Description

South Taranaki was the scene of some of the most desparate and violent episodes of the 1860s-70s Maori-Pakeha wars – wars that changed New Zealand’s landscape and society irrevocably.

Into the landscape marched a reluctant British soldier – Kimble Bent. Deserting his regiment at Camp Manawapou, just south of present day Hawera, he fell in with Ngati Ruanui – in time to witness some of the most brutal battles of the period.

His story is as compelling as it is unique.