Pōmare II

Pōmare II (c. 1782 – December 7, 1821) (fully Tu Tunuieaiteatua Pōmare II or in modern orthography Tū Tū-nui-ʻēʻa-i-te-atua Pōmare II; historically misspelled as Tu Tunuiea'aite-a-tua), was the second king of Tahiti between 1782 and 1821. He was installed by his father Pōmare I at Tarahoi, February 13, 1791. He ruled under regency from 1782 to 1803.[2]

Pōmare II
King of Tahiti
Reign1782 – 7 December 1821
Coronation13 February 1791
PredecessorPōmare I
SuccessorPōmare III
RegentPōmare I
Bornc. 1782
DiedDecember 7, 1821
Motu Uta, Papeete, Tahiti
Burial
Pōmare Royal Cemetery, Papaʻoa, ʻArue
SpouseTetuanui Tarovahine
Teriʻitoʻoterai Teremoemoe
Teriʻitariʻa Ariʻipaea Vahine
IssuePōmare IV
Teinaiti
Pōmare III
Full name
Tū Tūnuiʻēʻaiteatua Pōmare II
HouseHouse of Pōmare
FatherPōmare I
MotherTetua-nui-reia-i-te-ra'i-atea[1]
ReligionTahitian
later Reformed

Life

Initially recognised as supreme sovereign and Ariʻi-maro-ʻura by the ruler of Huahine, he was subsequently forced from Tahit and took refuge in Moʻorea December 22, 1808, but returned and defeated his enemies at the Battle of Te Feipī, November 11, 1815.[3][4][note 1] He was thereafter recognised as undisputed king (Te Ariʻi-nui-o-Tahiti) of Tahiti, Moʻorea and its dependencies.

On November 15, 1815, he proclaimed himself King of Tahiti and Moʻorea in the name of the Christian God.[7][8]

Conversion to Christianity

Pomare II believed that he lost favor with the god 'Oro, and, aided by the missionary Henry Nott, he began paying more attention to the God of the Christians.

He was baptised May 16, 1819 at the Royal Chapel, Papeʻete – Christianity and the support of English missionaries aided the centralisation of monarchic power.

Three London Missionary Society missionaries, Henry Bicknell, William Henry, and Charles Wilson preached at the baptism of King Pōmare II. Afterwards, "Henry Bicknell stood on the steps of the pulpit, took water from a basin held by William Henry, and poured it" on King Pōmare's head.[9]

Pōmare II extended his realm to land outside of the Society Islands. He inherited his father's dominion over the Tuamotus and settled many conflicts between the disparate local chieftains in 1817 and 1821. However, his family's rule only extended to the eastern and central portions of the Tuamotus archipelago. In 1819, the king took nominal possession of Raivavae and Tubuai in the Austral Islands, although control was relegated to the local chiefs.[10][11]

Today a majority of 54% of the French Polynesian population belongs to various Protestant churches, especially the Maohi Protestant Church which is the largest and accounts for more than 50% of the population.[12] It traces its origins to Pomare II, the king of Tahiti, who converted from traditional beliefs to the Reformed tradition brought to the islands by the London Missionary Society.

Family

Pōmare II was married first before March 1797 (betrothed January 1792) to his double first cousin Tetua-nui Taro-vahine, Ariʻi of Vaiari (now Papeari), who died at ʻArue, July 21, 1806. Around 1809, he married two sisters: Teriʻitoʻoterai Teremoemoe and Teriʻitariʻa who were daughters of Tamatoa III, Ariʻi Rahi of Raiatea.[13]

With his second wife Teriʻitoʻoterai Teremoemoe, he had three children:[13][1]

  • ʻAimata (28 February 1813 – 17 September 1877), who ruled as Pōmare IV
  • Teinaiti (21 November 1817[14] – 20 March 1818), who died young
  • Teriʻitariʻa (25 June 1820 – 8 January 1827 (age), who ruled as Pōmare III

Death

Pōmare died of alcohol-related causes at Motu Uta, Papeete, Tahiti on December 7, 1821.[15]

He was succeeded by his son Pōmare III, who reigned 1821–1827.

Ancestry

See also

Notes
  1. Te Feipī translates as "the Ripe Plantain" in Tahitian.[5] The British missionaries recorded that the Battle of Te Feipī occurred on the Sabbath on 12 November 1815. However, the local Tahitian calendar was one day ahead of the rest of the world and wouldn't be corrected until 1848.[6]

References
  1. Henry & Orsmond 1928, p. 249.
  2. Royal Ark
  3. Sissons 2014, pp. 48–52.
  4. 1815 – La bataille de Fei Pi. Histoire de l'Assemblée de la Polynésie française
  5. Adams 1901, p. 158.
  6. Newbury 1980, pp. 37, 124.
  7. Kirk 2012, p. 51.
  8. Layton 2015, p. 131.
  9. The Evangelical Magazine and Missionary Chronicle, 28.
  10. Gonschor 2008, pp. 39–42.
  11. Kirk 2012, pp. 158-159.
  12. "126th Maohi Protestant Church Synod to last one week". Tahitipresse. 26 July 2010. Archived from the original on 29 July 2010. Retrieved 31 December 2011.
  13. Teissier 1978, pp. 50–54.
  14. The Evangelical Magazine and Missionary Chronicle. 1818. p. 545.
  15. "Genealogy". Archived from the original on 2018-03-12. Retrieved 2016-03-09.

Bibliography
Regnal titles
Preceded by
Pōmare I		 King of Tahiti
1782–1821		 Succeeded by
Pōmare III
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