Te ruki kawiti biography sample

Kawiti led his people against the British during the Northern War. His first wife was Kawa, and she was the mother of his three sons.

Where did te ruki kawiti live

With his second wife, Te Tiwha, he fathered a daughter. Kawiti was born only five years after Captain Cook circumnavigated New Zealand. The world of his birth was profoundly different from the world of the Northern War. Kawiti lived through the period of upheaval bought about by early contact, settlement, and colonisation. By , Kawiti was a wise and experienced man past 70 years of age.

Kawiti honed his military skills during the so-called Musket Wars of the early s. He took part in notable battles alongside the great Hongi Hika, including Battle of Moremonui where Ngapuhi were defeated by Ngati Whatua. Nearly 20 years later in Kawiti joined with other Ngapuhi chiefs and again faced Ngati Whatua in battle, this time emerging victorious.

During the Northern War the British were facing a seasoned veteran with a thorough understanding of musket warfare.