Ngāti Tūwharetoa invasion of Taupō

The Ngāti Tūwharetoa invasion of Taupō was a conflict which took place in the sixteenth century on the east coast of Lake Taupō in the central North Island of New Zealand. The conflict marks the beginning of Ngāti Tūwharetoa's expansion into the Taupō region. In response to an insult, Ngāti Tūwharetoa attacked Ngāti Kurapoto, based on the northeastern coast of Taupō. In the course of the conflict, Ngāti Tūwharetoa also attacked Ngāti Hotu at the south end of Lake Taupō. Different sources give diverging accounts on some details, but agree that the war ended with Ngāti Tūwharetoa in control of the whole eastern shore of Taupō. Ngāti Kurapoto was subsumed into Tūwharetoa, while Ngāti Hotu was wiped out, either in the course of the conflict or in a subsequent conflict. Tūwharetoa control of the west coast of the lake was established in the subsequent Ngāti Tama–Ngāti Tūwharetoa War.