Last Thursday saw our Year 12 history students at school bright and early. The reason? A trip to the Waikato region to visit the sites of various significant battle during the Waikato War from 1863-64. The students were able to see sites first-hand such as the remains of the Queen’s Redoubt, the Rangiriri Pa and the site of Orakau. This trip was organised to help the Year 12 students better understand the perspectives of both the Maori and British on the Waikato War for their current NCEA assessment.
On this trip the students were taken on a tour led by the education facilitator of the Te Awamutu Museum. During this the students were able to hear more about the history of the Waikato War battle sites. The students first visited a graveyard marking the site of a Catholic Mission. Here, the students learnt about the once prosperous Maori centre of importance. Then the students moved on to visit an Anglican mission church, the only building remaining from when Rangioawhia was a major centre of Maori agriculture. Inside the church, the students listened to a modern day perspective recount of how the imperial forces attacked the Maori settlement’s women, children and elderly in order to obtain land, natural resources and power over the Maori.
After discussing whether society today accurately portrays what occurred during the war, the students continued on the tour to Orakau to visit the monument erected on the site of the Maori Pa in memory of Rewi Maniapoto, a Maori chief who helped his people who lived in the Pa to escape when British soldiers attacked.
Back at the museum, the students were able to hold real artifacts from the Waikato War, such as an ammunition horn, a grenade and a leather pouch. Gaining a better understanding of the equipment used by British soldiers during the war meant the students became more familiar with the hardships of British war efforts during the 19th century.
Our whole class really enjoyed the trip and were very grateful that it was made possible by Ms Redwood and Ms Stevens. The trip definitely helped the students to view the Waikato War from a range of different perspectives and to critically evaluate how a modern day portrayal of the war can be different to a historical one.
Danica Loulie-Wijtenburg and Zoe Chou
