Kingdom of Rarotonga

Origins

Rarotonga was divided among tribes led by hereditary ariki, including the Makea, Pa, Kainuku and Tinomana titles. After the London Missionary Society brought Christianity from 1823, through the Tahitian teacher Papeiha and John Williams, the ariki governed with mission backing, and the Makea title holders of Avarua came to be regarded by outsiders as monarchs of the island.

Rule and society

The ariki ruled through chiefly councils and mission-inspired law codes enforced by church judges. The island traded fruit, copra and cotton with Tahiti and New Zealand. Makea Takau Ariki, who held her title from 1871, was treated by visiting ships and governments as queen. Details of the kingdom's formal institutions before the 1880s are thinly documented.

Decline and legacy

Fearing French annexation, the ariki requested British protection, and a protectorate was proclaimed in 1888. The British Resident Frederick Moss set up a federal parliament, and Rarotonga became part of the Cook Islands Federation in the early 1890s.