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The Vunivalu of Bau, lithograph portrait in the possession of Henry Mangles Denham, c. 1858.. Ratu Seru Epenisa Cakobau (pronounced [ˈseru epeˈniːsa ðakomˈbau]; occasionally spelled Cacobau or phonetically Thakombau) (c.1815 – 1 February 1883) [1] was a Fijian chief, monarch, and warlord who united part of Fiji's warring tribes under his leadership, establishing a united Fijian kingdom.
The first Fiji expedition by the United States was in October 1855 during the civil war on the islands. In response to the alleged arson attacks on the American commercial agent in Lautoka, Viti Levu, the navy sent a warship to demand compensation for the attack from Seru Epenisa Cakobau, the Vunivalu of Bau and self-proclaimed Tui Viti (King of Fiji).
After some vacillation, Cakobau agreed to renounce his Tui Viti title. On 10 October 1874, Cakobau, Ma'afu, and a group of some senior chiefs of Fiji signed two copies of a Deed of Cession establishing the Colony of Fiji , [ 6 ] which lasted for almost a century – until 10 October 1970, when the Dominion of Fiji became a fully independent ...
The first three-quarters of the 19th century were marked by tribal warfare, incursions from neighbouring Tonga, and the increasing encroachment of foreign powers.This period also saw the rise of a warlord by the name of Seru Epenisa Cakobau, who forged the first nation-state covering all of modern Fiji (except the island of Rotuma) in 1871, before ceding it to the United Kingdom in 1874.
The native Bauan poem immortalizing the rise of Cakobau as translated into English in Reverend Joseph Waterhouse's pioneering historic work, The King and people of Fiji, is perhaps the closest insider account of the 1837 counter-revolution on the island. The poem from oral tradition encode verse meaning with the use of allegory and allusion ...
The monarchy of Fiji arose in the 19th century, when native ruler Seru Epenisa Cakobau consolidated control of the Fijian Islands in 1871 and declared himself king, or paramount chief, of Fiji (Fijian: Tui Viti). Three years later, he voluntarily ceded sovereignty of the islands to Britain, making Fiji a crown colony within the British Empire.
Cakobau eventually succeeded to the title himself. He created much of its prestige by styling himself King of Fiji; he led the process that culminated in cession of the islands to the United Kingdom in 1874. [7] The position fell vacant with the death of Ratu Sir George Cakobau, in 1989. For the next decade, there was a search for a successor.
This time though Cakobau was supported by a strong fleet from Tonga, sent by Tu'i Tonga (King) Taufa'ahau (George I) of Tonga and Enele Ma'afu, governor of the Tongan population in Fiji. The battle was a major victory for Cakobau, thanks mainly to his Tongan allies, and cemented his leadership over Fiji.