Famous Northland battleground reveals British soldiers' grave

METICULOUS: Archaeologists and helpers work at the British soldiers' burial plot on the flank of Ruapekapeka Pa.

For 171 years the remains of 12 young British soldiers and sailors lay in the embrace of a land they died fighting for, far from home.

Now their burial site has been found at Ruapekapeka Pa, known as the ''Bat's Nest'', the palisaded, trenched and tunnelled hilltop fortress of Ngati Hine rangatira Te Ruki Kawiti and allied hapu.

Ruapekapeka, 14km south of Kawakawa, was where the last battle in the ''Northern Wars'' was fought, in January 1846.

But in the intervening 171 years, the grave site of the British dead was lost, found, lost again, raked over by agricultural machinery and trampled by grazing cattle.

In 2015 archaeologist Jonathan Carpenter identified its likely whereabouts near the British camp site on a flank of land within cannon-shot of the pa.

Two weeks ago Mr Carpenter, who intuitively reads shadows in the land as well as using technology such as ground penetrating radar, uncovered part the burial plot, excavating around then covering the remains of two men.

The other bodies were left in peace.

''The graves had last been seen in 1851. The local community, and the local Maori community in particular, were concerned the men were not adequately acknowledged or cared for,'' Mr Carpenter said.

''It was a hugely emotional experience and I felt very, very honoured to find them and be able to share their stories.''

Meticulous work confirmed a ''communal'' grave where burial rites and other considerations had been observed, said Andrew Blanshard, Department of Conservation (DoC) history ranger.

He said the two bodies that were uncovered were buried with ''grave goods'': a smoking pipe and a percussion cap, a musket firing device alongside one.
A musket bullet was lodged in the rib cage, likely the cause of death.

Ngati Hine leader and acting runanga head Pita Tipene, who along with other locals is a descendant of both Kawiti and British force leader Lieutenant Colonel Robert Wynyard, said the discovery meant a lot.

''Certainly for Ngati Hine, this is very significant. This is our history and these were our ancestors' enemies.
"Enemies who died by our hands were revered in life and in death, and they always be.''

Regarding the site having been obliterated in the past, Mr Tipene said: ''It is not how we like to treat our dead whether they be friend or foe.''

''Now it is important we all work together on a memorial of some kind, a way to commemorate them.''

DoC, Heritage New Zealand, Te Ruapekapeka Trust and other hapu members were present during the graves' reveal and subsequent closure to carry out cultural rites and ensure correct protocol.

All the parties plan to work toward memorialising the site in the future, Mr Blanshard said.

The discovery adds to Ruapekapeka's reputation as a significant battleground, internationally and in New Zealand, he said.

It is famous in British military history for Kawiti's use of trench warfare; more recently it has been acknowledged as an international award winning conservation site.

''It is very rare to find graves from any international conflict of that period where men who were not officers were given a proper burial,'' Mr Blanshard said.

Historical records indicate the dead were soldiers from the British 58th Battalion, Marine Corps and ordinary sailors.

Military documents record 12 men were killed and at least 29 wounded during the battle.
Mr Tipene said his people's oral history indicates another two or three ''went missing'', picked off the track by Maori warriors, before they even reached the battleground.