Māori Battalion descendants in Whanganui lead Anzac Day parade for first time

Last year's service for the 28th Māori Battalion at Pākaitore. Photo / Bevan Conley

Descendants of members of the Māori Battalion will lead Whanganui’s Anzac Day parade on to the War Memorial Centre forecourt.

The 7am parade will come to a halt and representatives of soldiers from the 28th Māori Battalion, who fought in World War II, will move to the front of the procession.

Māori Battalion representative deputy chairman Hōne Tamehana said the descendants were “honoured and privileged” to take up the role.

“A lot of the soldiers that left here were our granduncles and grandfathers that attended that conflict.

“We will maintain a manutaki which is a position where our warriors flank either side of the band, and in front of it, to escort them on to the forecourt.”

Hōne Tamehana says descendants of the Māori Battalion are honoured to be leading Whanganui's Anzac Day parade. Photo / Bevan Conley

In WWII, the 28th Māori Battalion fought in Greece, notably in the Greek island of Crete; North Africa, and Italy.

According to Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand, the unit received 99 honours and awards, the highest number among New Zealand infantry battalions. More than 3600 men served in the Māori Battalion and 649 were killed.

Achieving equal citizenship to Pākehā motivated some Māori soldiers to enlist, but there were also Māori leaders such as Te Puea Hērangi who opposed taking part in the war due to the government ignoring land grievances.

“We have a tendency to turn our grief and sorrow into happiness that reflects the purposes of what they [soldiers] were striving for: citizenship,” Tamehana said.

“It was a high price to pay for it.”

In previous years, there have been services at Brunswick, Pākaraka, Pākaitore and Whanganui Collegiate that the Māori Battalion has attended.

Sir Robert “Bom” Gillies is the last surviving member of the Māori Battalion.

Late start for Dawn Parade

Tamehana said he was not “overly concerned” about the later start time of Whanganui’s Anzac service at 7am.

“At the end of the day, we are remembering them, whether it be dawn or not.”

He said in previous years he had seen veterans struggle to get up to the Whanganui cenotaph.

“As a result, I’ve seen a few actually fall over.”

Veterans were getting older and that had to be acknowledged, he said.

Eva de Jong is a reporter for the Whanganui Chronicle covering health stories and general news. She began as a reporter in 2023.