Ruatara (chief)
Encyclopedia
Ruatara, was a chief of the Ngāpuhi
iwi
(tribe) in New Zealand
. He introduced Europe
an crops to New Zealand and was host to the first Christian
missionary
, Samuel Marsden
.
Ruatara belonged to the chiefly line of the Hikutu hapu
within the Ngāpuhi iwi. He was also the nephew of Hongi Hika
. Ruatara's pā was at Rangihoua
on the northern shore of the Bay of Islands
. Rangihoua had been Te Pahi's pā until his death at the hand of whalers who wrongly accused him of being responsible for the Boyd Massacre
.
In 1805, he first attempted to travel abroad, and signed up as a sailor on a whaling ship, the Argo, but was cheated and stranded in Sydney
the following year by its captain. Undeterred, he signed up on the sealing vessel Santa Anna in 1807. He reached London
in 1809, where he stayed for a little over two weeks before returning to Sydney. There, he studied British agricultural
practices and met Samuel Marsden, before finally returning to New Zealand in 1812, and succeeding the recently deceased Te Puhi as leader of the Ngapuhi. He introduced wheat
to his compatriots, along with a mill to grind it, given to him by Marsden. By 1814, he had "laid the foundations of a flourishing wheat industry"; the 1966 Encyclopedia of New Zealand described him as "possess[ing] considerable business acumen", although his plans to set up a steady export industry were cut short by his death shortly thereafter.
On December 25, 1814, he and Hongi Hika
welcomed Marsden and Thomas Kendall
on Ngāpuhi land, and hosted his Christian mission station, the first to be established in New Zealand. Ruatara thus "secured a monopoly over the first permanent European settlement in New Zealand, a goose that would reliably lay eggs of iron, if not gold. He had also introduced Christianity into the country as a side effect. Ruatara's Māori neighbours were left in no doubt about who ran the new mission station or about who was the new rising star of the Bay of Islands
." Through the mission, he obtained European plants, tools and pistols, "distributing European goods and knowledge" to Maori and thus increasing his mana
(power, influence, prestige). He never converted to Christianity himself.
Ruatara described Marsden and Kendall as "his Pākehā
", and was their protector for the remaining months of his life; he died on 3 March 1815, following a month-long "raging fever". His uncle Hongi Hika would continue to host Marsden's mission until his (Hongi Hika's) own death in 1828.
According to historian James Belich
,
Ngapuhi
Ngāpuhi is a Māori iwi located in the Northland region of New Zealand, and centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands and Whāngārei.Ngāpuhi has the largest affiliation of any New Zealand iwi, with 122,214 people registered , and formed from 150 hapu, with 55 marae.-Foundations:The founding...
iwi
Iwi
In New Zealand society, iwi form the largest everyday social units in Māori culture. The word iwi means "'peoples' or 'nations'. In "the work of European writers which treat iwi and hapū as parts of a hierarchical structure", it has been used to mean "tribe" , or confederation of tribes,...
(tribe) in 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...
. He introduced Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an crops to New Zealand and was host to the first Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
, Samuel Marsden
Samuel Marsden
Samuel Marsden was an English born Anglican cleric and a prominent member of the Church Missionary Society, believed to have introduced Christianity to New Zealand...
.
Ruatara belonged to the chiefly line of the Hikutu hapu
Hapu
A hapū is sometimes described as "the basic political unit within Maori society".A named division of a Māori iwi , membership is determined by genealogical descent; a hapū is made up of a number of whānau groups. Generally hapū range in size from 150-200 although there is no upper limit...
within the Ngāpuhi iwi. He was also the nephew of Hongi Hika
Hongi Hika
Hongi Hika was a New Zealand Māori rangatira and war leader of the Ngāpuhi iwi . Hongi Hika used European weapons to overrun much of northern New Zealand in the first of the Musket Wars...
. Ruatara's pā was at Rangihoua
Rangihoua Bay
Rangihoua Bay is a bay on the north-west shore of the Bay of Islands in Northland, New Zealand. It is 10 km north across the Bay of Islands from Russell and 12 km north from Paihia. By road it is 32 km from Kerikeri....
on the northern shore of the Bay of Islands
Bay of Islands
The Bay of Islands is an area in the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. Located 60 km north-west of Whangarei, it is close to the northern tip of the country....
. Rangihoua had been Te Pahi's pā until his death at the hand of whalers who wrongly accused him of being responsible for the Boyd Massacre
Boyd massacre
The Boyd Massacre took place in 1809 when Māori residents of Whangaroa Harbour in northern New Zealand killed and ate between 66 and 70 people as revenge for the whipping of a young Māori chief by the crew of the sailing ship Boyd...
.
In 1805, he first attempted to travel abroad, and signed up as a sailor on a whaling ship, the Argo, but was cheated and stranded in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
the following year by its captain. Undeterred, he signed up on the sealing vessel Santa Anna in 1807. He reached London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1809, where he stayed for a little over two weeks before returning to Sydney. There, he studied British agricultural
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
practices and met Samuel Marsden, before finally returning to New Zealand in 1812, and succeeding the recently deceased Te Puhi as leader of the Ngapuhi. He introduced wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
to his compatriots, along with a mill to grind it, given to him by Marsden. By 1814, he had "laid the foundations of a flourishing wheat industry"; the 1966 Encyclopedia of New Zealand described him as "possess[ing] considerable business acumen", although his plans to set up a steady export industry were cut short by his death shortly thereafter.
On December 25, 1814, he and Hongi Hika
Hongi Hika
Hongi Hika was a New Zealand Māori rangatira and war leader of the Ngāpuhi iwi . Hongi Hika used European weapons to overrun much of northern New Zealand in the first of the Musket Wars...
welcomed Marsden and Thomas Kendall
Thomas Kendall
Thomas Kendall was a New Zealand lapsed missionary, recorder of the Māori language, schoolmaster, arms dealer, and Pākehā Māori.-Early life: Lincolnshire and London, 1778-1813:...
on Ngāpuhi land, and hosted his Christian mission station, the first to be established in New Zealand. Ruatara thus "secured a monopoly over the first permanent European settlement in New Zealand, a goose that would reliably lay eggs of iron, if not gold. He had also introduced Christianity into the country as a side effect. Ruatara's Māori neighbours were left in no doubt about who ran the new mission station or about who was the new rising star of the Bay of Islands
Bay of Islands
The Bay of Islands is an area in the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. Located 60 km north-west of Whangarei, it is close to the northern tip of the country....
." Through the mission, he obtained European plants, tools and pistols, "distributing European goods and knowledge" to Maori and thus increasing his mana
Mana
Mana is an indigenous Pacific islander concept of an impersonal force or quality that resides in people, animals, and inanimate objects. The word is a cognate in many Oceanic languages, including Melanesian, Polynesian, and Micronesian....
(power, influence, prestige). He never converted to Christianity himself.
Ruatara described Marsden and Kendall as "his Pākehā
Pakeha
Pākehā is a Māori language word for New Zealanders who are "of European descent". They are mostly descended from British and to a lesser extent Irish settlers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, although some Pākehā have Dutch, Scandinavian, German, Yugoslav or other ancestry...
", and was their protector for the remaining months of his life; he died on 3 March 1815, following a month-long "raging fever". His uncle Hongi Hika would continue to host Marsden's mission until his (Hongi Hika's) own death in 1828.
According to historian James Belich
James Belich (historian)
James Christopher Belich, ONZM is a New Zealand revisionist historian, known for his work on the New Zealand Wars.Of Croatian descent, he was born in Wellington in 1956, the son of Sir James Belich, who later became Mayor of Wellington. He attended Onslow College.He gained an M.A...
,
- "Above all it was Ruatara's enthusiasm for things European that led them to conclude that Māori were the perfect prospects for conversion. [Missionaries] saw his premature death as near-martyrdom. [...] A fourteen-page poem on his death won a prize at Cambridge University in 1823. Behind the admirably convertible Māori of the missionary and humanitarian literature lies the ghost of Ruatara."