Assault on Gate Pā

The British attacked the Ngāi Te Rangi stronghold of Pukehinahina (Gate Pā) with the heaviest artillery bombardment and one of the largest forces used in the New Zealand Wars. They faced just 230 warriors.

Gate Pā had been built less than 5 km from the British camp at Tauranga in an attempt to provoke a rash response. Sensing the opportunity for a successful assault, Lieutenant-General Duncan Cameron arrived from Auckland with reinforcements. On 28 April 1700 troops marched out to attack Gate Pā, which was shelled from daybreak next day.

The British artillery bombardment was the heaviest of the New Zealand Wars, with 110-pounder Armstrong guns supported by 24-pounder howitzers. But Gate Pā withstood the barrage. Māori had placed their war flag 50 m behind the pā, though this fooled the gunners only briefly. By firing few shots in return, the defenders created the impression that the shelling had largely wiped them out.

In fact no more than 15 Māori were killed by the bombardment. When a confident British raiding party assaulted the pā it became disoriented in a maze of trenches and was routed by warriors who emerged from underground bunkers. Within 10 minutes the storming party retreated, having suffered 100 casualties.

The defeat at Gate Pā was a disaster for the British. Those involved looked for someone to blame: the members of the assault party were branded as cowards; the army blamed naval troops; Cameron was accused of being both too rash and too cautious.