Pāterangi was the site of one of the largest fortifications built in the New Zealand wars, comprising two kilometres of rifle trenches joining several redoubts at critical points and with a garrison of perhaps 2,000 men. When British forces reached the pā in 1864, they wisely declined to assault such a formidable position and instead outflanked Pāterangi with an attack on Rangiaowhia.
Nothing remains of this massive earthwork today. A minor memorial is dedicated to six British soldiers who died in a minor skirmish on 11 February 1864.
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