Thomas Wahanui
Born 14 Apr 1896 - Died 14 Nov 1990
- Service number
- WWI 16/488 AWMM
- Also known as
- Paraone H. Whanonga AWMM
- Tama Paraone AWMM
- BrowniePublic - David - Direct descendant - 24 April 2020 - Paraone translated to English is Brown
- Armed force / branch
- Army AWMM
- 1st Maori A Company, Maori Pioneer Btn, Maori Contingent 1st NZ Expeditionary Force,Public - David - Direct descendant - 24 April 2020 - Military records.
- Last rank
- —
- War
- World War I, 1914-1918 AWMM
About
- Title
- —
- Forenames
- Thomas AWMM
- ParaonePublic - David - Direct descendant - 24 April 2020 - Name on his birth certificate and his name as the father on his sons (George Wahanui my father) birth certificate.
Family oral history too.
- Surname
- Wahanui AWMM
- Ingoa
- —
- Also known as
- Paraone H. Whanonga AWMM
- Tama Paraone AWMM
- BrowniePublic - David - Direct descendant - 24 April 2020 - Paraone translated to English is Brown
- Service number
- WWI 16/488 AWMM
- Gender
- Male AWMM
- MalePublic - David - Direct descendant - 24 April 2020 - .
- Iwi / Hapū / Waka / Rohe
- Iwi Māori, Māori AWMM
- Ngāti Maniapoto, Māori AWMM
- Tainui, Waka o Ngā Iwi, Ngā Iwi, Māori AWMM
- Ngāti Urunumia, Ngāti Maniapoto, Māori AWMM
- Religion
- —
Images
Documents
About birth
- Birth
- 14 Apr 1896 AWMM
- Date of birth
- 14 April 1896 (also given as 14/4/1906 is actually 1904)Public - Lorraine Mona - Researcher - 10 April 2024 - Military Record & https://www.geni.com/people/Te-Kawana-Wahanui/6000000066039755890
- Place of birth
- Otorohanga, King CountryPublic - Lorraine Mona - Researcher - 10 April 2024 - Military Record
- Birth notes
- Son of Hari Hemara WAHANUI & Matehuirua Perahurihuripoto Te Kohika MURAAHIPublic - Lorraine Mona - Researcher - 10 April 2024 - Military Record & https://www.geni.com/people/Te-Kawana-Wahanui/6000000066039755890
- Address before enlistment
- Unknown AWMM 3 Kings' College, Auckland, New Zealand AWMM
- Post war occupation
- —
- Next of kin
- Hemara Wahanui, Otorohanga, New Zealand AWMM
- Also Kohatu WAHANUI (brother)Public - Lorraine Mona - Researcher - 10 April 2024 - Military Record
- Relationship status
- Pre 14 Feb 1915 AWMM Single AWMM
- Husband of Kahuirea Whanui (Annie) ThompsonPublic - Lorraine Mona - Researcher - 10 April 2024 - https://www.geni.com/people/Te-Kawana-Wahanui/6000000066039755890
Wars and conflicts
- War
- World War I, 1914-1918 AWMM
- Campaign
- Gallipoli and Balkan 1915, Egyptian 1915/16, Egyptian E.F 1916, Western European 1916/17-Public - David - Direct descendant - 24 April 2020 - Military records.
- Armed force / branch
- Army AWMM
- 1st Maori A Company, Maori Pioneer Btn, Maori Contingent 1st NZ Expeditionary Force,Public - David - Direct descendant - 24 April 2020 - Military records.
- Service number
- WWI 16/488 AWMM
- Military service
- 21/10/1914 to 04/05/1919. Service in NZ 145 days, service abroard 4yrs 52 days, total 4yrs 197 days.Public - David - Direct descendant - 24 April 2020 - Military records.
- Promotions/ Postings/ Transfers
- —
Military decorations
- Medals and Awards
- —
Training and Enlistment
- Military training
- —
- Branch Trade Proficiency
- —
- Enlistment
- WW1 21 Oct 1914 AWMM
Age 18 AWMM
Farmer/Civilian AWMM - Age on enlistment
- —
- Occupation before enlistment
- —
Embarkations
- Embarkation details
- WW1 14 Feb 1915-26 Mar 1915 AWMM
HMNZT 20 AWMM Vessel was Warrimoo AWMM Private AWMM A Company AWMM 1st Maori Contingent AWMM
Prisoner of war
- Capture details
- —
- Days interned
- —
- Liberation date
- —
- POW liberation details
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- Liberation Repatriation
- —
- POW serial number
- —
Medical history
- Medical notes
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Last known rank
- Last rank
- —
- Last rank
- —
Biographical information
- Thomas Wahanui (16/488) and his brother Kohatu Wahanui (16/481) both enlisted.
Tuheka Hetet wrote from the front in August 1915 describing a night attack involving the Māori Contingent. He records that Thomas Wahanui was among the first wounded, being shot through both legs while engaged in the capture of a Turkish gun. Despite the success of the attack, which secured ground through close bayonet fighting, the engagement resulted in heavy casualties and a significant reduction in the strength of the contingent. Hetet’s account highlights the intensity of the fighting and the contribution of Ngāti Maniapoto men within the wider New Zealand forces.
Source: “Letter from the Front,” King Country Chronicle, 27 October 1915.
A notice published in April 1919 records the death of his father, Hari Hemara Wahanui, a prominent Ngāti Maniapoto leader and descendant of Wahanui. He had actively supported recruitment for the Māori Contingent, with his sons Thomas and Kohatu among the early volunteers, both wounded during the war. Thomas returned to New Zealand aboard the Westmoreland on 4 April 1919, arriving home at the time of his father’s death and taking part in his tangihanga. His passing was widely mourned, with large gatherings at Te Kūiti to honour his leadership and service to the community.
Source: “A Tribal Loss: Death of a Prominent Chief,” King Country Chronicle, 10 April 1919. AWMM - Paraone is the third child of nine. He had 13 children with one whaangai, his oldest child was born in 1920.Public - David - Direct descendant - 24 April 2020 - Family whakapapa.
- Thomas Wahanui (16/488) and his brother Kohatu Wahanui (16/481) both enlisted.
About death
- Death
- 14 Nov 1990 AWMM
- Date of death
- —
- Age at death
- —
- Place of death
- —
- Cause of death
- —
- Death notes
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- Cemetery
- Manaia Urupa, Te Kuiti, Waikato AWMM
- Cemetery name
- —
- Grave reference
- —
- Obituary
- —
- Memorial name
- —
- Memorial reference
- —
Memorial
- Memorial name
- WWI Roll of Honour, Ngāti Maniapoto's Memorial Flag Pole, Te Tokanganui-a-Noho, Te Kūiti AWMM
Related Serviceperson
Sources
- External links
- Military personnel file
https://collections.archives.govt.nz/web/arena/search/#/entity/aims-archive/R22021084
Further Reference - Cowan, J. (1926). The Maoris in the Great War. Auckland, N.Z.: Maori Regimental Committee by Whitcombe & Tombs.
https://ndhadeliver.natlib.govt.nz/webarchive/20201108000000/https://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-CowMaor.html
Further Reference - LETTER FROM THE FRONT. King Country Chronicle, Volume IX, Issue 817, 27 October 1915, Page 5
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/KCC19151027.2.17
Further Reference - A TRIBAL LOSS. King Country Chronicle, Volume XII, Issue 1197, 10 April 1919, Page 5
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/KCC19190410.2.56
Further Reference
- Military personnel file
- References
- Roa, T., Paki, M., & Pūrekireki Marae. (2015). Maiea te tupua : whānau accounts of Waikato-Maniapoto World War One veterans and one conscriptee : commemorating 100 years of World War One. Pirongia : Pūrekireki Marae.
- New Zealand Army Expeditionary Force. (1914-1919). Nominal Rolls of New Zealand Expeditionary Force, Volume I. Wellington, N.Z.: Govt. Printer.
Vol1: 748 - Beattie, P.J. & Pomeroy, M. (2013-2020). Onward : portraits of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (vols 1-5). Auckland, New Zealand: Fair Dinkum Publications
Vol. 3: Includes portrait - Soutar, M. (2019). Whitiki! Whiti! Whiti! E!: Maori In the First World War. New Zealand: David Bateman Ltd.
- McClintock, K., Turner, K., Searancke, M., Manawaiti, S., Meredith, P. (2024). Ngāti Maniapoto Ope Taua 1914 – 1918.
- New Zealand. Army. 1st Maori Contingent. Scroll of the 1st New Zealand Maori Contingent, 1915. Auckland War Memorial Museum Library. MS-624.
- Cowan, J. (1926). The Maoris in the Great War. Auckland, N.Z.: Maori Regimental Committee by Whitcombe & Tombs.
- Pugsley, C. (1995). Te Hokowhitu a Tu : the Maori Pioneer Battalion in the first World War. Auckland, N.Z.: Reed.
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