Sir Robert 'Bom' Gillies KNZM, the last remaining member of the famed 28th Māori Battalion. Photo: CPL Chad Sharman
A descendant of the last survivor of the 28th Māori Batallion says his death is a huge loss for Aotearoa and the world.
Sir Robert Nairn Gillies KNZM, known as "Bom" or "Koro Bom" to his whānau, died on Thursday aged 99.
Moko remembers his koro - Sir Bom
His grand-nephew Jeremy Tātere MacLeod told RNZ's Midday Report it was a huge loss for Aotearoa and the world and he felt lucky to spend some time with "Tā Bom" while he passed.
MacLeod said the whānau would spend more time with Tā Bom today before "giving him back to the nation".
"The whānau appreciates that once he hits his marae, he becomes [the] property of the nation."
MacLeod said he had spoken with his uncle only a few weeks ago.
"He was very sharp despite the fact that he was due to turn 100 years old next February. He was as sharp as a tack. He was lively. He was very well and had it not been for his vehicle accident about three months ago and the complications caused by that, he would have lived well into his hundreds."
Tangihanga Details
- 8 November - the immediate whānau asks that this day be reserved solely for them.
- 9 November - 1pm: Koro will be taken to lie at Paratehoata-Te Kōhea Marae, Tūnohopū in Rotorua for one hour.
- 2pm: Koro will be taken to Te Papaiouru Marae (Tama-te-kapua).
- 4pm: Te Arikinui Kuīni Ngā Wai Hono i te Pō and Tainui waka will arrive at Te Papaiouru Marae (Tamatekapua).
- 10 November: The marae will be open to the motu.
- 11 November: The marae will be open to the motu. Poroporoaki (farewell) that evening.
- 12 November: Funeral service at 11am. Burial service to follow at the Kauae Urupā (cemetery).
Sir Robert 'Bom' Gillies on the day of his investiture as a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2022, with Sir Willie Apiata VC. Photo: CPL Chad Sharman
Sir Robert Nairn Gillies KNZM (Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāti Kahungunu) was born on 14 February, 1925.
He attempted to enlist in the 28th Māori Battalion twice before succeeding on his third attempt, aged 17 years old, after lying about his age like many others. He served in B Company during the Second World War from 1943 to 1945.
He arrived in North Africa in July 1943, returning to New Zealand in January 1946. While fighting in the Italian campaign, Gillies was wounded at Orsogna in December 1943. He continued serving with the 28th Māori Battalion until the end of the war and was involved in the deadly Battle for Cassino.
He became a trustee of the 28th Māori Battalion B Company History Trust in 2013, represented Battalion members at the 70th anniversary of the Battle of El Alamein in 2012, and participated in ceremonies in Italy marking the 70th, 75th and 80th anniversaries of the Battle of Cassino in 2014, 2019 and 2024.
In the 2022 New Year Honours, Tā Bom was appointed a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to Māori and war commemoration after previously declining the honour and eventually accepting it on behalf of all those who had served.
MacLeod said one of Tā Bom's greatest disappointments was how he and other Māori soldiers were treated when they came home.
"The Māori Battalion, they went to war to fight for God, King and country - the price of citizenship. But when they returned, many of them were still treated as second-class citizens and they faced discrimination.
"They didn't receive the same benefits and rehabilitation schemes that other veterans did. They weren't even aware of their medals when they returned."
There was also a stigma around receiving medals.
"A lot of the old people said that the heroes were the ones who actually laid in foreign soil. They were 'whakamā', the fear, humility in Māoridom of, first of all, wearing medals and praising yourself," MacLeod said.
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