Birthday quote 23rd July

Te Atairangi Kaahu
Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu was the sixth Maori sovereign, a direct descendant of a royal line that began in 1858; the role is purely ceremonial, but enjoys the support and respect of most Maori.

The Kingitanga (King) line came into being with the coronation in 1858 of Potatau Te Wherowhero, and was a reaction to Britain's colonisation of New Zealand in which the Maoris lost their land to the incoming settlers. Dame Te Ata was elected Arikinui (queen) in 1966. She was to become the longest-serving head of the Kingitanga movement.

In 1995 Dame Te Ata was present when the Queen, on a visit to New Zealand, signed her assent to a New Zealand Act compensating a Maori tribe for lands confiscated 132 years earlier. In 2006 the Prince of Wales sent a message of congratulation to Dame Te Ata, saying "our two families have enjoyed a wonderful friendship going back to 1953, when the Queen and Prince Philip visited the meeting house at Turangawaewae Marae. The 40 years of the leadership, courage and stability you have so far given to the people of Aotearoa New Zealand and indeed to the wider world... is an immeasurable treasure."

Born at Huntly, New Zealand, on July 23 1931, Te Atairangikaahu was sent to be educated at Waikato Diocesan School, Hamilton, and it took her several years to adjust to an environment in which she was surrounded by Europeans. An important influence as she was growing up was Te Puea Herangi, the niece of King Mahuta. Te Puea realised that Te Ata, should she become queen, would have to adapt to a changing world, and schooled her accordingly. As Arikinui, Dame Te Ata worked to raise the profile of her people overseas. She met royal and diplomatic visitors to New Zealand, opened her country's new chancery in Washington DC in 1979 and met the Japanese Emperor Akihito and President Bill Clinton. Every year she attended 28 poukai (formal Maori assemblies).

Dame Te Ata was careful to avoid becoming embroiled in domestic politics, even after the emergence, in May 2004, of the Maori Party; she did, however, encourage her niece, the Tainui MP Nanaia Mahuta, to work for Maori causes from within the Labour Government. She was appointed DBE in 1970 and to the Order of New Zealand in 1987.

She married, in 1952, Whatumoana Paki, with whom she had two sons and five daughters. Tuheitia Paki, her eldest son, was chosen as her successor, after the consent of the chiefs of all the leading tribes was sought.

Born 23rd July 1931 in Waahi Marae, Huntly, New Zealand
Died 15th August 2006 in Turangawaewae Marae, Ngaruawahia, New Zealand

I inherited all that kingitanga had achieved over its history as well as its spirit and philosophy.

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