Kūpapa
Kūpapa (in New Zealand also Queenites , derived from "Queen" Victoria , loyalists or the friendly natives ) were Māori who fought on the British side in the New Zealand Wars of the 19th century. The motives for it were very different, as was the degree to which the British cause was made their own. The historian James Belich distinguished three groups in this regard.
Part of the kūpapa fully supported the British. Among them was the largest tribe in New Zealand, the Ngā Puhi . According to the demographer Ian Pool in 1840, 40% of all Māori belonged to this. This tribe held a meeting in Hokinanga in 1863 under Chief Waka Nene . The aim was to support the government against the "rebels". Waka Nene, who was a strong supporter of Governor Gray , offered him the services of the Ngā-Puhi warriors. Gray refused, however.
Most of the Te Arawa of Rotorua and the Bay of Plenty were among the Kūpapa, who were enemies with their Māori neighbors and wanted to survive in isolation through their alliance with the government. Other steadfast supporters were groups of warriors associated with chiefs such as Ropata Wahawaha of the Ngāti Porou and Te Keepa Te Rangihiwinui of Whanganui , whose power in the tribe had grown through collaboration with the British.
A second category includes groups who supported the British for a reason, either to protect their economic activities with the British settlers or to gain an advantage against rival tribes. Belich attributes the participation of kūpapa in the battle of Moutoa on May 14, 1864, in which an attack by followers of the new religion Pai Mārire on Whanganui was repulsed, the defense of the valuable trade relations with the settlement.
A third group of kūpapa gave the British only superficial support. They accompanied expeditions of the Colonial Armed Forces, but avoided too much fighting. Some warriors in this category were more concerned with pay. Warriors from Whanganui who fought in the battle against Titokowaru during Titokowaru's War in 1868/1869 received four shillings a day.
Belich believes that the British did not notice this differing degree of commitment and that they regularly accused kūpapa of treason, cowardice, indolence and incompetence. The kūpapa were often good soldiers, especially when government support allowed them to raise a larger force and maintain it longer than their enemies among the Māori. He concluded that - despite the different commitments - the kūpapa were vital to the settlers after British troops withdrew from New Zealand. Without them, the colony's military operations of 186468 would have been much less successful. The wars against Titokowaru and Te Kooti might have been lost.
The historian Michael King sees the kūpapa -Māori as beneficiaries of the Māori land wars. Their land and resources remained largely intact, they were treated benevolently by the government, they received ceremonial swords and memorials for important victims, and were also consulted on some political issues.
The term was also used in the modern language in a negative sense for Māori, who are seen in conflicts with the government on the side of the Pākehā or the government and who therefore act against the interests of the Māori in their own view.
Individual evidence
- ↑ King Movement 1860-94 , NZ history
- ↑ a b c d e James Belich : The New Zealand Wars . Penguin, Auckland 1986, ISBN 0-14-027504-5 , pp. 211-213.
- ↑ Paperspast. Taranki Herald. Sydney and the War. 22 Hereturikoha, 1863, p. 3
- ^ Michael King : The Penguin History of New Zealand . Penguin, Auckland 2003, ISBN 0-14-301867-1 , p. 223.
- ^ "Tuhoe Anger Loud And Clear Over Police Raids," Scoop
- ↑ Berry, Ruth: Maori Party debates against appeal . In: The New Zealand Herald , November 29, 2004. Retrieved October 13, 2011.