Te Waharoa (died September 1838) was the leader of the Ngāti Hauā iwi (Māori tribe) of the eastern Waikato in New Zealand in the 1820s and 1830s.
He led his tribe in preserving their territory from occupation by other tribes, including driving out Ngāti Maru in the 1820s, after they outstayed their welcome by weight of numbers, building 15 pa in Ngati Haua territory and the overtaxing of local food resources, when taking refuge from Ngāpuhi attacks on the Hauraki area.
The final act that drove Te Waharoa to desperate measures was when Ngati Maru built Kaipaki pa very close to his own at Maungakawa.
In January 1832 the Waikato taua with Te Wahaoroa launched further assaults against Pukerangiora Pa which held 4,000 people.
The besieged ran out of food and a large group of Taranaki children, women and older people fled at night.
Ngāti Hauā, with support from other tribes, attacked and destroyed a Te Arawa pā and Phillip Tapsell's trading station at Maketu in March.
[1] Helead his warriors against neighbouring tribes with the fighting, which continued into 1836, extended from Rotorua, Matamata to Tauranga.