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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 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.
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.
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 ...
By the time of World War II, the United Kingdom had reversed its policy of not enlisting natives, and many thousands of Fijians volunteered for the Fiji Infantry Regiment, which was under the command of Ratu Sir Edward Cakobau, another great-grandson of Seru Epenisa Cakobau. The regiment was attached to New Zealand and Australian army units ...
The Second Fiji expedition was an 1859 United States Navy operation against the native warriors of Seru Epenisa Cakobau on the island of Waya in Fiji.Following the death of two American traders on Waya, the Pacific Squadron launched a punitive expedition against the Wayans and defeated them in a pitched battle at the village of Somatti.
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).
Varani is the first significant Fijian missionary among the islands and a strong counter-cultural influence upon Ratu Seru Cakobau, preeminent among the warring chiefs of Fiji. 1847: Prince Enele Ma'afu of Tonga arrived in Fiji and established himself in Lakeba by 1848. Ma'afu's arrival and settling in Lakeba were strengthened by his blood ...