Te Whiti O Rongomai and the Resistance of Parihaka

Book excerpt: This is an account of the life and times of Te Whiti o Rongomai set against the politics and Crown policies of the nineteenth century. It traces the forces that shaped his life's journey from Ngamotu, where he was born, to his settling at Parihaka and his evolving sense of the injustices and disempowerment Maori experienced and his response to these. The book discusses the struggles Te Whiti had, as understood by some of his living relatives, against native policy of the time, and it gives insights into the motivations of Te Whiti and his actions. It explores the community at Parihaka, its resistance and the consequences of this and looks at Maori and government actions and responses up to the present day.