10 NEWS The Gisborne Herald • Saturday, March 16, 2013 War a far cry from 28 Maori Battalion soldier misses his mates TAURANGA — He survived the horrors of World War II but Te Puhi Patara has never talked about it publicly — until now. In this interview, the member of the 28thMaori Battalion shares his story with the Times’ James Fuller.

TAURANGA — Te Puhi Patara’s eyes have seen horrors most of us can only imagine. Those same eyes regard me now as he casts his mind back 70 years to Italy and the ferocious front-line fighting between the Allies and Hitler’s forces at the tail- end of World War II. Brave but humble men are the most admirable of all and Mr Patara is one. Until now, he had never spoken publicly about his wartime exploits and I would not be sitting here with him but for his daughter, Hinemihi. ‘‘I think he misses his mates a lot and doesn’t really talk about the war much, except to those who were there,’’ she had told me. Nearly 3600 men served overseas with the 28th Maori Battalion between 1940 BRAVERY: Governor-General Lt General and 1945. Sir Jerry Mateparae gives a hongi to Te Just 23 are still alive. Puhi Patara, a surviving member of the The poignancy of this statistic is Maori Battalion. — NZ Herald heightened by the fact it was 24 until last Sunday, when Mr Patara’s friend and comrade, Aubrey Balzer, passed away. fighting there. We always attacked at Mr Balzer was originally from the night, the New Zealanders and the area and still maintained a home British. there. “They always had search lights at the A third Maori Battalion man and back of us, shining it up in the air, like another of the remaining survivors, moonlight, so you could see where you Arthur Midwood, also grew up around were going. Maketu. “Then they would shoot shells with red Mr Patara has the dignified air of an and green tracers and you followed them ex-soldier. The hair, combed neatly, is as you moved along, so you wouldn’t end white but impressively full for a man up in the wrong place. closing in on the start of his 10th decade. “They fired them every few minutes to His snowy-white moustache is trimmed guide you.’’ perfectly. The Germans were defeated at Faenza Raised on a Pukehina dairy farm, he but heavy snow made more progress was one of 11 siblings born in an age impossible. The weather closed in and it when milking was done by hand and soon became clear the Maori Battalion the family home was too remote to have would have to spend the winter camped power. near the Senio river. ‘‘We didn’t have much money but there ‘‘We couldn’t go forward or anything was plenty of kai around, fish, eels, things because of the snow. We had to wait until like that.We didn’t go hungry,’’ says the the snows thawed,’’ he says. 89-year-old. BRAVERY:Members of the 28th Maori Battalion were renowned for their courage. Te ‘‘We were camping just this side of the He tells me one of his brothers, Puhi Patara says he is proud to have served. picture Senio river, about a couple of miles back Kehukehu, nine years his senior and from the flood bank, which is where the part of the Maori Battalion’s fourth Tauranga area.’’ Gothic Line. Germans were. reinforcement, was the inspiration for his Having passed his medicals, the ‘‘That’s where we were introduced to the “They had trenches on the other side — decision to enlist. 20-year-old did not have to wait long war,’’ says Mr Patara, as we sit talking in they had dug themselves in. They could ‘‘He went to Greece, Crete, and fought before being whisked up to Auckland’s the living room of his white wood house see anyone from there and there was in the desert (North Africa).’’ Papakura military camp for a brief spell near . constant sniper fire and shelling.’’ By early 1944, the tide of the war had before finishing three months’ basic It’s a peaceful home and the silence is Mr Patara and some of his comrades swung after Allied victories in North training at Wellington’s Trentham Camp. broken only by the sound of the occasional were holed up in a stone house. Africa and with the Italian capitulation By early 1944, Private Patara, serial cars passing outside or the chime of a ‘‘One of our chaps was up the top of on September 8, 1943. number 811621, was on the Highland clock. this house, in a sort of watching area. I But the Germans were still stubbornly Princess, heading for war. ‘‘We got there and the Germans were think he was just having a bit of fun, you defending territory in Italy and the Having landed in Egypt, more training dropping shells. Well that was a different know, seeing what he could see, looking prospect of a lengthy campaign loomed. followed at the Kiwi camp in Maadi, south story. The old heart starts beating and around. But he forgot they could see him, The Maori Battalion had arrived on of Cairo, before the troops boarded a ship you immediately start thinking of back eh? The next thing we knew, they started Italian soil in October 1943 and the call for Taranto, Italy. From there, they were home.’’ shelling.’’ had gone out for reinforcements. moved toBari, before a 360-mile journey Sleepy Pukehina must have seemed far One shell struck the top of the house. ‘‘I heard all my mates’ friends were up the Italian east coast took them to away. ‘‘This joker got hit in the backside with joining up so I went with them and joined Rimini and the front line. The new recruits soon learned some shrapnel, right across his bum,’’ says Mr up in Tauranga. About a dozen of us went The battle was raging around the valuable lessons. Patara, laughing hard. together, all from around the and German defensive structure known as the ‘‘We had some Sherman tanks and ‘‘And he shot down the stairs, looking we were following in behind them, well terrified,thinking oh crikey he was going to that’s the worst thing to do because the die. But it was only a flesh wound. Germans targeted the tanks and they ‘‘It gave him a fright, though, and he were deadly with their 88(mm) guns. never went back up there again.’’ ‘‘Our tanks, their guns couldn’t pierce In the spring of 1945, as the snow melted, the German armour (Tiger tanks) head the offensive renewed and the Americans on. When our tanks attacked the German and British bombarded the German tanks, they would go backwards firing, positions on the banks of the Senio. Caring, professional, retreating but firing. That’s when we The bombardment was so effective that would get all the shrapnel and what have after waiting three hours to go over the gentle, affordable. you around us.’’ top, they found the enemy so ‘‘bomb happy’’ Some of Mr Patara’s friends, who had (shell-shocked) that they simply gave up. travelled so far to fight, did not get the However, the melting snow had brought Come and meet Clive, chance to do so again, perishing in the some unexpected problems regarding early exchanges. prisoners. Wiremu and the team to The formidable Gothic Line was ‘‘It was all mud. The tanks were getting breached but the Germans were stuck and we had to fight our way across retreating with purpose; falling back to it. We were all muddy and whiskered and discuss your new smile. organised lines of defence prepared along grubby looking and a Maori looks terrible prominent terrain features. (fearsome) when he’s like that. ‘‘We had captured some prisoners.When Everything you could want from The 28th Maori Battalion, always referred to as ‘‘Two Eight’’ by its members, they brought these Germans around, our your dentist and more was made up of five battalions, four of company commander sang out to my mate, which were formed along tribal lines. Harry Walker, to take them back to the Mr Patara was part of B Company, holding pen. ‘‘Well, if you looked at him then he Make your appointment today featuringMaori from Rotorua, the Bay of Plenty and Thames-Coromandel. would’ve scared you,’’ he says, smiling. Phone 06 868 1995 He says the biggest battle his section ‘‘These young Germans were saying 23 Parkinson St Gisborne 4010 was involved in was at Faenza in ‘no,no, no’. They didn’t want to go with him, they were afraid. They were In the industrial subdivision November/December 1944. 193GH012-12E ‘‘Our reinforcement did most of our shaking.’’ — continued on next page