How Battle Hill got its name
Battle Hill's name is no accident. It acknowledges the site of a historic battle in 1846 between the Government forces and around 250 of Te Rangihaeata's men near the summit.
The history of this area has it all - kidnapping, arrests, canons and warfare.
The short story
On 6 August 1846, 250 British troops along with armed militia and police, stood in the freezing rain, ready to attack the 150 men from Te Āti Awa, and 100 men from Ngāti Toa on the hill.
The terrain and native bush made things tricky for the British, they were reluctant to advance and afraid of a counterattack. Instead, they bombarded the pa with mortars (canons).
This went on for days until on 13 August it was discovered that Te Rangihaeata had slipped away under cover of darkness and heavy rain, never to return to his turangawaewae, or place of standing.
The longer story - growing tension in Wellington
In the years leading up to 1846, the relationship between the Crown and Māori was breaking down. The New Zealand Company was trying to buy large parts of land for Pakeha settlers, but the Ngāti Toa iwi, led by Te Rangihaeata, was resisting pressure to sell.
This came after Te Rangihaeata had been involved in killing 22 settlers in a land dispute at Wairau in 1843. Settlers wanted him punished and were looking for signs that he would not continue to disrupt their settlement.
There was a lot of fear from settlers around the conflict and deaths, and that's when Governor Grey launched a two-pronged plan to secure Ngāti Toa land.
Battle in two phases
The first phase was to kidnap/arrest Te Rauparaha, a war leader of Ngāti Toa, from his pa in Plimmerton, and then the way was clear for the second phase where he launched an attack on Te Rangihaeata and his allies.
Starting in the Hutt Valley, a mixed group of around 500 British troops, police, militia and Te Atiawa allies, joined forces to converge on Te Rangihaeata's at Pauatahanui. They found it deserted and chased him through dense native bush up the Horokiwi Valley to what is now Battle Hill Farm Forest Park.
They were joined by a few hundred Ngāti Toa warriors under the leadership of Rawiri Puaha, but these men turned out to be loyal supporters of Te Rangihaeata, and had been supplying him with ammunition and assistance in his eventual escape.
The loss of a chief
Te Rangihaeata built himself a temporary pa on a hard-to-reach ridge near the summit of Battle Hill. When the Government forces attacked, Te Rangihaeata's men returned fire, killing three Government troops and stopping the attack for a while.
The Government troops sent to Porirua for mortars (canons) and settled into a siege where they bombarded the pa for several days.
By 13 August, Te Rangihaeata had lost nine people and with some of his Ngāti Toa iwi, he fled north to the Horowhenua, never to return to his home.
The Ngāti Toa had lost Te Rangihaeata and Rauparaha and was demoralised and left without leadership. They finally gave in to the Crown's demands for the sale of their land, selling over 608,000 acres in the Wairau and 25,000 acres in Porirua, including what is now Battle Hill Farm Forest Park. In return, Rauparaha was released and they were paid a few thousand pounds.
Battle Hill farm & the Abbott family
In 1860, the bush-covered land was sold to the 62-year-old Henry Abbott. He set about clearing the land of bush and stocking it with cattle.
Henry died in 1882 and the farm passed down to his sons Roderick and Nicholas. It remained in the family until 1975.
Greater Wellington purchased the park in 1987.
Henry Abbott, his son Henry and his daughters Maria and Delia, are buried at Battle Hill in a small graveyard, alongside two of the three militiamen killed in the battle in 1846.