A story in the November 1937 New Zealand Police Journal (a forerunner of Police News) gives a first-person account of the arrest of Rua Kenana in Tuhoe country in 1916.

In the early part of last century, one of Maoridom’s most enigmatic leaders, Rua Kenana – a self-proclaimed prophet and messiah who headed a religious community – was at the centre of what became an infamous encounter between police and Maori.

In 1907, Rua and about 600 of his followers lived at the foot of Maungapohatu, the mountain that is sacred to Tuhoe, in the Ureweras. Although Rua tried to develop the area and sold some land to raise money, the settlement declined and by 1913 there were just 30 families remaining.

Historians say Rua was considered a subversive and disruptive influence by the authorities, including prominent Maori such as Tuhoe chief Kereru and Maui Pomara and Apirana Ngata, who believed traditional spiritual leaders were holding back Maori progress. The government was also uneasy about Rua’s opposition to Tuhoe men enlisting for the First World War.

In 1915, he was arrested and charged with illicitly selling alcohol. He was summonsed to appear in court on January 19, 1916, but refused to attend saying it was harvest time and he would attend later in February. This was viewed as contempt of court and a warrant was issued for his arrest. On February 12, he refused to go with two police officers, but was not arrested. In March, plans were put in motion for an armed police expedition to Maungapohatu, leading to the conflict on April 2, 1916.

The story of the police trek into the fastness of Maungapohatu was recorded in the New Zealand Police Journal by a Gisborne police officer, G J Maloney, who was one of a small group of constables and a sub-inspector sent in to rendezvous with a larger group from Auckland. The officers travelled on horseback, carrying batons, handcuffs, service revolvers and ammunition. The journey took two days and nights through farmland and dense bush. Maloney wrote that the weather was perfect and the ground was dry for camping.

He continues:

“After a good night’s rest, we took our time next morning, as our ‘sealed’ orders were that the main body of police would arrive at Maungapohatu about 11am that day ... We skirted the mountain down between high bluffs, through bush, and so on into Rua’s pa ... We found the main body of police from Auckland had not arrived, so that we were the first police on the scene.

“We met Rua and his followers. They did not expect a party from Gisborne, but Rua said they were expecting the police from Rotorua and Auckland. We made ourselves at ease and Rua gave instructions to get us something to eat, and we had a cup of tea and a snack with the Maoris.”

Maloney writes that Rua appeared restless and used binoculars to scan the bridle track down which the northern police would come.

In fact, the next group of officers to arrive was a small party from Whakatane. It wasn’t until about noon that the Auckland and Rotorua police came into view. “Nearly all were on foot, between 50 and 60 all told ... some were carrying service rifles, but the majority were armed only with service revolvers.” They were led by the commissioner of police, John Cullen.

Maloney suggests that Rua “never thought the police would march right up on to the marai [sic] and arrest him out of hand”. Instead, Maloney wrote, Rua would have expected the commissioner to come up first with one or two of his officers “as was the usual old Maori custom, and have a long ‘korero’ over the matter first”.

“The commissioner taking his force up on to the marai took Rua by surprise ... and so they made to move back towards the bush. When Rua and his men moved back, the commissioner saw he might escape into the bush, so gave the order to detain Rua.”

Maloney then details what he describes as “the melee”. The significance of his reportage, albeit many years later, is that it is the account of a witness and it differs from some subsequent records of the incident. This is an edited version:

“Sub-Inspector Johnston walked up to Rua and caught him by the arm. Rua pulled away, and his shirt sleeve came away in Mr Johnston’s hand. By this time several of the police were up by Rua and he struggled. Rua’s followers, including his two sons Whatu and Toko, were all around him and tried to assist him. By this time there was a general disturbance and Rua was calling out in Maori.

“During this disturbance, one constable dropped his rifle or put it down to assist in the arrest of Rua.

A strongly built Maori picked up the rifle and was trying to work the bolt, which had been set at ‘safety’.

Two constables seized this Maori and were taking the rifle from him, but had some difficulty on account of his great height and strength. Next, he was knocked out by someone and secured.

“Constable Neil of Rotorua who had been carrying an axe, which he used to clear the track coming in, dropped the axe and went to assist in the arrest of Rua, who was putting up a big struggle, he being a very strong man. Whatu picked up the axe and was running with it to assist his father, when he was very neatly floored by Sergeant J O’Hara. Whatu was handcuffed, so also was Rua; and they and others arrested were taken to the meeting house and placed under guard.

“At about the same time, a shot was fired – the first shot – it is not known by whom, although there was a lot of discussion over it at the trial.

“Now several shots were fired at the police from the scrub by Maoris who had scattered when Rua was being arrested. The firing was taken up by the police and became general. The police were mostly in the open and the Maoris had taken to the scrub and bush.

“There was a lot of firing going on. Evidently, the Maoris obtained the firearms quickly from  the little whares which were dotted around in the scrub and were making good use of them.”

Maloney then described taking up a position beside a tree stump when Constable W  Darkie”

Wright came and knelt beside him. “We only had time to say ‘Good day’ when all of a  sudden Darkie called out, ‘I’m shot’.”

Constable Wright was badly wounded in the back and was taken to a dressing station. Maloney and two other constables went to higher ground from where the shots had been fired by a Maori named Te Maipi.

“As we reached the top, we saw the Maori down on one knee taking aim at us. He himself was soon shot dead.” Maloney took Te Maipi’s gun – “a Browning Automatic shotgun, 12 gauge ... a very handy weapon”.

Meanwhile, Toko Rua had run off. “Police called on him to stop, but he would not do so.

No one fired on him as he was then unarmed. He continued up the gully to a small whare which he entered. He came out again immediately with a double-barrel shotgun with which he started firing on the police. He was a good sport and could easily have got away, but evidently preferred to make a stand and fight it out.”

Toko was soon shot and died, but not before he had wounded a constable. Maloney wrote: “We found Toko a little on from where Te Maipi fell. He had received a wound in one wrist which had been freshly tied up, and I found out later that the dressing was hurriedly done by an old Maori woman. It was a sad ending, for Toko was well liked amongst the Maoris.”

At the end of the skirmish two Maori were dead (Toko and Te Maipi) and two more died later from their wounds. Four constables were wounded including Constable Wright, and the police party were unable to leave the pa for two days because of his condition.

Rua and Whatu were taken to Rotorua and then to Auckland to be tried at the Supreme Court.

Subsequent descriptions of the arrest of Rua reported that senior police claimed at the trial that they had walked into a planned ambush and that Maori had fired first.

Historian Judith Binney noted that the weight of evidence suggested it was police who fired first.

Although Maloney’s account makes it clear there was no ambush, it also suggests that it was not known for certain who fired the first shot.

Rua was found not guilty of sedition, but guilty of resisting arrest and sentenced to one year’s hard labour followed by 18 months in jail. Eight members of the jury publicly protested against the harshness of the sentence. Whatu was acquitted.

Maloney noted that “Rua did his time and I heard he was a model prisoner. He went back to his wives and followers, who worshipped him, and he probably told them of the queer ways of the white man”.

Rua died in February 1937 which was possibly what prompted Maloney to write his story for the Police Journal.

For more information on Rua Kenana, visit www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/3r32/ruakenana-hepetipa and www.nzhistory.net.nz.