Nga Tohu

In 1840 more than 500 chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, New Zealand’s founding document. Ngā Tohu, when complete, will contain a biographical sketch of each signatory.


Signing

SignatureSheetSigned asProbable nameTribeHapūSigning Occasion
131Sheet 8 — The Cook Strait (Henry Williams) SheetTe RangihiroaTe RangihīroaNgāti ToaNgāti Te MaunuMotungārara 4 June 1840

Te Rangihīroa signed the Cook Strait (Henry Williams) sheet of the Treaty of Waitangi on 4 June 1840 at Motungārara, a small island off the southern tip of Kāpiti Island. He was a rangatira (chief) of the Ngāti te Maunu and Ngāti Mutunga hapū (subtribes) of Ngāti Toa. Te Rangihīroa occupied Motungārara with Te Hiko, the son of his brother Te Pēhi Kupe.

Te Rangihīroa’s parents were Toitoi and Waipunahau, and his grandparents were Pikauterangi and Te Kahurangi. He married Pohe and in 1793 they had a daughter named Metapere Wai-punahau, who married the whaler George Stubbs and had two sons, Wiremu Te Kakakura Parata and Hēmi Mātenga. Pohe was a wahine rangatira (woman of rank) from Te Āti Awa. She was killed by Kāwana Te Hākeke at Ngahuruhuru, beside the Waikanae River. Te Rangihīroa was buried at Waiorua Bay, at the northern end of Kāpiti Island.


If you have more information about this treaty signatory please add a community contribution below or contact us at [email protected].

Community contributions

5 comments have been posted about Te Rangihīroa

What do you know?

Can you tell us more about the information on this page? Perhaps you have a related experience you would like to share?

CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

Comments will be reviewed prior to posting. Not all comments posted. Tell me more...

Toa Waaka

Posted: 15 Feb 2023

Kia ora,

if I may, as a descendant of Te Peehi Kupe, to whom his first name is the totality of this, was given because of what was prophesied to occur in his life journey, Te Rangihīroa did not have Kupe as his last name.
To clarify this, Māori, similar to other indigenous cultures where more known of who they were from who they descended from, being Toitoi, Te Rangihīroa a Toitoi.
To confirm, Te Peehi Kupe and Te Rangihīroa were brothers, but Te Peehi Kupe was the tuakana - elder and therifore inherited the hereditary leadership of Ngāti Te maunu, the tuakana hapu of Ngāti Toa, that held the strongest links with our Taranaki relatives, Ngāti Mutunga, Te Āti Awa and in Te Peehi Kupe's marriage, Ngāti Koata.
The strongest senior most link with Ngāti Mutunga would be found in the Union of Toa Rangatira and Tūwhareiti, grand daughter of Mutunga, then with Toitoi and Waipunahau, Te Peehi's parents.
But it should also be remembered that: While Ngati Toa was In Taranaki, relatives of Te Pehi from Ngāti Mutunga joined Ngāti Toa, and the combined war party defeated a Waikato and Ngāti Maniapoto army at Motunui in late 1821 or early 1822.
So, Te Rangi hīroa was a chief of Ngāti Te Maunu, because he was the brother of the paramount chief of Ngāti Toa - Te Peehi Kupe, and he had standing as a descendant of Waipunahau and Tūwhareiti who married Toa Rangatira. But the leadership of the tribe was Te Peehi Kupe, and the split of that leadership was with Te Rauparaha when Ati Awa, Toa and later Raukawa arrived to the Horowhenua - Kāpiti rohe. Te Peehi's son stood with his Te Āti Awa - Mutunga iwi while Te Rauparaha stood with his Raukawa iwi as that was where his mana descended from.

Mauri ora.

Toa

Anonymous

Posted: 30 Nov 2020

Kia ora,
My patai is : Did Te Rangihiroa have a surname ? Was it the same surname as his Tuakana Te Pehi Kupe? Were they full brothers born to the same parents Toitoi and Waipunahau?

Nga mihi

Jamie M

Posted: 13 Oct 2017

Kia ora Terese - he was a rangatira (not 'the' rangatira') who was of Ngāti te Maunu and Ngāti Mutunga, which are hapū of Ngāti Toa. It might help to think of rangatira as 'leader' in this case. I've reworded the sentence a bit to reflect this. Hope that helps.
Ngā mihi, Jamie

Terese Mcleod

Posted: 12 Oct 2017

Kia ora

Can I please understand the following better re Te Rangihiroa
He was a Ngāti te Maunu and Ngāti Mutunga rangatira (chief) of Ngāti Toa. Does this mean he was of Ngati te Mauna and Ngati Mutunga and Ngati Toa but just a chief of Ngati Toa?

Thank you