Thousands of mourners have begun to arrive in Rotorua to farewell Sir Robert “Bom” Gilles, the last surviving member of the 28th Māori Battalion.
Among them were the Māori Queen Ngā Wai Hono i te Pō and Willie Apiata VC as a chapter closes for one of the world’s most celebrated infantry units.
Gillies was carried by his descendants into the heart of Ngāti Whakaue as his tangi started today.
Kingi Biddle (Ngāti Whakaue) said it was a “loss for all of us”.
“Not only was he the last of 28 Māori battalion, but he was the last link. And all of these families whose koroa went to war, fathers, uncles, and he was their link.”
Whānau spokesperson Tatere Macleod said, “For many of us, we’re the third or fourth generation of the battalion. So when we saw him, we saw our own grandfathers and our own great grandfathers, and we were able to feel and touch the 28 Māori battalion, and now that ends today.”
The Māori Queen and the people of Tainui Waka were among the first wave of mourners to arrive.
“It’s important for Te Arikinui and Kīngitanga to attend Sir Bom’s tangi,” said Kīngitanga spokesperson Rāhui Papa.
“It’s not only about him being the last of the 28 Māori battalion, but he was a senior kaumatua in his own right.”
At Te Papaiouru Marae, all hands are on deck as they prepare to feed the masses, and many more people are expected to arrive.
But Sir Bom didn’t want a big tangihanga and preferred to stay out of the public eye.
“He would do the water blasting, tried to fix the roof up at Tunohopu Marae, he was that kind of person, not much of a talker, more of a doer,” said Rotorua Lakes Māori Ward councillor Rawiri Waru.
Gillies used his voice throughout his life anyway, shining a light on the racism he and other Māori veterans encountered when they returned from the war.
“He was actively out there talking to people about the need to treat soldiers well when they came home from war when they came home from battle and giving them all the tohu they deserved,” Leith Comer, former battalion commander, said.
