Battle of Gate Pā commemoration held in Tauranga

A reconstruction of what the battle ground might have looked like. Photo / Buddy Mikaere

By RNZ

In Tauranga about 100 people have gathered to mark the 159th anniversary of the battle of Gate Pā.

The commemorations, held at St George’s Church, which is built on top of the pā site, began at on Saturday at 4pm, the time when British forces launched their attack on the pā.

The church bell was rung 60 times to remember the approximately 60 men who lost their lives during the battle.

Vicar John Hebenton said when the service began in 2015 the parish wanted to provide a space for people to remember the battle every year.

“A lot of [the people of Tauranga] don’t know that this event happens, a lot of them don’t know about the battle of Gate Pā.

“They probably drive up Cameron Rd past the pou and think, ‘I wonder what happened there,’ but never stop to find out.”

The service was a place where people from Tauranga could learn more and have informed conversations about their history, he said.

Ngāi Tamarāwaho historian Buddy Mikaere said the service had a nice atmosphere about it, with a mixture of Māori and English spoken.

“Apart from that it’s an opportunity to get young people to participate in this event, because at the end of the day they’re going to inherit it and we need them to carry that torch forward,” he said.

The 150th Battle of Gate Pa Commemorations took place in 2014. Photo / Buddy Mikaere

On April 29, 1864, the Battle of Gate Pā was fought on a ridge known as Pukehinahina, between British troops and Ngāi Te Rangi led by Rāwiri Puhirake.

For most of that day, British artillery bombarded the pā, but its bunkers and trenches kept the majority of Māori in the pā safe.

When British forces stormed the pā they were surprised to find most of its defenders alive, the assault turned into a rout and a major embarrassment for the British.

At the end of last year, the Tauranga City Council voted to reclassify part of the Gate Pā Recreation Reserve, which would allow for a National Institute of the New Zealand Land Wars to be established.

Mikaere said the institute would tell the story of the New Zealand Wars, with a focus on what happened at Pukehinahina Gate Pā and at the later battle of Te Ranga.

“We want to tell that story in some innovative ways, so while we do have lots of items in our heritage collection we don’t want it to be a museum of things in glass cases, we want it to be an interactive type space.”

It’s expected to provide a workshop space, exhibition areas, performing arts space, plus room for a visitor experience of contemporary and traditional Māori life.

The next step for the institute is to lodge resource consents, then raising the money, Mikaere said.