Whārangi 1: Haurongo
Te Pūoho-o-te-rangi
?–1836/1837?
Nō Ngāti Tama, nō Ngāti Toa; he kaihautū
I tuhia tēnei haurongo e Atholl Anderson, ā, i tāngia tuatahitia ki Ngā Tāngata Taumata Rau i te 1990. He mea whakamāori nā Ngā Tangata Taumata Rau.
I whānau a Te Pūoho-o-te-rangi i te whakamutunga o te rau tau 1700–1799 ki Poutama, te tūrangawaewae o Ngāti Tama ki te raki o Taranaki. Arā anō ōna īngoa, ko Te Pūoho-ki-te-rangi, ko Ngārau, ko Te Manu. Ko ia te mātāmua a Whangataki II rāua ko Hinewairoro (ko tana whaea tēnei), ka whai i muri ko Te Taku me Te Rangitakaroro. Ākuanei pea, hei tuahine ake, hei tuahine kē rānei a Te Kirikakara ki a rātou. E taupatupatu ana ngā kōrero mō Whangataki. He kōrero, nō Ngāti Toa. Ā, he kōrero anō ko Hinewairoro kē nō Ngāti Toa. Heoi, i takea mai a Whangataki i a Tiotio. Ko Hinewairoro i heke iho i a Te Maunu rāua ko tana wahine matua ko Waikāwhia.
He tokomaha ngā wāhine a Te Pūoho. E kīia ana ko te wahine tuatahi ko Hinetāwake, tokorua ā rāua tama ko Hōri Te Kōrama me Herewini Te Roha; kotahi tā rāua tamāhine, ko Tīkawe. I mua atu i te tau 1815, ka moea e ia a Kauhoe, te pouaru a Te Taku. Nō Ngāti Mutunga a Kauhoe. Ka riro nā Te Pūoho i whakatipu te tama a Kauhoe rāua ko Te Taku, a Paremata Te Wahapiro. Ko tētahi o ōna īngoa ko Te Kiore. Ko te tama ake a Te Pūoho rāua ko Kauhoe ko Wiremu Kātene Te Pūoho i whānau i te tau 1815; nāna ko Hūria Mātenga, i whakanuia rā ia mō tana māia. Arā atu anō ētahi o āna wāhine – ko Karanga, hei tuahine tonu ki a ia, ko Matua, ko Mātuna rānei, nō Mua-ūpoko pea. E kōrerotia ana e ētahi, tērā tētahi kōtiro herehere i raro i tona maru e noho ana. Nō te rongonga o ētahi wāhine kua mate ia, ka tāronatia te herehere rā.
I roto i ngā tau whakamutunga e 20, nuku atu rānei, i a ia e ora ana, ko Te Pūoho te kaiārahi i tōna iwi i ngā tini pāheketanga. Ahakoa iti, he iwi toa a Ngāti Tama. Ko ō rātou whanaunga o Ngāti Mutunga i te taha tonga. I rāwāhi o te awa o Mōkau ki te raki, ko te hoariri, arā, ko ētahi o ngā hapū o Ngāti Maniapoto me Tainui whānui tonu. I te raki anō, i Kāwhia, e noho ana ōna haumi o Ngāti Toa me Ngāti Raukawa.
I te tau 1815, i Ngā-tai-pari-rua, ka hinga a Ngāti Tama i a Ngāti Maniapoto. Nā te muhani a tētahi rangatira o Ngāti Ruanui ki a Te Kirikakara ka tono a Te Pūoho ki tana whanaunga, ki a Te Rauparaha, kia āwhinatia rātou ki te rapu utu. Ka tū mai ngā ope o Ngāti Toa, o Te Roroa me Ngāpuhi, ka whakakotahi mai ki te pā o Te Pūoho i Pukearuhe. Ina rā, he kaupapa kē anō tā rātou i whakaeke ai i ngā iwi ki te tonga. Ka takahia atu te motu ki Te Whanganui-a-Tara (Wellington Harbour), ki Te Wairarapa i ngā tau 1819, 1820. Nō te hokinga, kātahi anō ka meinga kia utua e Ngāti Ruanui taua muhani.
Nō te takiwā ki te 1819–20, ka mate anō a Ngāti Tama i a Ngāti Maniapoto i Tihimānuka. Ka whāia e Te Pūoho rāua ko tana whanaunga, ko Tūpoki, a Ngāti Maniapoto e hoki ana i te takutai moana. Kāore i roa i muri mai ka haere a Ngāti Tama ki te āwhina i a Ngāti Toa i Kāwhia. Nō te pakangatanga i Te Kakara e tata ana ki te moana o Taharoa, kātahi anō a Te Pūoho ka mau pū. I mate rawa he tangata i a ia. Ko Raparapa he rangatira anō nō Ngāti Tama. I mate i te whakataetaetanga ki a Te Pūoho kia mate i a ia he tangata ki ngā rākau tawhito a Tū. He muhani anō tērā, ka kounu a Te Pūoho i a ia i te tumu. Nō te pakanga i te tau 1821 ka mate hoki ko Tūpoki. Tū ana ko Te Pūoho hei rangatira mō Ngāti Tama.
Nō te hekenga o Ngāti Toa whaka te tonga, kua kore he haumi, he kaha mō Ngāti Tama. Ko Pukearuhe te punanga tuatahi mō Ngāti Toa mai i Kāwhia. Ka noho a Te Ākau ki reira whakawhānau ai. Ka puta ko Tāmihana, ko tā rāua tama ko Te Rauparaha. He tokomaha o Ngāti Tama i haere ki te tonga noho ai, ā, i whai i te heke a Ngāti Toa. Ka taka ki te tau 1822, ka kuhu atu a Te Pūoho me tana rōpū iti nei ki te heke tuarua a Ngāti Toa, Te Heke Tātaramoa ki Kapiti. Ka noho, ā, ka hoki ki te raki ki te whakaheke i ētahi atu o tōna iwi ki Waikanae; ka rua nei ēnei hekenga. Ko Te Heke Niho-puta tērā nō te tau 1824. Ka whakanohonoho haere a Ngāti Tama atu i Ōhariu ki Paekākāriki. Ko ētahi i haere tonu ki Te Whanganui-a-Tara.
I te tau 1828 ka ārahina e Te Pūoho te pakanga ki a Ngāti Apa i Moutere, i Motueka i Te Waipounamu. Ka hangā ō rātou kāinga ki tērā takiwā, whakatō rawa he kai. Ka hāereere haere a Te Pūoho ki te torotoro i a Ngāti Tama i ō rātou kāinga maha. Ka taka ki te tau 1830, ka whakaekea a Rangitāne i Waikanae hei utu mō te matenga o ētahi o tana iwi i a Ngāti Kahungunu, te hunga āwhina i a Rangitāne. I whakamātau rawa rātau ki te āwhina i a Te Āti Awa i te whakaekenga a Waikato i te pā i Pukerangiora i Waitara. Ā, ka hono atu ki a Te Rauparaha ki te whakaeke i a Ngāi Tahu i Kaiapoi me Hakaroa (Banks Peninsula) i te tīmatanga o te tekau tau atu i 1830.
He aha rā, ka manawakino ngā iwi nei, a Ngāti Toa rāua ko Ngāti Tama, ki a rāua. I waenganui i te tekau tau mai i 1830, he rīriri tonu tā rāua mahi. I rikarika a Te Pūoho i te patunga a Te Rauparaha i te 200 o Mua-ūpoko me Rangitāne i te wā e noho manuhiri ana ia ki a Te Pūoho. Ā, ka hoki anō a Te Pūoho ki te mau mai i ngā mōrehu o Ngāti Tama i Te Heke Hauhauā. Nō konei ka tupu ngā riri whenua i waenganui i ngā iwi i taki heke rā ki te tonga. Heke atu ana a Te Pūoho, i waenganui i te tekau tau mai i te 1830, ki Te Waipounamu, ka tau atu ki Te Parapara i Te Taitapu (Golden Bay).
I reira ka tupu te whakaaro mō te hīkoi roa a tana taua ki a Ngāi Tahu. E ai ki ngā kōrero, i whakapā atu anō ia ki a Te Rauparaha. Ko tana whakarite mō tā rātou haere, he unahitanga ika. Kia tae ki Murihiku ka hoki ake me te patupatu haere i ngā iwi. Kāore e kore e whai ana anō hoki ia kia riro mai i a ia ētahi o ngā mahi hokohoko i ērā takiwā.
Ka takahia te whenua e te waitaua a Te Pūoho rāua ko tana tama taurima, ko Paremata, mā Te Tai Poutini. E rima tekau te kaha. E whakamau atu ana kia tae ki Māwhera (Greymouth) ki a Niho me tōna iwi o Ngāti Rārua hei whakakī i tana ope. Ahakoa ngā whakatūpato a Niho, i whakauru tonu atu ētahi o tōna iwi. Ka ahu te tira mā te taha moana, ka kuhu mā ngā whāruarua kia whiti atu i Tīoripātea (Haast Pass) ki te riu o Makarora ka ahu ki te moana o Wanaka. I Paekai, i Takikarara, ka whakaraua ngā puni hī tuna. Haere tonu me ā rātou herehere, ka whakawhiti i ngā maunga i te tuawhenua. Puta rawa atu ki ngā mānia o Waimea ki Murihiku. Tēnā te ngenge me te hia kai o taua hanga. Heoi, he puni hī tuna anō i reira. Kore i ārikarika te kai! Haere tonu ki Tūtūrau. He piharau te kai o reira.
Kua tae kē te kōrero ki a Tūhawaiki, te rangatira o Ngāi Tahu ki te tonga. Kua whakatū mai hoki i tāna ope, ka whakatika mai mā Mataura. Ko te whakamutunga o te tau 1836 tēnei atu ki te tau hou. E whakaaraara ana a Te Pūoho i a Ngāti Tama ka huakina mai te riri, ka pūhia mai ia e Tōpi Pātuki. E rua anake rāua i mate rawa. Ko te nuinga i whakaraua. Ka waiho atu a Te Pūoho i waenga i ngā whare e kainga ana e te ahi. Kei tētahi kōrero i pakipakia tōna ūpoko ka whakahokia ki Whakatū (Nelson). He kōrero anō, i hokona kē i Poihākena (Sydney). He wā tōna ka whakahokia mai ka tanumia ki te ana tapu i Kapiti.
Ko te wahine a Te Pūoho, ko Kauhoe, i noho ki Whakapuaka, tata atu ki Whakatū, rāua ko tāna tama ko Wiremu Kātene. Nō te tau 1842 ka hoki mai a Paremata i Ōtākou; ka mate a Kauhoe i te tau i muri mai. Nō 1879 rā anō ka mate a Wiremu Kātene. Nō muri noa nei, nō te tau 1937, ka whakatūria he kōwhatu whakamaharatanga ki Tūtūrau i te takiwā ki Mataura. Ko ngā kōrero kei runga e pēnei ana: 'Ko te pakanga whakamutunga i waenganui i ngā Māori o Te Ika-a-Māui me Te Waipounamu, i toa ai Te Waipounamu, i tū ki ēnei takiwā i te marama o Tīhema 1836.'