Māori

Parihaka

Te Tupuna Maunga o Parihaka

This page details some of the key resources at your library about the peaceful resistance to the militia invasion of the Taranaki settlement of Parihaka on 5 November 1881 — and the Christchurch connection to this significant historical event.

The Taranaki settlement Parihaka

Parihaka had grown in the wake of the land wars of the 1860s, and by the 1870s was the largest Māori village in the country. This self-sufficient community was made up of Māori who had become dispossessed during the land conflicts and was led by two prophets — Te Whiti o Rongomai and Tohu Kākahi.

Militia action and passive resistance

On 5 November 1881 the Parihaka community in Taranaki was invaded by 1500 militia and armed constabulary. The invading forces were greeted by singing children and 2000 peaceful residents who did not resist either invasion or arrest. Over the course of two weeks, the army demolished the settlement and eventually all crops and livestock were destroyed.

Civil disobedience

Residents faced further Government confiscations of land around the Parihaka settlement. They tried to prevent this confiscation by using tactics of passive resistance — building fences across lands and roads, and removing pegs that had been placed by Government surveyors.

Often those who were caught engaging in these activities were arrested and imprisoned without trial in South Island prisons in Dunedin, Lyttelton (Ripapa Island) and Hokitika. Here they were used as labourers on projects like the building of Dunedin’s harbour walls. In Dunedin, the harsh conditions under which they were jailed meant that many of these prisoners died, mainly from tuberculosis. The last of those taken prisoner would eventually be released in 1898.

The Christchurch connection

The leaders Tohu and Te Whiti were exiled for two years. During that time, they were interned at Addington gaol and were shown the Kaiapoi Woollen Mills, Christchurch Railway workshops, Christchurch Cathedral and Museum in an attempt by officials to show them the advanced technology and "power of the pakeha".

Christchurch man Harry Ell, who was most notable for his involvement in creating the Summit Road, was part of the armed constabulary that invaded Parihaka in 1881.

CoverThe legacy of Parihaka

The invasion of Parihaka eventually came to be seen as a black day in New Zealand history, and a symbol of injustice. It has been an inspiration for works by New Zealand artists, writers and musicians, most famously Tim Finn’s song Parihaka. Today Parihaka is the site of an international peace festival.

Further information and works about Parihaka

Information at Christchurch City Libraries

Search our catalogue for Parihaka

Information on Parihaka is also available in New Zealand history books, including:

Online resources

* Comet over Mt Taranaki and Parihaka
A painting by Ralph Hotere at Te Papa Collections Online.
* Parihaka
Images collected at DigitalNZ.
* Parihaka Festival
Information on the Parihaka International Peace Festival.
* Parihaka in the AtoJs
Search the Appendices to the Journals of the House of Representatives (AtoJs or AJHRs) for references to Parihaka.
* Parihaka remembered
A PDF of Sir Paul Reeves' address at an event in ChristChurch Cathedral, 5 November 2010.
* Parihaka: A very real symbol
An article by Peter Simpson in Art New Zealand on the exhibition Parihaka: The Art of Passive Resistance.
* Taranaki tribe - Resistance
Article by Te Miringa Hōhaia on passive resistance and Parihaka from Te Ara - The encyclopedia of New Zealand.
* Tariana Turia - Petition to Parliament for 5 November to become Parihaka Day
Text of a speech by Hon Tariana Turia, MP for Te Tai Hauauru to the Government Administration Select Committee, 11 May 2011
* Te Whiti-o-Rongomai
Biography from nzhistory.net.nz.
* The history of Parihaka
Information on the history of Parihaka from the Parihaka Festival website.
* The Raid upon Parihaka
Chapter XX in History of New Zealand, Vol. III. by George William Rusden.
* The Taranaki frontier and the expedition to Parihaka
The New Zealand Wars: A History of the Maori Campaigns and the Pioneering Period: Volume II: The Hauhau Wars, 186472 by James Cowan.