Headhunter: the story of Horatio Robley (Part 2)

The story of Horatio Robley continues... How did a man once dubbed a "predator of culture" for his collection of preserved Māori heads become better known as a "friend of the Māori"?

In Part 1 of this story, we heard how Horatio Robley came to New Zealand as a young officer in the British Army and witnessed the devastating British defeat at Gate Pā. In Part 2, we hear how the Tauranga War ended, and how Robley became famous as a collector of Mokomokai, preserved Māori heads.

A few months after Gate Pā, Māori and British came to blows again at Battle of Te Ranga. This time the British caught Tauranga Māori before they could finish building their Pā, and the half-dug trenches became a mass grave for 108 warriors.

Within weeks a peace was negotiated, but Robley and his fellow soldiers stayed on in Tauranga for several more months. In those months, Robley had a chance to become much more intimately involved in Māori culture ...and with one Māori woman in particular.

Horatio Te Ropere

With the spectre of war lifted, Robley doubled down on his artwork. He painted spectacular watercolours of Tauranga landscapes and took portraits of prominent Māori in the region, including some leaders of the Ngāi Te Rangi tribe who had participated in the Battle for Gate Pā.

Tauranga Māori clearly respected Robley's skill as an artist and eventually they allowed him to sketch some incredibly intimate and sacred moments.

"There was a gradual building of rapport," explains Tim Walker, pointing out a painting Robley did at a tangi (Māori funeral rite). "Astonishing for a Pākeha to be sitting in that context."

Somewhere in the middle of this, Robley formed a relationship with a Māori woman - and not just any woman: Herete Mauao, daughter of one of the highest ranking chiefs in the entire Bay of Plenty region.

"Some kaumātua have told me she was presented to Robley as an act of respect for his mana," Walker says. "It seems hard to understand in one way because he was only an itinerant soldier who's part of a colonising force."

However it began, Robley and Herete's relationship became serious very quickly. Herete gave birth to a son, named Hamiora Tu Ropere after his father.

But Robley didn't stay with his family for long. After just 20 months, the 68th regiment were redeployed away from New Zealand. Robley would never see Herete or Hamiora ever again.

However, he maintained a deep and sometimes deeply problematic connection with Aotearoa for the rest of his life.

Headhunter…

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details