Te Keepa Te Rangihiwinui

The Kemp Monument at Whanganui's Moutoa Gardens erected by the people of New Zealand to honour the "high-born Maori chief, brave soldier and staunch ally of the New Zealand Government" Te Keepa Te Rangihiwinui (died 15 April 1898) was a Māori military commander and noted ally of the government forces during the New Zealand Wars. First known as Te Rangihiwinui, he was later known as Te Keepa, Meiha Keepa, Major Keepa or Major Kemp.

Early life Te Rangihiwinui's father was Mahuera Paki Tanguru-o-te-rangi, a leader of the Muaūpoko iwi (tribe). His mother was Rere-ō-maki, sister of Te Anaua, a leader of Ngāti Ruaka, a subtribe of Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi. Te Rangihiwinui was probably born in the early 1820s near Opiki in the Horowhenua. His early years were spent under the threat of tribal warfare resulting from the invasion of their tribal land by the Ngāti Toa, led by Te Rauparaha, and the allied Ngāti Raukawa and Te Āti Awa.

This was the start of six years of warfare for Te Keepa, always fighting on the side of the Pākehā government, usually working closely with Captain Thomas McDonnell. In February 1865, Te Keepa and his force of Whanganui Māori warriors took part in the attack on Ohoutahi Pa, a major Pai Mārire stronghold. Following the murder of the missionary Volkner, they were shipped to the other side of the country, to Ōpōtiki. However they soon returned to Taranaki and were involved in the capture of Wereroa Pa and then the relief of Pipiriki.

Te Keepa gradually built up a personal contingent of between one and two hundred warriors, men who were paid by the government but whose loyalty was to him and his mana as a fighting chieftain. In 1868, he and his men were involved with the insurgency of Titokowaru. Te Keepa commanded the rearguard during the retreat from Te Ngutu o Te Manu after the government forces had been defeated and again in similar circumstances after the Battle of Moturoa. Te Keepa commanded the force pursuing Tītokowaru after he abandoned his pa at Tauranga Ika. It was the first time that British soldiers, officers and men, had served under a Māori commander. By this time Te Keepa had been promoted to the rank of major. He was one of three candidates in the Western Maori electorate in the 1876 election, when he came second. He was beaten by Hoani Nahe and was ahead of the incumbent, Wiremu Parata.

In 1880, Te Keepa set up a Māori trust to protect Māori land from European buyers. A large area of inland Wanganui was declared off limits to all Europeans. This provoked the government, but Te Keepa's large personal following of warriors meant they were very cautious in dealing with him. In addition, he had the support of some members of the government, including the Native Minister, John Ballance.

Land dealings in his later years added stresses and caused debts. He sought to unify the Maori tribes in the Te Kotahitanga (unity of purpose) movement, and force government adherence to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi. In a speech he made in March 1889 at Ōrākei he urged the government to work with Te Kotahitanga but this was rejected. Te Keepa Te Rangihiwinui died at Putiki, near Whanganui, on 15 April 1898.