The Musket Wars were a series of as many as 3,000 battles and raids Attack fought Hostile_encounter throughout New Zealand ( including the Chatham Islands ) among Māori between 1807 and 1837 , after Māori first obtained Getting muskets and then engaged Participation in an intertribal arms race in order to gain Getting territory or seek revenge for past defeats .

The increased use Using of muskets in intertribal warfare Hostile_encounter led to Causation changes Change in the design Being_in_operation of pā fortifications , which later benefited Earnings_and_losses Māori when engaged Participation in battles with colonial forces during the New Zealand Wars .