Hundreds gather in Northland to remember the Battle of Ruapekapeka Pā

Photo: RNZ / Peter de Graaf

Hundreds of people from around the motu are expected to descend on a Northland pā this weekend to remember one of the most famous battles fought on New Zealand soil.

The Battle of Ruapekapeka Pā, the final engagement of the 1845-46 Northern War, pitched an estimated 400 Ngāpuhi and Ngāti Hine defenders against a force of about 1600 British troops and Māori allies.

Despite its inconclusive ending, the battle's effects are still felt in Northland today - and the military innovations it spawned were used for decades afterwards, even in the trenches of World War I.

Photo: RNZ / Peter de Graaf

Te Ruapekapeka Trust chairman Pita Tipene said the first two days of commemorations would be centred on Kawiti Marae at Waiomio with a series of pōwhiri, wānanga and site visits.

The final day - a Sunday, like the last day of the battle 180 years earlier - would start at 4am with the blessing of a towering new pou ihi, or wayfinder pou, next to State Highway 1.

That would be followed by the blessing of 12 new tūpuna (ancestor) pou representing combatants in the battle, then a mass haka, a flag-raising ceremony and karakia at the pā itself.

Photo: RNZ / Peter de Graaf

Tipene expected hundreds would attend, including government ministers, the defence force and the British High Commission.

"It's a time of year where many people will be away from