Taununu's pa, Ripapa Island, Lyttelton Harbour

Title: Taununu's pa, Ripapa Island, Lyttelton Harbour
Date: [1872]
Physical Description: "Copied [ca. 1910] from plan made by Fredk Strouts in 1872..."
Scale etc: Scale 1:396
Notes: Ripapa was a pa (fortress) of Taununu, a leading Ngåai Tahu warrior prominent during the 1820s. Taununu was a Kaikoura chief who had decided to live at Kaiapoi. However, after settling at Kaiapoi, Taununu saw that Ripapa was a better place to live, so he and his people moved on and settled on the island. Taununu fortified Ripapa Island to withstand attacks from tribes armed with muskets. Taununu eventually became involved in an inter-tribal war and attacked a village at Te Taumutu. Because the Taumutu people were connected to the southern hapu of Ngåai Tahu, a chieftainess and seer called Hine-Haaka was sent south from Te Taumutu to seek reinforcements. Tradition tells that when Hine-Haaka arrived at Ruapuke, near Stewart Island, she composed a song telling Taununu to weep as in the morning he would be killed. Taununu's pa was attacked from both sea and land by an alliance of related hapu from Southland, Otago and Kaiapoi. Hine-Haaka's vision was proved right. Taununu managed to escape this attack, but was later killed at Wairewa (Little River).
File Reference: ATLMAPS ATL-Acc-5099
Other Reference: MapColl 834.44hkcmf/1872/Acc. 5099

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