On June 17th 1843, a posse of European settlers head to the Wairau Valley planning to arrest renowned chief Te Rauparaha and his nephew, Te Rangihaeata. A gun battle breaks out and 26 people are killed, including several Pakeha prisoners executed in the aftermath. What started it all? And why?

Watch the video documentary here.

On June 17th 1843, a posse of European settlers head to the Wairau Valley - planning to arrest the renowned chief Te Rauparaha and his nephew, Te Rangihaeata. A gun battle breaks out and 26 people are killed, including several Pakeha prisoners executed in the aftermath. So... what happened? and why?

On June 17th 1843, a posse of European Settlers head to the Wairau Valley - planning to arrest the renowned chief Te Rauparaha and his nephew, Te Rangihaeata.

It's a disaster. A gun battle breaks out and 26 people are killed, including several Pākehā prisoners executed in the aftermath.

So... What happened? And why?

In the first episode of this two part podcast, hosts Justine Murray and William Ray take an in-depth look at the events leading up to the conflict at Wairau.

We'll explain how Ngāti Toa came to occupy Wairau in the first place, how a sneaky ship captain made a dodgy deal for the land, and how that deed made its way into the hands of the New Zealand Company - which would try to take that land by force, with disasterous results.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details