Tim Walker and Robley (Te Ropere)

On 7^th April a good turnout of Society members were on hand to listen to Tim Walker talk knowledgeably and entertainingly about Robley’s relationship with Tauranga and New Zealand.

Cover of Robley – Soldier with  Pencil, by L.W. Melvin, 1957
Image courtesy of Tauranga City Libraries, Pae Korokī

Tim Walker has been researching the life and endeavours of Horatio Gordon Robley (1840-1930) since 1980. His 1985 Master Thesis Robley: Te Ropere is available online. Robley was a Lieutenant with the 68^th Durham Light Infantry in Tauranga in 1864-1866. During that time he took part in the battles at Pukehinahina (the Gate Pa) and Te Ranga. But it was the experiences afterwards, as he developed close relationships with Māori, that had an indelible influence on him. These relationships, which were centred on his love of painting Māori life and portraits, opened up friendship s. In 1865 he ‘married’ Harete Mauao, daughter of the rangatira Tāmati Mauao who died in the same year. Their son, Hamiora Tu Ropere (also known as Sam Robley) was born in 1866. In 1983 Tim connected with Robley’s great granddaughter, the late Googie Te Weurangi Tapsell of Maketū who answered his letter to the editor in the Bay of Plenty Times.

From his portraiture, Robley developed a strong interest in moko. As a retired Major General in London in the last decade of the 19^th Century, Robley set about research for his book MOKO; Or Maori Tattooing (1896). As part of this, he  sought out preserved Māori heads, which he saw as key to understanding the art - which he knew had ceased to be practiced. Over time, he went on to collect close to forty examples. His attempts to see the collection back in Aotearoa were unsuccessful, with the collection finding a home at the American Museum of Natural History in New York in 1907. In 2014, the collection came home, thanks to the Te Papa Tongarewa repatriation programme. While often seen as someone with an interest in the macabre, Robley’s interest was firmly centred in his belief that moko was the most sophisticated non-Western artform in the world. His growing awareness that it was a ‘system’ of design that generated new designs as it was practiced, led him to believe it would one day re-emerge. When he did, his hope was that a new generation of practitioners would be able to see ‘the old art’ ‘in the skin’, and ‘in the round’.

Tim is now working on a book centred on Robley, who maintained links with Tauranga all his life. Tim would appreciate hearing from anyone who may know of the existence of  material in private hands relating to Robley. In particular, he is interested in knowing more about Mr G G McCandlish who was a correspondent of Robley’s in the 1920s, and Mr Robley Ngatai who was born in the 1890s, probably in or near Otūmoetai. Email Tim

HMS Harrier and Commander Edward Hay, 1864

Early Sailing Vessels and Visitors To Tauranga, Part XXIII

Among the British battleships that anchored in Tauranga Harbour to disembark troops, artillery and sailors for the Tauranga campaign in April 1864 was HMS Harrier. Built and launched at the Pembroke Dockyards, South Wales in May 1854, Harrier was a 17-gun, screw-and-sail-powered, cruiser class sloop. With a displacement of 1047 tons and 160 feet in length, Harrier took part in the Crimean War and served on the Australian Station between 1861 and 1864. Most of her service over this period was in New Zealand waters during the Anglo-Maori Land Wars of the 1860s, with one action against ‘rebellious’ Fijians.¹

Mainly stationed in the Manukau harbour, during 1863, Harrier and her captain, Commander Edward Hay and crew attempted, but were not able to rescue, survivors from HMS Orpheus, which foundered on the Manukau bar in January that year with great loss of life. Harrier also ferried Governor Sir George Grey around New Zealand and towed the steam powered gunboat Avon from Christchurch to Manukau. Her officers and men served in the Waikato River fleet, and some served in the Naval Brigade during the assaults on Rangiriri Pa in the Waikato in November 1863, and at Gate Pa and Te Ranga Pa at Tauranga in April and June 1864.²

HMS Harrier off Tauranga’s Te Papa Peninsula, circa. 1864
Watercolour of Te Papa Peninsula by an unidentified soldier, c.1864, showing (L to R) on the skyline,
Col. Greer's house, Hospital and Col. Harington's house
Ngā Wāhi Rangahau Research Collections, Tauranga City Library, Ref. Art 21-033 (Art Works Box 2)

During the Tauranga campaign, HMS Harrier left Auckland and arrived in Tauranga harbour on 26 April 1864 to find HMS Esk, Miranda and Falcon already at anchor. All had previously run aground on the harbour’s sand banks (as did the Harrier), before freeing themselves by reversing their screws (propellers) and rocking the vessels by having the crews rush the guns from one side of the deck to the other.³ After disembarking troops, stores and baggage, a hand-picked force of 54 Harrier men, comprising Commander Hay, two lieutenants and 51 bluejackets went ashore to join the Naval Brigade, which marched 1.92 miles (3.09 km) to reinforce the Imperial British forces then preparing to storm the ‘rebel’ Maori fortress of Gate Pa.⁴

Lieutenant General Duncan Cameron, who directed the Tauranga campaign, spent two days choosing with great care the officers and men who were to make up the initial storming party, traditionally (and ominously) termed The Forlorn Hope. He appointed 29 year-old Captain Edward Hay of the Harrier, commander of the Naval Brigade’s first assault group of 70 marines and 80 seamen. The youngest son of Rear-Admiral James Hay and his wife Mary (née Stewart), Edward Hay had been born in Dunbar, Scotland in 1835.⁵ A most capable seaman and officer, Edward had served as midshipman on HMS Havannah at the age of 14, and as mate on HMS Agamenmon at the age of 20, before being given command of the Harrier in November 1863.⁶

Commander Edward Hay of HMS Harrier

Quarter-plate hand-tinted cased daguerreotype, by Ross and Thomson of Edinburgh, c1855-1860
Image: National Museum of Scotland, Ref. M.1961.141

Hay’s Naval Brigade joined troops from the 43^rd Regiment in storming the Gate Pa’s defenses at 4pm on the afternoon of 29 April 1864. Bloodily repulsed by the 230 Maori defenders, those killed from HMS Harrier were seaman George Young, stoker A. Greenham and able ordinary seaman H. Clark. In all, the British lost 35 killed and 75 wounded, twice the estimated Māori casualties. The following day, 29 year-old Commander Hay died from wounds received during the fighting. According to one veteran: ‘The way in which he led the storming-party into the enemy's work at the Gate pah was the admiration of all; he was mortally wounded by a Maori in a pit below him while cheering his men on’.⁷  Among the survivors of the Harrier’s storming party was Samuel Mitchell, captain of the vessel’s foretop, who was awarded the Victoria Cross on 26 July 1864. The citation read:

For his gallant conduct at the attack of Te Papa, Tauranga, on the 29 April last, in entering the pah with Commander Hay, and when that officer was mortally wounded, bringing him out, and although ordered by Commander Hay to leave him and seek his own safety. This man was at the time captain of the foretop of the Harrier, doing his duty as captain’s coxswain, and Commodore William Wiseman brings his name to special notice for this act of gallantry.⁸

Coxswain Samuel Mitchell V.C. of HMS Harrier

Carte de visite by William Francis Gordon; copyist; circa 1900
Collection of Puke Ariki, Ref. PHO2017-0124

Samuel Mitchell had entered the Royal Navy as a naval apprentice in 1857 and before joining the Harrier in 1860 had served aboard HMS Crocodile and Excellent. He was soon made the captain's coxswain and captain of the mizzentop, and later advanced to captain of the foretop. As Commander Hay's coxswain, Mitchell had stayed close to him in the assault on Gate Pa and carried Hay out through the rear of the pa under fire.⁹ Some accounts of the incident suggest that Mitchell alone rescued Hay. However, one eyewitness stated that Hay had been carried out by Mitchell and another soldier, and that a third sailor, despite being wounded, also assisted in the rescue.¹⁰ Nevertheless, the dying Commander Hay 'particularly requested the Commodore to get something for Mitchell his coxswain'. Mitchell received his Victoria Cross from the governor of New South Wales in September 1864 and was promoted to petty officer, first class.¹¹

During May 1864, and to the delight of the Harrier’s crew, a survey of the ship’s biscuits by her senior officers at Tauranga declared most of them inedible. In a veritable feast for the fishes,  6,427 were condemned and thrown overboard. During the Battle of Te Ranga on 21 June 1864, when  Tauranga Maori and allied tribes were heavily defeated, HMS Harrier was at anchor off Te Papa Camp. The crew initially mustered to quarters and prepared for action, but were subsequently engaged in sending boats ashore to convey wounded officers and men to HMS Esk which took them to Auckland. Total British losses at Te Ranga were 13 killed and 30 wounded with more than 100 Maori killed or mortally wounded. British and colonial troops had launched a surprise attack against the defenders while they were still constructing their defences.¹²                          

Coxswain Samuel Mitchell rescues Commander Hay

Cigarette card, George Arents Collection, The New York Public Library. "Samuel Mitchell, H.M.S. Harrier, winning the V.C. at the storming of the "Gate Pah" (New Zealand War, April 28th, 1861)." The New York Public Library Digital Collections. Ref. b15262620

In August 1864, HMS Falcon arrived in Tauranga Harbour to relieve HMS Harrier which left for Auckland, where the ship’s company took shore leave. On the vessel’s return to Sydney, and before their return voyage to Britain, their new commander William Fenwick read the officers and crew a letter of thanks from the British Admiralty for their services in New Zealand.¹³

Commander Edward Hay was buried in Tauranga’s mission cemetery along with many other sailors, soldiers and Maori who were killed outright at Gate Pa or later died of wounds.¹⁴ Coxswain Samuel Mitchell later returned to New Zealand and participated in the West Coast goldrushes. He later married and farmed land on the Mikonui River near Ross township. He was drowned while working as a ferryman on the river in 1894, leaving behind a wife and 10 children.¹⁵  HMS Harrier returned to England on 10 December 1864, via the Falkland Islands, reaching Spithead on 17 March and Portsmouth on 24 March 1865. The crew were paid off, and the Harrier decommissioned and broken up.

Endnotes

¹ HMS Harrier - Royal Navy, https://www.pdavis.nl/ShowShip.php?id=158

² HMS Harrier (1854) – Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Harrier_(1854)

³ Liverpool, Cecil Foljambe, Three Years on the Australian Station, C. Milton (ed.), Hatchard, London, 1868: 5. Bay of Plenty Times, 4 January 1923: 2.

⁴ Elliot, Gerald, J; HMS Harrier, 1860-1865. The Royal Navy in New Zealand

⁵ Hay, Edward, -1864 | Items | National Library of New Zealand, https://natlib.govt.nz/records/22382542

⁶ Lyttelton Times, 12 May 1864: 3.

⁷ Alexander, James, Bush Fighting: Illustrated by Remarkable Actions and Incidents of the Maori War in New Zealand, Sampson, Low, Marston and Company, London, 1873: 197.

⁸ London Gazette, July 26 1864: 1; Debbie McCauley, Author, Samuel Mitchell 1841-1894, https://debbiemccauleyauthor.wordpress.com/biographies/samuel-mitchell-1841-1894/

⁹ Fairfax, Denis, 'Mitchell, Samuel', Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 1990. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/1m44/mitchell-samuel

¹⁰ Alexander, 1873 (ibid): 200.

¹¹ Fairfax ‘Mitchell, Samuel’, 1990, https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/1m44/mitchell-samuel

¹² Ellot Gerald, The Royal Navy in New Zealand 1860-1866

¹³ Ibid.

¹⁴ McCauley, Author, Edward Hay, 1835-1864, https://debbiemccauleyauthor.wordpress.com/biographies/edward-hay-1835-1864/

¹⁵ West Coast Times, 16 March 1895:2, Hokitika Guardian, 31 August 1936

Turirangi Te Kani

Mr T.R. Te Kani at Gate Pa/Pukehinahina
35mm film negative, Gifford-Cross/NZME Bay of Plenty Times Collection, publ. 30 Apr 1964
Image courtesy of Tauranga City Libraries, Ref. gcc-6294

Turirangi Te Kani was a much respected kaumatua and historian connected with several marae on the eastern side of Tauranga Moana: Hungahungatoroa, Waikari (both on the Matapihi Peninsula) and Whareroa (adjacent to the Tauranga airport). Turi, as he was commonly known, was passionate about recording history and wrote several articles for the Journal of the Tauranga Historical Society.[1] He was the vice-president of that group for a number of years, gave talks at local schools and was present at the Centennial commemoration of the battle of Gate Pa at Pukehinahina  on 29/30th April 1964. He wrote, among many other cultural taonga and waiata, a paddling chant for the dedication and launching of the Te Awanui waka constructed and carved for Ngaiterangi by Tuti Tukaokao in 1973.

Around the schools: Frances Powell, Nancy Pierre, Deanna Mikaere & Turirangi Te Kani
35mm film negative, PhotoNews Collection, taken for Issue No 83, 3 May 1969
Image courtesy of Tauranga City Libraries, Ref. pn-1665

Turi was born in Maraenui north-east of Opotiki in 1915 and as a young man served in WWll in 'C' Company of the 28th Maori Battalion. He was held as a prisoner of war for four years and on his return to Aotearoa New Zealand he married Hinerau Ngatai and they farmed dairy at Matapihi. They had one adopted daughter. In later years he helped develop kiwifruit and avocado orchards and pack houses locally and as far afield as Ongare. He was a key fundraiser for projects that would benefit the people of Matapihi: the Hungahungatoroa Marae, Tauranga Moana Maori Hostel and the construction of the Matapihi Rail footbridge [2] among them.

Around the schools: Turirangi Te Kani & his stock
35mm film negative, PhotoNews Collection, taken for Issue No 83, 3 May 1969
Image courtesy of Tauranga City Libraries, Ref. pn-1670

The Rangataua Young Farmers Club was founded in October 1949 by an associate W. Ohia and others, and Turi was a keen member. Members farmed in Papamoa, Matapihi, Ngapeke, Waitao, Kairua and Maungarangi. Turi was a keen rugby player and supporter over the years for both the Old Boys and Matapihi teams.

Tauranag Maori Hostel Committee: Receiving cheque is Te Kani (left) and I. Tangitu (right)
35mm film negative, Gifford-Cross/NZME Bay of Plenty Times Collection, publ. 19 Sep 1964
Image courtesy of Tauranga City Libraries, Ref. gcc-6294

Turi and Bill were involved together in many groups including the Waikato Maniopoto Maori District Council, and were founding members of the Waitangi Tribunal and Tauranga Moana Trust Board. Turi chaired the Tauranga Maori Executive, was appointed to the Maori Land Advisory Board and served on the Maori Affairs Board for 15 years. He was a JP and was awarded the MBE in 1970.

In the mid 80s he was invited to attend the opening of the Te Maori Exhibition in the United States. Te Kani was a passionate advocate for honouring the Treaty of Waitangi and was involved in Te Heke o Te Rangihouhiri in 1987. (Komako Article, below)

Turirangi Te Kani and whaling relics
35mm film negative, PhotoNews Collection, taken for Issue No 88, 20 Sep 1969
Image courtesy of Tauranga City Libraries, Ref. pn-3931

Sadly in 1990 he was killed in a motor accident at Te Maunga. The pupils of Matapihi School wrote many tributes [3] and in 1991 the Port of Tauranga set up a scholarship for Tertiary studies for local Maori Students in Turirangi Te Kani’s memory.

Author's Note

I had the privilege of growing up at The Elms/Te Papa with my grandparents in the 1960s and 1970s and recall several visits by both Turirangi Te Kani and Wiremu (Bill) Ohia to discuss various matters with my grandfather Duff Maxwell. They were both so involved in and committed to the true historical documentation of this area and had the ability and grace to move very easily between the two cultures.

Postscript

A previous version of this article stated incorrectly that Turirangi Te Kani was born at Maraenui near Napier, rather than the settlement of Maraenui about 40km north-east of Opotiki, his mother's whanau being from nearby Whitianga Bay. Apologies for the inadvertent error and we are grateful to the observant and knowledgeable reader who kindly pointed it out.

Other Notes

[1] A list of these can be seen under secondary sources of https://www.komako.org.nz/person/1157
[2] Many people were hit by trains or drowned after jumping to avoid them prior to its construction, as it was such a convenient shortcut to the CBD from Matapihi.
[3] Te Tangata Rongonui: Turirangi Te Kani. [Matapihi, N.Z.: Matapihi School, 1990]

Additional Sources

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/TAH195312.2.18
Turi Te Kani - A Leader Lost, Bay of Plenty Times, 7 June 1990
Pae Koroki (Tauranga Archives online)

Topcroft

Topcroft
Image credit Tauranga City Libraries, Ref. 06-456

Samuel Clarke, who arrived in Tauranga in 1860, leased 823 acres of land from the Church Missionary Society to farm. It stretched from what we know today as Eleventh Avenue to Gate Pa. Due to the Land Wars, completion of his house was delayed until 1870 but it remains probably the oldest extant European house in Tauranga. He called it “Topcroft” after the ancestral home of the Clarke family, “Topcroft Hall” in Norfolk, England. Samuel Clarke himself was born in Kemp House, Kerikeri in 1824, where his father George Clarke was Protector of Aborigines. He married Mary Christopher in 1857 when he was farming at Panmure.[1]

Topcroft was built on the farm but a later owner, Josiah Tutchen turned the house 90 degrees to fit the new Edgecumbe Street. In 1987, then owned by local lawyer William Taylor, it was moved to Ranginui Street in Welcome Bay, where Taylor planned a community of renovated old homes. The community did not eventuate but Topcroft is occupied and stands there today.

Samuel Clarke was actively involved in activities in Tauranga having been a member of the Roads Board and several organisations. In January 1878 the Tauranga District School held their “feast” at Topcroft with games in the paddock and meals served in a marquee in the garden. Mr. Clarke read out the list of school prize-winners and presented the prizes.[2]

Part of Clarke’s farm was sold in 1881 to the Reverend R Burrows and John W Duffus and there were several further owners until in 1923 Reginald Shearman bought the house. He was the town clerk of Tauranga Borough and he and his family continued to occupy the house until 1983. During Shearman’s ownership the house was re-piled and re-roofed. This iron roof was the third since the original shingle roof cladding. The Shearmans closed in one end of the verandah and extended the gable, and also replaced the old kitchen at the rear. In 1930 when Shearman married Brenda Mountfort there were only two acres left as he had subdivided and sold the remainder.

Topcroft was built of pit sawn timber by David Lundon and John Conway, two men who built many of the first buildings in Tauranga. There are two stories and the ground floor living rooms have pressed metal ceilings and one of these is lined with wood panelling. The appearance of this house with the verandah and the dormer windows is quite different to other Tauranga carpenter gothic houses of this time but unfortunately the relocation detracts from its significance.

The house is registered as Category 2 registration 4565 with Heritage New Zealand and its importance relates to the ownership by Samuel Clarke and the original proximity to the Battle of Gate Pa (Pukehinahina). Samuel Clarke stated that the gates which gave Gate Pa its name originally came from his farm. He was awarded £9,736 from the Government for damage to his farm during the conflict.

References
[1] Births, Deaths, & Marriages, Department of Internal Affairs.
[2] Bay of Plenty Times, 16 Jan 1878
Heritage NZ. Reg.no.4565 Topcroft.

Gate Pa

Image: Aero Surveys NZ Ltd., Tauranga Heritage Collection

This photograph was taken by Aero Surveys in November 1970. It focuses on the area in which the Battle of Pukehinahina (Gate Pa) took place. St George’s Anglican Church, which opened in 1900, can be seen in the lower right of this image. In 1992 an electrical fire damaged the church building beyond repair. Kauri beams from the old church were saved and integrated into a new building on the same site.