Boyd massacre

1809 CE.

Shown on the map at -35.047°, 173.745°.

The Boyd massacre occurred in December 1809 when Māori of Ngāti Pou from Whangaroa Harbour in northern New Zealand killed and ate between 66 and 70 European passengers and crew members from the British brigantine Boyd. This was the highest number of Europeans killed by Māori in a single event in New Zealand. The Māori attack was in retaliation for the whipping of their rangatira or chief of Ngāti Pou, Te Ara, on his voyage back from Sydney Cove, New South Wales aboard the Boyd. Te Ara had been accused of onboard theft and was punished with a cat o' nine tails. According to another version, he was the son of a chief and had been punished because he had refused to pay for his passage on the ship by working as a seaman. Local people were already tense and inflamed after a previous ship had brought disease to the area. Three days after the Boyd moored at Whangaroa, the Māori launched a night attack, killing the crew. After capturing the ship, the passengers were taken on deck where they were killed and dismembered.

Text from the Wikipedia article Boyd massacre, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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