The Plunder of Parihaka

John Bryce led 1500 armed soldiers towards Parihaka on 5 November 1881. Guy Fawkes had tried to blow up the English Parliament on the very same day in 1605. He disagreed with government laws and planned a violent protest.

In Formation: The Armed Constabulary gathers outside Parihaka, 5 November 1881.

Parihaka people didn't like the government laws either but their protests had always been peaceful. So why was Mr Bryce, expecting fireworks?

REWIND...to 1881

True or false? 

1. For new settlers New Zealand is a good place to live. Unlike much of Europe there seems to be plenty of milk, bread, meat and cheese.

2. Owning land is something new settlers can only dream of.

3. The Government has taken large areas of land from Maori.

4. More than 2000 people from many parts of New Zealand are living at Parihaka.

5. Parihaka in Taranaki is the largest Maori village in New Zealand.

Where is Parihaka?

In pairs, decide where Parihaka is on this map.

Starters

Put yourself in the shoes of others. What do you think?

Over 100,000 immigrants, came to New Zealand in the 1870s and many of them were children. It was the first time a really large number of families had come here and many had agreed to come because they had been offered farms.

For the families - A wise move or wrong move?

By now the easiest land was already being farmed. Sheep grazed the grassy South Island plains and the North Island's open country. Taranaki's forest was being cleared and some Canterbury farmers had sold their small farms and moved to Taranaki to find new ones.

For the farmers - A wise move or wrong move?

The government had confiscated or taken around 2 million acres of Maori land but had promised that land from Cape Egmont to Manaia would become Maori reserves. After surveyors marked out this land on the Waimate Plains, it was settlers that began to move in.

For the government - Trickery or a "must do"?

The people of Parihaka step up their protests. They plough up the farms and later build fences across farms and roads. The settlers tear them down every day but a few hours later the fences are back.

For Maori - A violent or peaceful protest?

For settlers - A frustrating or frightening time?

Now the government passes a new law that lets them jail protestors without trial. Hundreds of Maori are arrested and kept in prison. Some get sent south to work on roads around the Otago harbour. Conditions are harsh and many of these people will never return.

For the government - A right or wrong decision?

Whose headlines?

By yourself: Write three newspaper headlines to match three of the events above.

With someone: Swap headlines and work out which event their headline is from.

Let's read

Read the first part of this story through to Day of Pahua. Click here to view the story.

Look for evidence as you read that shows:

• The troops were expecting a battle.
• Troop numbers had been building for some time.
• John Bryce wanted a piece of the action.
• Te Whiti was a man of peace.
• The people of Parihaka were expecting the soldiers to come.

Key players

Out of those listed below, who is more likely to have said something like...

1. "We need to break up Parihaka once and for all."

2. "Do not fight back when the invaders come. Offer no resistance."

3. "I might join the troops as a volunteer. I just want to get on with farming."

4. "This battle for Parihaka will be a bloody one you know."

5. "I too say this is a place of peace and if you are attacked you are to turn the other  cheek."

6. "A lot of those soldiers on that hill don't look very friendly."

A. One of the soldiers	B. Te Whiti - a leader at Parihaka
C. A settler	D. John Bryce - the Native Affairs Government Minister
E. A boy from Parihaka	F. Tohu Kakahi - a leader at Parihaka

Know your words

These words are all in the story. Choose the answer that best shows what they mean.

1. ministerial act  (a) singing in church or (b) a deed done by a government minister

2. a charismatic person  (a) one who attracts others or (b) one who looks good in a photo

3. passive resistance (a) violent protest or (b) opposing something peacefully

4. plunder (a) rob or (b) use force

5. hindrance (a) assistance or (b) obstruction

6. philosophy (a) a long poem or (b) beliefs and values

7. cavalry (a) soldiers on horseback or (b) naval vessels

8. taonga (a) money or (b) treasures

Puzzle and predict

Now find out what the children did on the Day of Pahua. Read this part of the story and the part called Turn other cheek.

Talk about and jot down ideas to fit each space. Do this in pairs or a small group then share your ideas in class. (Draw a bigger chart first on a big piece of paper.)

The people	An action	The puzzle Something they may have been thinking	The prediction Something they may have thought might happen
The women	baking bread
The children	skipping dancing singing
The soldiers

What if?

Read Silent scene stuns soldiers and A deafening quiet

Think, pair and share your ideas about each of these.

What if...

...the people had not listened to their leader and put up a fight?

...instead of a "deafening quiet" there had been argument and a lot of shouting?

...Te Whiti, Tohu and the other chiefs had refused to surrender?

...all troops had left Parihaka with their prisoners and returned to New Plymouth?

Find the evidence

Read the last part of the story that tells of the Pahua or plundering. Look for the evidence that tells us these things happened:

• Some soldiers disobeyed orders.
• Some soldiers wanted to use their weapons.
• Some soldiers were thieves and bullies.
• Some soldiers stayed at Parihaka for a very long time.

Survival and hope

Place of Peace:  In the distance is Miti-mai-te-arero, the meeting house of Te Whiti o Rongomai.  This was the first European-style building erected at Parihaka.

In little more than three weeks the largest and most prosperous Maori town of the 1880s had been ransacked. Over 18 hectares of crops had been destroyed and houses had been burnt down. Hundreds of people had been arrested and sent to prison without trial. Surveyors and road makers were subdividing and cutting roads through the surrounding Maori farmland.

By 1895 Parihaka had its own butchers, bakers, electricity and gas supply, street lighting, drainage and a bank. But others had the surrounding land. They lived off it. They worked, they farmed, they sold their goods and farmers prospered. Parihaka and its people missed out.

Wharehoka Wano tells us that one day each year is remembered as a day of great sadness, but also as a day of survival and hope. "We don't celebrate it of course, we commemorate it."

What date is this?

Fast forward to 2003

Puke Ariki is telling the story of Parihaka in a major exhibition happening right now. It's called "Parihaka - the Struggle for Peace". It tells more of the story that you read about today and you find out about Parihaka now.

Makere Wano grew up at Parihaka. She said the time was right for the story to be told in Taranaki. Te Whiti's great grandson, Rangikotuku Rukuwai said he hoped the exhibition would help bring out the sorrows of Parihaka and open its people up to the outside world.

So how does an exhibition catch the atmosphere of the times? Puke Ariki manager Suzanne Porter tells us the story of Parihaka is told through art and through other medium such as objects and waiata.

Plan an exhibition

Do this in a small group. You know the story of Parihaka and now you have to plan the exhibition at Puke Ariki.

• What will you need? Make a list. Think about what Suzanne has said.
• Where will these treasures come from? List some likely places.
• Who will you ask? You can't just take it. Make a list.
• How will you display the different types of treasures? Draw up a plan.
• How will you keep your treasures safe? List some ideas.
• How will you let the treasures tell their stories? Printed labels can be good. What else could you use? Think, "High tech."
• What equipment will you need to make the most of the treasures you collect? Make a list.
• How do you check your information is correct?  List some ways.
• What if exhibition visitors want to know more while they are there? Think of a solution.
• What should happen just before this exhibition opens to visitors and who should be invited? Make two lists.

Find out more about the exhibition by clicking here.