Benedict Biddle
Encyclopedia
Benedict 'Ben' Biddle, NZC, one of New Zealand's last land wars heroes, was awarded the rare New Zealand Cross for his acts of bravery at Ngatapa Pā, Gisborne
in January 1869. Only 23 of these medals were ever awarded, with Ben being among the first to receive this award and would pass away as the last of the recipients of this honour.
, New Zealand
, son of an English regular soldier, Edward Biddle, and his wife Anne Leach. The Biddles' were originally from Alveston
, Gloucestershire
, England
before migrating to New Zealand in the 1850s.
Biddle grew up on the Waitemata shores and took on work on the Captain Jones' cutters as a youngster, sailing between Auckland and the Bay of Plenty
. Following his time at sea, he worked on a cattle farm where he broke in horses. (Evans 1998. p. 13).
). He soon saw action and was involved in a number of notable conflicts.
According to Cowan (1935) 'He made a name in the Hauhau
wars for his enterprise and disregard of danger. He was sometimes in trouble with military officers who had incurred his contempt by their ignorance of bush warfare or their excessive caution, but when men were needed for the fighting line the call was always for Biddle and men of his kind.' (p. 223).
Ngatapa
Following their defeat at Makaretu on 3 December 1868, Te Kooti
and his followers withdrew to an ancient Māori pā
, named Ngatapa, north west of Gisborne, where they made a stand against the colonial forces and the kupapa, (colonial-aligned Māori). Ngatapa was a single cone-shaped mountain and was around 2,000 feet high with two sharp cliffs to the sides and a narrow precipice to the rear of the mountain.
On 5 December an attempt to storm the pā was commanded by Major Wahawaha and Lieutenant Preece, but they were not successful owing to a lack of ammunition and the defection of a number of men.
On 24 December Colonel Whitmore set out from Patutahi with a stronger and better prepared force of men, including the Armed Constabulary. By 31 December Whitmore's men had gained a position on the same ridge as the pā and two days later, began their assault upon Ngatapa. The colonial forces and the kupapa attempted to take the pā but Te Kooti's men succeeded in slowing them down and Whitmore ordered an artillery bombardment on the pā. The colonial and kupapa forces had only enough men to surround three of the four sides of the pā, but believed that this was adequate as the fourth side was a 200 foot cliff and that it was not possible for Te Kooti's forces to escape in that direction.
In the late hours of 4 January and early hours of 5 January, Te Kooti
and a large number of his party escaped by tying blankets and flax ropes together and letting themselves down the unguarded section of cliff. After the pā was taken and a short pursuit was mounted, a number of Hauhau were stripped, shot and thrown from the cliffs atop Ngatapa. Te Kooti
had escaped and would go on to cause more havoc for the colonial forces.
Ben Biddle's citation reads:
and Ngati Pahauwera origins. Mauri accompanied her husband on a number of his military missions, acting as both a guide and cook.
Following the land wars, Biddle and Mauri had a large family and lived in Wainui in the Bay of Plenty
, an odd location as Ben's arch nemesis, Te Kooti, resided and built built his marae there. One of Biddle's sons, Robert 'Rapata' Biddle, become a minister and secretary within the Ringatu
Church, set up by Te Kooti. Robert Biddle also designed the Ringatu crest or logo in 1926. (Binney, 1995:421).
Although Ben Biddle found himself at odds with some of his superior officers and faced a court martial on one occasion, he got his own back by naming his most troublesome bullock "Lambert" after his equally troublesome former officer, Colonel Lambert. (Cowan 1935:224).
Gisborne, New Zealand
-Economy:The harbour was host to many ships in the past and had developed as a river port to provide a more secure location for shipping compared with the open roadstead of Poverty Bay which can be exposed to southerly swells. A meat works was sited beside the harbour and meat and wool was shipped...
in January 1869. Only 23 of these medals were ever awarded, with Ben being among the first to receive this award and would pass away as the last of the recipients of this honour.
Origins
Biddle was born in AucklandAuckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, son of an English regular soldier, Edward Biddle, and his wife Anne Leach. The Biddles' were originally from Alveston
Alveston
Alveston is a commuter village of roughly 3000 people about south of Thornbury, South Gloucestershire and approximately north of Bristol, England. Alveston is twinned with Courville sur Eure, France. It has two hotels, a variety of small shops, several parks and fields, two churches and a...
, Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
before migrating to New Zealand in the 1850s.
Biddle grew up on the Waitemata shores and took on work on the Captain Jones' cutters as a youngster, sailing between Auckland and the Bay of Plenty
Bay of Plenty
The Bay of Plenty , often abbreviated to BOP, is a region in the North Island of New Zealand situated around the body of water of the same name...
. Following his time at sea, he worked on a cattle farm where he broke in horses. (Evans 1998. p. 13).
New Zealand land wars
As a 21-year-old, Biddle enlisted in the New Zealand Colonial Forces as a constable in the 1st Division of the Armed Constabulary (Military PoliceMilitary police
Military police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...
). He soon saw action and was involved in a number of notable conflicts.
According to Cowan (1935) 'He made a name in the Hauhau
Hauhau
Hauhau is a Māori term that was applied to a branch of the religious movement Pai Marire, founded by Te Ua Haumēne of the Taranaki tribe in New Zealand in the 1860s. The movement inculcated that Māori would regain land that they had lost to Europeans during the colonisation process of New...
wars for his enterprise and disregard of danger. He was sometimes in trouble with military officers who had incurred his contempt by their ignorance of bush warfare or their excessive caution, but when men were needed for the fighting line the call was always for Biddle and men of his kind.' (p. 223).
Ngatapa
Following their defeat at Makaretu on 3 December 1868, Te Kooti
Te Kooti
Te Kooti Arikirangi Te Turuki was a Māori leader, the founder of the Ringatu religion and guerrilla.While fighting alongside government forces against the Hauhau in 1865, he was accused of spying. Exiled to the Chatham Islands without trial along with captured Hauhau, he experienced visions and...
and his followers withdrew to an ancient Māori pā
Pa (Maori)
The word pā can refer to any Māori village or settlement, but in traditional use it referred to hillforts fortified with palisades and defensive terraces and also to fortified villages. They first came into being about 1450. They are located mainly in the North Island north of lake Taupo...
, named Ngatapa, north west of Gisborne, where they made a stand against the colonial forces and the kupapa, (colonial-aligned Māori). Ngatapa was a single cone-shaped mountain and was around 2,000 feet high with two sharp cliffs to the sides and a narrow precipice to the rear of the mountain.
On 5 December an attempt to storm the pā was commanded by Major Wahawaha and Lieutenant Preece, but they were not successful owing to a lack of ammunition and the defection of a number of men.
On 24 December Colonel Whitmore set out from Patutahi with a stronger and better prepared force of men, including the Armed Constabulary. By 31 December Whitmore's men had gained a position on the same ridge as the pā and two days later, began their assault upon Ngatapa. The colonial forces and the kupapa attempted to take the pā but Te Kooti's men succeeded in slowing them down and Whitmore ordered an artillery bombardment on the pā. The colonial and kupapa forces had only enough men to surround three of the four sides of the pā, but believed that this was adequate as the fourth side was a 200 foot cliff and that it was not possible for Te Kooti's forces to escape in that direction.
In the late hours of 4 January and early hours of 5 January, Te Kooti
Te Kooti
Te Kooti Arikirangi Te Turuki was a Māori leader, the founder of the Ringatu religion and guerrilla.While fighting alongside government forces against the Hauhau in 1865, he was accused of spying. Exiled to the Chatham Islands without trial along with captured Hauhau, he experienced visions and...
and a large number of his party escaped by tying blankets and flax ropes together and letting themselves down the unguarded section of cliff. After the pā was taken and a short pursuit was mounted, a number of Hauhau were stripped, shot and thrown from the cliffs atop Ngatapa. Te Kooti
Te Kooti
Te Kooti Arikirangi Te Turuki was a Māori leader, the founder of the Ringatu religion and guerrilla.While fighting alongside government forces against the Hauhau in 1865, he was accused of spying. Exiled to the Chatham Islands without trial along with captured Hauhau, he experienced visions and...
had escaped and would go on to cause more havoc for the colonial forces.
Ben Biddle's citation reads:
- "For his gallant conduct at the siege of Ngatapa, in January, 1869. The rear of the enemy's position was assigned to the attack under Major Fraser, consisting of Nos 1 and 3 Armed Constabulary and Hotene's Ngatiporous. The extreme right, on a scarped stony ridge, was commanded from the enemy's rifle-pits and works, and lodgement was only effected by cutting out standing room with a pick axe. The enemy made several determined sorties against this point, and it became extremely difficult to maintain the position - which was essential to the success of the operations. A party of twelve Volunteers were at length placed there, and they succeeded, with some loss, in holding the position till the end of the siege, and in repelling several resolute attacks. One of the most conspicuous for his bravery was Constable Biddle." (Bowen 1870:3).
Marriage and post war
While serving in the land wars, Biddle married a Māori woman called Mauri Poiakino (Pakohai) who was of TuhoeTuhoe
Ngāi Tūhoe , a Māori iwi of New Zealand, takes its name from an ancestral figure, Tūhoe-pōtiki. The word tūhoe literally means "steep" or "high noon" in the Māori language...
and Ngati Pahauwera origins. Mauri accompanied her husband on a number of his military missions, acting as both a guide and cook.
Following the land wars, Biddle and Mauri had a large family and lived in Wainui in the Bay of Plenty
Bay of Plenty
The Bay of Plenty , often abbreviated to BOP, is a region in the North Island of New Zealand situated around the body of water of the same name...
, an odd location as Ben's arch nemesis, Te Kooti, resided and built built his marae there. One of Biddle's sons, Robert 'Rapata' Biddle, become a minister and secretary within the Ringatu
Ringatu
The Ringatū church was founded in 1868 by Te Kooti Rikirangi. The symbol for the movement is an upraised hand, or "Ringa Tū" in Māori.Te Kooti was one of a number of Māori detained at the Chatham Islands without trial in relation to the East Coast disturbances of the 1860s...
Church, set up by Te Kooti. Robert Biddle also designed the Ringatu crest or logo in 1926. (Binney, 1995:421).
Although Ben Biddle found himself at odds with some of his superior officers and faced a court martial on one occasion, he got his own back by naming his most troublesome bullock "Lambert" after his equally troublesome former officer, Colonel Lambert. (Cowan 1935:224).