Te Kingitanga
The Maori King
movement of the
1850s
Origins
• Excessive Maori land sales to the British
crown angered many
• Tamihana Te Rauparaha was the instigator of
the idea of Maori sovereignty
• He wanted Maori to have the same status as
Pakeha
• Also wanted unity among tribes that looked set
to tear each other apart
• There was a belief that a Maori monarch
would ensure this…
Wiremu Tamihana – the
Kingmaker
• Had a leading part in
the King’s installation
• Saw no conflict
between the King
movement and the
English monarchy.
• “The Queen and the
King, they are one.
Each is on the piece
which belongs to
each.”
Potatau Te Wherowhero
• Potatau was not
keen on being King
• Selected by
gathered chiefs in
1857
• Reluctantly
crowned at
Ngaruawahia in
1858
British
Reaction
• The British saw this as open rebellion against the
British crown and thought the Maori were for
creating their own laws
• Kingites still agreed to Crown law; just wanted a
ruler for their people who was from their people – “he
who is from among thy brethren shalt thou set over
thee”
• Maori saw the two monarchs as equal with ‘God over
both’
• British were offended at the placement of a ‘native’
on par with their Queen
Implications
• A boundary was set at the Maungatawhiri river line; it
did not put the Maori outside of the Crown law but rather
had those within the boundary subject to the King’s
authority
•The British saw this
declaration of area a
declaration of ill intent and
Governor Gore-Browne
wanted a showdown – his
troops crossed the boundary
line…
•Then there was resistance to
further Crown purchase of
land…
Outbreak of War
• Battle broke out
between Kingites
and crown troops in
Taranaki in March
1860…The first of
a series that would
come to be known
as the New Zealand
Wars
Who was involved?
• Not all Maori were Kingites
• Certain tribes for Taranaki and Waikato
were the main forces behind the movement
• Today the Kingitanga movement is
synonymous with the Iwi confederation
Tainui
The King
Country
• 'It was not a declaration of
Maori independence – this
already existed – and it added
no new territory to the Maori
sphere. It sought merely to
unite pre-existing polities. But
in other ways the Movement
was an important change.
Together with the rise in antiland-selling generally, it raised
the profile of Maori
independence from a level
which the British disliked but
tolerated, to a level which
many found entirely
unacceptable.' - James Belich