1290:
Takitimu arrives at Te Awanui (original name for Tauranga Harbour) - became known as Ngāti Ranginui.
1750:
Battle of Kokowai (red ochre) on Mauao: Ngāi Te Rangi conquest of Tauranga.
1820: January
Battle of Mauao: Ngāpuhi chief, Te Morenga destroys Mauao Pā. Ngāi Te Rangi chief Te Wani saves Otūmoetai Pā - makes peace with Te Morenga at Matuaiwi Pā.
1828: March
Sack of Otamataha Pā at Te Papa (Tauranga). Chief Koraurau along with 500 of his people are killed & many enslaved. The pā is destroyed & the site later becomes Mission Cemetery.
1832: March
Siege of Ōtūmoetai: Ngāpuhi attack Otūmoetai Pā.
1834: September
Alfred Brown and William Williams select a site at Te Papa for a new Church Missionary Society (CMS) Mission Station.
1838: January
Reverend Alfred Nesbit Brown and family arrive at Te Papa.
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1840: April
Treaty of Waitangi sheet arrives in Tauranga. It is signed by 21 Māori.
1842: May
Sack of Ongare: Ngāti Tamaterā chief Tāraia destroys Ongare Pā near Katikati.
1845: September
Peace treaty between Ngāi Te Rangi and Arawa.
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1852
Mōtītī Dispute: Ngāi Te Rangi and Arawa
Mōtītī Dispute
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1864: January
Warships arrive in Tauranga Harbour - Military occupation.
1864: April
Battle of Gate Pā at Pukehinahina - Māori victory.
1864: June
Battle of Te Ranga - Imperial Troops victory.
1866
Military settlers taking up farm and town lots.
1867: Jan - March
Tauranga Bush Campaign.
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1872
Bay of Plenty Times established.
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1882
Tauranga gazetted a Borough. George Vesey Stewart elected first mayor.
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1950: December
Ranui Disaster: 19 holiday makers and 3 crew drowned.
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1963: July
Kaimai Air Disaster: 23 people die in what remains New Zealand's worst internal aviation disaster.
1963
Tauranga becomes a city.
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1970
Kaimai Tunnel Collapse. The western end of the Kaimai tunnel collapses during construction. 11 men are trapped, 7 are rescued but 4 die.
1973
Te Awanui waka launched in Tauranga harbour.
1978
First train through Kaimai Tunnel.
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1981: September
Ruahihi Canal Collapse: One day after Ruahihi Power Station is officially opened, the eastern bank of the canal supplying water to the Ruahihi Power Station collapses.
1987: September
Occupation of Tauranga Town Hall by Māori.
1989
Tauranga and Mount Maunganui Councils amalgamate. Name of Tauranga City changed to Tauranga District Council.
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1995
Oceanside Hotel at Mount Maunganui demolished for high-rise apartments.
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2004
Population reaches 100,000. Tauranga District renamed Tauranga City.
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2011: October
Rena Disaster: The MV Rena strikes on Otaiti (Astrolabe Reef). The result is New Zealand's worst maritime environmental disaster.