Virema Tamihan , Maori Wiremu Tāmihana , distorted English William Thompson , Eng. William Thompson , nee Tarapipipi Te Vaharoa , Maori Tarapīpipi Te Waharoa , (circa 1805, Tamahera , Horothiou Plain - December 1866) is a New Zealand educator, Christian preacher and Maori public figure. He also became known as the " kingmaker " for his initiative to establish the post of Maori king .
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Biography
Born under the name Tarapipepi Te Vaharoa. In his youth he participated in the Musket Wars . In the 1830s He converted to Christianity and received the Christian name William Thompson, which Maori sounded like Virema Tamihan. It was at this time that he learned to read and write in the Maori language (the language was unwritten, and the missionaries spread literacy among the local population). After the death of his father in 1838, he became the leader of the ivy (clan) Ngati Howa, although he was not the eldest son of his father. He founded a new settlement, where he ruled based on the 10 commandments of the Bible. In the settlement, a church was created that could hold up to 1000 people. He also taught at the school, established farming in his community, and sold food to white settlers (" pakeha ") in Auckland . He then created another Christian community in Peria in 1846.
In the late 1850s, Tamikhan was a member of the movement for the election of the Oori king . He persuaded the tribal leaders to forget about the former tribal feud and to elect the first king of Potatau Te Ferofero of the Ngati Mahuta tribe. Tamihana composed the royal charter of the Bible Society. Although this movement was viewed by many white settlers as a rebellion, William Thompson himself suggested that the Maori king would be an equal partner or a vassal of Queen Victoria. Tamihana became a diplomat and publicist promoting the movement, founded a newspaper in the Maori language for this purpose. In 1861, New Zealand Governor Thomas Gore Brown issued a declaration demanding that the Maori obey the British crown. Tamihana wrote a reply to him where he explained that the Royal Movement did not intend to come into conflict with the British Queen Victoria, and expressed concern that the governor might intend to start a war. When the war began, Tamihan was a supporter of the negotiations, although other members of the Royal Movement, such as Revi Maniopoto , preferred to fight. During the invasion of Waikato, Tamikhan tried to negotiate with government forces, but to no avail. After the war, he began a campaign against the confiscation of land from the indigenous people. He died in December 1866
Notes
- ↑ SNAC - 2010.
Links
Literature
- A. Ballara et al., 'Te Waharoa, Wiremu Tāmihana Tarapīpipi', Ngā Tāngata Taumata Rau 1760–1869 . Wellington: Te Tari Taiwhenua, Allen & Unwin, 1990: 319-324.