Ngāti Mutunga is a Māori iwi (tribe) of New Zealand, whose original tribal lands were in north Taranaki.

The north Taranaki land came under the mana of the great Waikato chief Te Wherowhero until sold to the government.

When it became clear that the visitors intended to stay, the Moriori gathered at their marae at Te Awapatiki to debate what to do about the Māori invaders.

Moriori had forgone the killing of people in the centuries leading up to the arrival of the Māori, instead settling quarrels up to 'first blood', a cultural practice known as 'Nunuku's Law'.

A Moriori survivor recalled: "[The Māori] commenced to kill us like sheep... [We] were terrified, fled to the bush, concealed ourselves in holes underground, and in any place to escape our enemies.

A Māori chief, Te Rakatau Katihe, said: "We took possession ... in accordance with our custom, and we caught all the people.

[7] However, the first shipload of arrivals, who were mainly Ngāti Tama, did not wait, and proceeded to claim the best areas, which were at Waitangi and Kaingaroa.

Te Kooti tried to form an alliance with a local hapū to drive out the prospectors and their Ngāti Mutunga guardians.

This led to at least 23 Ngāti Mutunga taking part in the Parihaka occupation of disputed land and their subsequent arrest.

[citation needed] In 1926–1927 the Sim Commission investigated various Taranaki claims and resolved that wrong had been done and awarded £5000 per annum to be paid.

This settlement awarded $14.9 million and 10 areas of land of cultural significance to Ngāti Mutunga.

On 25 November 2022, Ngāti Mutunga o Wharekauri and the New Zealand Government/Crown signed an "agreement in principle" for settlement of historical Treaty of Waitangi claims.