Mount Taupiri

Mount Taupiri is a hill at the southern end of the Taupiri Range in the Waikato. The highest peak in the range, it rises to 288 metres above sea level and overlooks Taupiri township immediately to its south. It is separated from the HÄkarimata Range to the south by the Taupiri Gorge, through which the Waikato River flows from the Waikato Basin to the Lower Waikato. The Mangawara Stream joins the Waikato River at the base of the hill.
Mount Taupiri is a sacred mountain and burial ground for the Waikato tribe of the MÄori people.[1] Until sometime in the 19th century a large MÄori village or town, Kaitotehe, stood on the flat land on the other side of the river, below the HÄkarimata Range.[2] In early years it was the home of Paoa, brother of Mahuta, before Paoa moved to Hauraki.[3] It became the headquarters of the NgÄti Mahuta people.[4] Brothers Whare and Tapuae, grandsons of Mahuta and the leaders of NgÄti Mahuta, lived there. After the two brothers were killed, Tapuae's son Te Putu built Taupiri pÄ on the summit of a spur of Taupiri mountain, in the 1600s. When Te Putu was an old man in the 1700s, he was treacherously killed by NgÄtokowaru of NgÄti Raukawa at Te Mata-o-tutonga, his home outside the pÄ by the banks of the Waikato River. He was buried at the pÄ, which thus became tapu (sacred) and was abandoned. Early European travellers in the area were obliged by MÄori to cross to the other side of the Waikato River to avoid the sacred area.[3]
In the early 19th century Kaitotehe was the home of PÅtatau Te Wherowhero, the paramount chief of NgÄti Mahuta who became the first MÄori King. English explorer and artist George French Angas visited Kaitotehe in 1844 and painted a scene depicting a hui (meeting) taking place in the village. Taupiri mountain is seen in the background on the other side of the Waikato River (which is not visible below the far palisade). The lower peak on the far right shows signs of the terraces of Te Putu's abandoned pÄ. To its left, in about the middle of the painting, is a still-lower bush-clad hill, which was the burial ground in Te Putu's time and below which his home of Te Mata-o-tutonga stood.[3]
The present-day burial ground is directly above State Highway 1 and the North Island Main Trunk railway line on a steep slope. Parking and access is difficult, because the road and railway lie largely on land at the foot of the slope that has been reclaimed from the river. The deceased MÄori kings and queen are buried in the highest part of the cemetery, on the summit where Te Putu's pÄ stood.
Notable people buried there
- Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu (1931–2006), MÄori Queen
- Whatumoana Paki (died 2011), husband of Te Atairangikaahu[5]
- Billy T. James (1948–1991), comedian
- KorokÄ« Mahuta (1906–1966), MÄori King
- TÄwhiao (1822–1894), MÄori King[6]
References
- ↑ Swarbrick, Nancy (8 December 2011). "Waikato places - NgÄruawÄhia". Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand.
- ↑ "Introduction". The New Zealand Railways Magazine 9 (6). 1934. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
- 1 2 3 Kelly, Leslie G. (1940). "Taupiri pa". The Journal of the Polynesian Society 49 (193): 148–59.
- ↑ "Taupiri Community Plan 2008 - 2018" (PDF). Waikato District Council. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
- ↑ Akuhata, Karla (2011-09-26). "Revered Kingitanga elder reunited with Dame Te Ata, Whatumoana Paki laid to rest". Waikato Times. Retrieved 2011-10-16.
- ↑ http://www.uq.net.au/~zzhsoszy/states/oceania/maori.html
Coordinates: 37°36′17″S 175°11′10″E / 37.6048°S 175.1862°E