His reputation has stayed largely the same for 150 years; James Belich has described him as "perhaps the greatest war leader either of New Zealand’s peoples has ever produced".

[1] After the period of warfare he again became an advocate for peace and made diplomatic efforts between Māori, colonial settlers and the government.

Riwha was a subtribal leader, having succeeded his father Tītokowaru the Elder (died 22 February 1848) of the Ngāti Ruanui and Ngāruahine iwi in South Taranaki.

A lot of what was accomplished by his father had been wrongly attributed to the son; being events of intertribal warring during his time of preadolescence.

[3] In 1865 and 1866, British troops conducted a punitive campaign throughout Taranaki, though they were unable to force a decisive result.

Later after careful surveying, it was also discovered that, contrary to appearances, Turuturumokai was not as inconquerable as thought by British troops.

At 5 am, on 2 February 1869, the advance party moved to within a few hundred meters of the stronghold and artillery opened fire.

Both sides shouted and sang to encourage themselves until at 3 am the fighting reached a peak, gradually dying away until daybreak.

He practised his own message, demonstrating great tolerance that was noted by many settlers and authority figures of his time.

The character, Te Kaipo, in the 2005 film River Queen, played by Temuera Morrison, is closely based on Tītokowaru.