaps that's why be headed boldly into the bush with his army of men and got lost. Read all about it in this week's story.

Rewind to 1866

Decide whether these events really happened. Answer, true or false.

1. The first of Taranaki's British settlers are arriving in New Plymouth.
2. The first of the Taranaki Wars has already happened.
3. The famous fighting chief Titokowaru has captured most of the land between Mt Taranaki and Wanganui.
4. Some Māori are fighting for the British.
5. Some British soldiers have left their army and are living with Māori.

Answers at the bottom of the page.

Answers at the bottom of the page

Who's who in today's story?

The Hauhau was a religious group. During battle they shouted, "Pai marire hau-hau!" and thought this would save them from Pakeha bullets. It didn't. One of the chiefs was Titokowaru, a fearsome warrior. He recaptured a lot of the land between the mountain and Wanganui.

General Chute and his men were there to fight Titokowaru, the Hauhau "rebels" and any other group they thought might be their enemy. Among his soldiers were Māori militiamen - warriors who, for all sorts of reasons had chosen to fight on the British side.

A quality general?

This week's story describes General Chute as a man who didn't worry about any problems that might happen in the future. The historian James Belich says he narrowly escaped being one of the few generals to lose an army without going into battle.

Read this week's story down to "The war machine marches on." Jot down the qualities Chute had that you think a general probably needed.

Compare your list with a classmate's. If you were under the command of General Chute which of those qualities would you rather he not have?

A battler or bully?

The next part of the story describes the general's attacks on South Taranaki settlements. He devastated the territory of the South Taranaki tribes between the Waitotara River and Mt Taranaki. Some settlements had traditional pa but others were unfortified villages with small local forces.

Read "War machine marches on," and decide if Chute really needed to be so ruthless.

A ferocious war

Both sides in this conflict were responsible for cruel and savage acts. That seems to happen in war.

Hauhau began as a peaceful religion with their leader Te Ua telling his people to lay down their arms in the face of foes.  Pakaha though, soon began to see Hauhau as a warring religion and there were two main reasons.

 A Taranaki military patrol was ambushed on 6 April 1864. The heads of the killed soldiers were taken and preserved in the traditional Māori manner. Te Ua believed they were a symbol of the conquest of evil.

 The second reason for believing the Hauhau were a bloodthirsty bunch can be blamed on one of Te Ua's disciples - Kereopa Te Rau, from Te Arawa near Rotorua.

Kereopa believed in peace until his wife and daughter were burnt to death in a sanctuary for Māori women and children during the Waikato wars. 

Kereopa's family had gone to a tangi at Rangiaowhio and on a Sunday, the British troops attacked. They torched the safe haven and even burned down the church where many women and children, including Kereopa's loved ones, had taken refuge. 

It is believed that as an act of revenge, Kereopa decided that the missionary Carl Sylvius Volkner would die.

 Volkner was hung from a willow tree near his church by members of his congregation and after the hanging, his body was decapitated and Kereopa swallowed the eyes, calling one Parliament and the other the Queen and the British law.

From then on many Pakeha gave the name Hauhau to any Māori that opposed the Government.

New road to town

Most people today, unless they live on the Coast, drive to Normanby via Inglewood, Stratford, and Eltham. From there it's only a short distance to Hawera.

Up until 1866 all settler traffic between North and South Taranaki had to make its way around the coast. It was quite a trek. That's why the settlers wanted a new road to New Plymouth - one that would run east of the mountain.

Read the next two parts of the story through to "The march begins in high spirits."

Find out if anyone knew about a track that could have been used as the track for the road.

Now work out on this map where that road goes today.

High hopes

The people of New Plymouth were sure the General would conquer the Taranaki bush and march proudly and quickly into their town. General Chute was a famous soldier with a string of recent victories. Read "The march begins in high spirits," and find out how the settlers planned to welcome the great man to New Plymouth.

Design an invitation to the celebration dinner. Include the dinner's menu. You could use headings like these:

The Superintendent of New Plymouth requests the pleasure of... (who?)

To celebrate... (what?)

The menu: ( add the details but remember some of the things you eat today would not be available then.)

Soup...

Entrée...

Main course...

Dessert...

Speeches: (List the very important people speaking)

Toasts: (List the very important toasts.)

Tough tramp!

Read "The General's tramp does not go well," to find out what went wrong.

Team up with a classmate to write the snakes and ladders and the miss a turns for a new board game called Chute through.

For example a miss a turn might be, Tangled in supplejack. A snake might be, Slid over bluff, and a ladder might be, Powder still dry. Shot a wood pigeon for tea. 

Horse in the pot?

Imagine the discussion that took place when the men were ordered to eat their horses. Rehearse this short play in a group of four and later, when you finish the story, perform it to an audience after telling them the story of General Chute's March.

General Chute: Alright men, gather round. I've been thinking and I've made up my mind. We're going to eat the horses.

Gasps of surprise and grumbling sounds from the men

Major Kemp: Will we start with your horse General?

General: No, we will start with that one there. It has more meat on its bones.

Sergeant Rielly: Permission to speak Sir.

General: Granted Rielly.

Sergeant: That's my horse Sir. Dolly carried me to safety through the Hauhau Pa. I took a musket ball in the shoulder and another in the knee. She carried me through Sir.

General: Very well sergeant. Major! Arrange for the butchering of that skinny nag there. It doesn't look as if it has carried a soldier in a long time.

Private Bean: Permission to speak general.

General: Quick about it Bean

Private Bean: Slim has the runs Sir. It would be very unhygienic to eat Slim Sir.

General: Good o Bean - that little white mare over there then. We'll begin with her Mr Kemp.

Major Kemp: Can't do that Sir.

General: Why ever not Major?

Major: That's Cloud Sir, the leader of the pack. Without Cloud the stallions could stampede.

General: Very well Major. Private Bean! You will shoot and butcher my horse and feed it to the men.

Private Bean: Permission to speak Sir. Will that be before or after you dismount Sir?

A very close call

Finish the story now and then print out the "Chute decision maker" PDF below and in your group of four or in pairs, find a solution to some of the problems General Chute faced.

Fast forward

This week is sea week, a time to think about the sea and how best to protect all that lives in and around it.

Marine biologist Dr Bill Ballantine, would like to see a marine reserve set up in Taranaki. He says just as foresters plant new trees to replace the ones that people chop down, so too would marine reserves help replace the fish that people eat.

Not everyone agrees.

Stuart Gibson from Okato said this in the Taranaki Daily News.

 "I don't need a bunch of lanky, hairy legged scientists with less meat on them than a bicycle coming around telling me where I can and can't go fishing."  Stuart says he lives in a country that is rich in resources but asks what good are the resources if no one exploits them. He says recreational fishermen like himself need all the sea they can get.

Marine reserves are "no take areas". About the only thing you can take are photos. There's already a protected area around the Nga motu/ Sugar Loaf Islands and a "no take" area around the Seal Rock group. The whole area has special rules but many people want to turn this area and perhaps another one into marine reserves.

Decide if the following statements are arguments for or against marine reserves.

1. Taranaki has some unique sea creatures.
2. Some people might not worry about protecting other areas of the sea if they know there is a highly protected marine reserve.
3. Seals eat more fish than the people that drop a line into the sea.
4. Fish will spill out over the reserve boundaries and people can catch them.
5. Some reefs are over fished. There is evidence of tackle and bits of net.
6. People won't be able to fish on one of the only sheltered spots on the Taranaki Coast.
7. 30% of New Zealand's land is protected but less than 1% of our ocean is
8. It might not allow people to take seafood from an area that has been tarditionally fished for generations.

Answers at the bottom of the page

Answers

Rewind

1. False. The first settlers began to arrive in 1841.
2. True. The first of the wars broke out 17 March 1860.
3. True.
4. True. Look in "Ask an expert" in this TreasureLink to find out why.
5. True and one was Kimble Bent and here is his story.

Click to go back to the questions.

Word Watch

1a, 2b, 3a, 4a, 5b, 6b, 7a, 8b, 9a, 10a

Click to go back to the questions.

Fast forward marine reserves

1. For
2. Against
3. Against
4. For
5. For
6. Against
7. For
8. Against

Click to go back to the questions.