Māori surrender at Rangiriri

More British soldiers were killed at ‘Bloody Rangiriri’ than in any other battle of the New Zealand Wars. But their victory opened the Waikato basin to the imperial forces.

Following the invasion of Waikato in July, Māori had thrown up a defensive line at Rangiriri on a narrow strip of land between the Waikato River and Lake Waikare. Protected to the south by swampy land, the site for the pā was well chosen, with escape routes worked out.

The central redoubt, the work of the chief Te Wharepū, was a carefully hidden trap with concealed firing positions. The British commander, General Duncan Cameron, conceded after the battle that its strength had not been detected by the British. But while it was a formidable earthwork fortification, Rangiriri was incomplete. It was also under-manned, with perhaps only 500 warriors present. Māori resources had been stretched by the  prolonged defence of Meremere.

Cameron had almost 1500 men available, plus artillery. As at Meremere, the British landed troops by boat behind enemy lines. Māori were driven from the outlying earthworks on the afternoon of the 20th but the central position remained unbreached at nightfall. King Tāwhiao and other leaders were evacuated during the night.

With limited numbers available, the defenders could not afford to waste warriors in an heroic stand against overwhelming odds. Around 5 a.m. on the morning of 21 November they raised a white flag. While recognised as a symbol of surrender, the white flag could also be an invitation to negotiate. There is some evidence that the Māori at Rangiriri were not surrendering. One of those present, Lieutenant Pennefather, described events to Archdeacon Robert Maunsell:

The Maoris hoisted the white flag. [Pennefather] at once scrambled into their redoubt, and with his men mingled amongst them, shaking hands, and the General came up about ten minutes afterwards complimented them on their bravery and demanded their arms. To this they demurred: but the chiefs felt that to resist now was out of the question and decided upon delivering up their arms as required having first said that the reason of hoisting the white flag was that they might ask what terms they might expect.

The casualties at Rangiriri were among the heaviest of the New Zealand Wars: 132 British and about 70 Māori were killed or wounded. The official record of events described a stunning British victory, with as many as 280 casualties inflicted on a ‘numerically superior’ force. Others felt that 35 dead Māori was a poor return for the 47 British killed.

Image: detail from Waikato war map