Kete Horowhenua

Construction date

1849-1851

The Building of Rangiātea

After the completion of the Waikanae church in 1843, Te Rauparaha, who had assisted in its construction, was determined to build a still finer church in his pa at Ōtaki. In 1844, he felled the necessary trees from his forest preserve at Ohau. They were then floated down the Ohau and Waikawa rivers, dragged along the coastline to Ōtaki, and hauled overland to Mūtikotiko, where the church was to be built.

The construction of the church was soon interrupted by two factors. Firstly, progress was slowed by the breakdown of Māori-European relations during the early 1840s. This was a result of the 1843 Wairau Affair (which resulted in the deaths of 22 European settlers and several Māori), and a series of clashes between Māori and Government troops in the Hutt Valley, which culminated in the battles at Horokiwi and Pauatahanui. These disturbances prompted Sir George Grey to arrest and illegally detain Te Rauparaha, in order to pacify the local Māori tribes.

The second factor which delayed the construction of Rangiātea was the serious illness of Octavius Hadfield. In late 1844, Hadfield was forced to retire to Wellington to convalesce. In 1847, Samuel Williams was appointed to replace Hadfield at the Ōtaki mission. Williams encouraged the Ngāti Raukawa to continue the building project, but progress was slow until the return of Te Rauparaha the following year.

On his return to Ōtaki in January 1848, Te Rauparaha was greeted by a large gathering of Maori chiefs from around the country. It was during this meeting that Te Rauparaha thrust his sword into the ground at the feet of the chief Te Pohotīraha, and challenged him to support the building of the church. Te Pohotīraha was the guardian of the sacred soil of the Tainui people, which had been brought to New Zealand centuries earlier from the ancient altar of Rai'atea (Rangiātea) in Polynesia.

Te Pohotīraha took up the challenge, and the sacred soil was buried under the altar of Rangiātea in a service officiated by the priest Koronīria.

Te Rauparaha and Te Pohotīraha commanded a huge labour force in the construction of Rangiātea. Contemporary European commentators estimated that upwards of 1,000 men were employed on the site. The first service at Rangiātea was held in 1849 to celebrate Hadfield's return to Ōtaki. However, the church was not completed until 1851.

Information from: http://rangiatea.natlib.govt.nz/BuildingE.htm

The National Library hold copies plans for strengthening work for the building by Frederick de Jersey Clere in 1890 at
http://beta.natlib.govt.nz/records/23200402?search[i][category]=Images&search[page]=6&search[path]=items&search[text]=rangiatea

On 7 October 1995 Rangiatea fell prey to a suspicious fire and was destroyed.

Cremation of remains of Rangiatea Church 30 Oct 1995

Church service by remains of Rangiatea Church 9 Oct 1995

Newspapers covered the news of the fire extensively
- here are some examples:

Fortunately the Anglican Diocese of Wellington launched an appeal for the rebuilding of the historic Rangiatea and the rebuilt church opened in November 2003.

The rebuilt Rangitatea Church

Community Contributed

Rangiatea Maori Church, Otaki

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