NZ Wars

The Stories of Ruapekapeka, a documentary highlighting Northland's most infamous armed conflict, is hosted by RNZ's Māori Issues Correspondent Mihingarangi Forbes, and was made alongside Great Southern Television with funding from NZ on Air.

NZ Wars: Stories of Waitara combines oral histories, state of the art animations and powerful dramatic re-enactments to bring to life the narratives of Te Ātiawa in their epic battle against the military might of the British Empire.

The 1863 invasion of the Waikato was the defining conflict of New Zealand, reinforcing the Crown's power, entrenching one of Aotearoa's oldest political institutions and resulting in land confiscations that continue to shape New Zealand today.

The fourth chapter in RNZ’s NZ Wars series examines the events that led to the first armed conflict between Ngāti Toa, the New Zealand Company and Nelson settlers just three years after the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.