Hone Heke: The Northern War Begins | Māori vs. The British Empire When Hone Heke chopped down the British flagpole for the fourth time, war was inevitable. The year was 1845—and New Zealand’s Northern War had begun. Māori warriors armed with muskets and traditional weapons fought British soldiers in fierce battles across the north. Heke and his ally Kawiti used brilliant guerrilla tactics—fortified pā defenses, ambushes, and trenches that outsmarted even British cannons. The result was a bloody