Ōrākau Pā was attacked by Crown forces on 31 March 1864. On this anniversary of the battle, I discuss the history of what became of the Ōrākau site after 1864. How we treat these sites very much reflects how we think of the history, and that has shifted and changed over time.

So when we look at the road, that’s now running through the smack-dab-middle of Orakau, it’s offensive to us because that’s where our people were buried. The plans of the battle site show that at the top corner of the pa is where 40 people were buried; yet just a few metres away, the road runs directly through the pa; it’s offensive...Orakau is hugely significant for us [as well as being] of great national significance. Why would you build a road through a national monument?^[1] 

- Nigel Te Hiko

The Waikato War battle sites serve as a permanent reminder of the terrible events that happened at these places. History is embedded in the land. They serve as a living connection with that past. And the story of these places since the war offers many insights into how that history has been understood and prioritised over the years. All too often many of these sites have in the past not been protected and preserved as they should be. Instead, these places of immense historical importance – places that are usually also tapu because the dead still lie there – have been neglected and forgotten by the Crown and Pākehā authorities, or sometimes actively erased. Spotting the remnants of a pā site can sometimes be easy – in many cases they have a road running through the middle of them.