IWI / HAPU AFFILIATIONS
Wiremu Tako Ngatata was born around 1815 at Pukeariki pa in
Taranaki. His father was Ngatata-i-te-rangi of Te Ati Awa and his
mother Whetowheto of Ngati Ruanui. Wi Tako Ngatata left Taranaki in
1832, moving permanently to the Wellington region with a grouping
of his people. The transition was not smooth and his people came
into conflict with iwi already established in the area. By 1840,
Pakeha settlement disrupted and complicated occupational
arrangements in the Wellington region.
In colonial terms, Wi Tako provided considerable assistance to
the Crown in purchasing land for early settlers. By the 1860s the
greater part of Wellington passed into the hands of settlers and
the Colonial Government. In Māori terms land sales of Māori land
were manipulated by the Crown with little understanding by Māori of
the agreements being brokered by agents of the Crown.
In 1848, writing from his Ngauranga property, Wi Ngatata wrote
to Donald McLean after hearing of hostility and prejudice by Pakeha
toward Māori, he stated:
E kore au e pai kia utu, toku toto ki te paraikete ki te
hoiho
Engari pea he toto mana waku toto
I will not agree to give my blood for a blanket or a horse
Except perhaps blood for blood [1]
Ngatata became one of the first Māori members of the Legislative
Council in 1872. He died in 1887 aged over eighty years old. He had
a 17-room home near Park Avenue in Lower Hutt and the homestead was
named Te Mako for Te Mako pa at Te Taitai (Taita). Wiremu Tako
Ngatata is buried in the Pito-one (Petone) cemetery, near
Wellington.
NM
[1] MS Papers - 0032-0672c-08. Object #1031679 Letter from
Witako to McLean (with translation), 1 Sept 1848
Tukua mai āu nā kōreroSubmit your storyTāhuhu kōrero
Contributed stories
Do you have a story related to this portrait? Maybe you have images of this person? If you would like to see your story published on this website, please submit it here. All stories are reviewed before publishing.