The Musket Wars 1818 - 1830s

Showing Hongi's Track which was a canoe portage between Lake Rotoiti and Lake Rotoehu, north east of Rotorua. It was used by Hongi Hika (Ngāpuhi) in 1823 to attack the Arawa people living on Mokoia Island during the Musket Wars.

Shows a large Ngāpuhi waka taua returning from Musket War battles (Bay of Plenty and East Cape) early in 1819.

Portrait of Ngāpuhi chiefs Waikato (left), Hongi Hika and missionary Thomas Kendall (right).

Hongi Hika’s musket

During Ngāpuhi’s part in the Musket Wars Hongi Hika wore armour, (chain mail) which successfully deflected musket fire in battle.

A war raid dated from the Musket Wars carried out by Ngāpuhi. This taua (war party) was on its way to Tauranga in 1833.

This musket belonged to Hongi Hika, the renowned Ngāpuhi war leader, who is one of the pivotal figures of the Musket Wars.

Nene, as a war leader, went with the expedition which travelled the length of the North Island in 1819 and 1820, plundering and taking captives in what became known as the Musket Wars.

An interesting relic from the Musket Wars

:A relic of great historic importance has just been presented to the Auckland Museum. It is an old Tower musket, and the following note is attached to the stock: —" This musket was given to Hongi Hika, afterwards known as 'The Maneater,' by George IV. of England, in the year 1820. It was used by him in the battles of Ikaranganui, Mokoia, and Marakitaki, and many other lesser engagements."

Flintock musket

Many of the guns used in the Musket Wars were trade muskets. These were inferior to standard-issue military muskets of the time. They were manufactured using a lower grade of Birmingham steel, prone to misfire (or worse they could explode) and were less accurate. However, they had some advantages, they were lighter, stones and scrap iron could be used as a substitute for musket-balls and as they didn’t require using a ramrod they were faster to reload. You simply banged the musket butt on the ground after first loading the powder then another tap after you load the shot. Another favourite weapon used by toa and the time (and with devastating effect in the New Zealand Wars ) was the tupara o

This South Island memorial marks one of the last battle raids of the Musket Wars

This memorial erected in 1937 marks one of the Musket Wars last raids. In 1836 Te Puoho o te Rangi (Ngati Tama) set out from Taitapu (Golden Bay) with a taua, aiming to launch a surprise attack on Ngai Tahu in Southland. This meant a long arduous journey down Waiponamu’s West Coast. At a distance of over 1000 kilometres, it represented an extraordinary feat of endurance but as a military success, it was a disaster. By January of the following year 1837, the war party had arrived in Southland. Though weakened by fatigue and hunger they captured several Nga Tahu eeling parties. After arriving at Tuturau Te Puoho’s party were subsequently surprised by Ngai Tahu toa. Te Puoho was killed by Top

A haka with muskets

In some respects, the Musket Wars was New Zealand’s very own arms race. An iwi without muskets (as happened in the initial phases of the inter-tribal conflict) was completely defenceless and very likely to be annihilated or enslaved. It didn’t matter how proficient you were physically with rakau Māori - traditional stone or wooden weapons as they offered no defence to against musket fire. So, Iwi economies rapidly constructed themselves around European trade contacts and traded items like fish, harakeke, timber, potatoes, pigs, mokomokai and sometimes Māori women to purchase guns. Ironically initial trade of muskets to Māori was made not only by whalers and British naval vessels but also

Utu

Utu was a kai that sustained the Musket Wars. With muskets and a constant supply of potatoes iwi could initially mount successful campaigns and raids obstinately to seek utu for acts of outrage, and revenge against themselves, relatives or related hapu or iwi. Insults could also initiate utu. A notable Musket War example was Te Rauparaha’s attack on Nga Tahu’s Omihi pa. The attack was to seek utu as the rangitira of the pa, Rerewaka, had cursed Te Rauparaha by proclaiming he would rip open his belly with a barrracuda or shark’s tooth. The pa was sacked, and Nga Tahu defenders slaughtered or enslaved. Rerewaka was captured and suffered the agonising fate of his curse!

Potato crops

The Musket Wars has also been referred to by some historians as the Potato Wars. The potato offered Māori numerous advantages during this period of inter-tribal conflict. Easy to grow and sell potatoes did not require men to cultivate it, unlike the kumara. Instead the crop could be tended by slaves (captured during raids) which in turn released men to join taua. Potatoes were also a very tradable commodity especially with Europeans who visited Aotearoa at this time. The increasing need for labour to cultivate potatoes to trade for muskets became an almost cyclical process of violence. To acquire more slaves to cultivate crops in order to buy more muskets you needed to mount more raids.

The Musket Wars was a period of ferocious Māori versus Māori conflict which spread across much of the country during the early decades of the 19th century.

The defence of Otaka pa during the Musket Wars

Te Puoho was a prominent Ngāti Tama leader during the Musket Wars

Te Puoho’s raid on Ngāi Tahu was one of the last in the Musket Wars

A teki was used to make cartridges for a musket.

Pakeha and Te Āti Awa people defend themselves against attacking Waikato Māori during the Musket Wars.

A war speech made during the Musket Wars