Enrique Ika
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Enrique Ika a Tuʻu Hati ( – after 1900) was elected ''‘
ariki An ariki (New Zealand, Cook Islands), ꞌariki ( Easter Island), aliki (Tokelau, Tuvalu), ali‘i (Samoa, Hawai‘i), ari'i (Society Islands, Tahiti), Rotuma) aiki or hakaiki ( Marquesas Islands), akariki (Gambier Islands) or ‘eiki (Tonga) is o ...
'' (
king King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...
) of
Rapa Nui Easter Island (, ; , ) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is renowned for its nearly 1,000 extant monumental statues, ...
(Easter Island) in 1900 and led a failed rebellion. He was one of the last Rapa Nui to claim the traditional kingship in the early 20th-century. However, he is not remembered as the last king; instead his predecessor
Riro Kāinga Siméon or Timeone Riro ʻa Kāinga Rokoroko He Tau (died 1898 or 1899) was the last ''‘ ariki'' (king) of Rapa Nui (Easter Island) from 1892 until his death. He ruled the island during a brief period of indigenous autonomy between Chile's in ...
is generally regarded as the last king, although neither held much power.


Biography

Enrique Ika a Tuʻu Hati was born , at
Anakena Anakena is a white coral sand beach in Rapa Nui National Park on Rapa Nui (Easter Island), a Chilean island in the Pacific Ocean. Anakena has two ahus; Ahu-Ature has a single moai and Ahu Nao-Nao has seven, two of which have deteriorated. It al ...
on the northern coast of
Easter Island Easter Island (, ; , ) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is renowned for its nearly 1,000 extant monumental statues, ...
. His parents were Hua ‘Anakena a Hatu’i and Mata a Puhirangi. Oral tradition stated that Ika received the
patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, b ...
of Tuʻu Hati from an uncle. Considered an ''ariki paka'' or nobleman, he was a member of the Miru clan which the ''‘ariki mau'' or traditional rulers of Easter Island belonged to. Ika married on 9 March 1879 to Renga Hopuhopu to Tetono (c. 1857–1942), baptized Anastasia, a woman from the Tupahotu clan. Their daughter was named María ‘Aifiti Engepito Ika Tetono, and she married
Juan Tepano Juan Tepano Rano ʻa Veri ʻAmo (4 March 1867 – 8 November 1947) was a Rapa Nui leader of Easter Island. He served as an informant for Euro-American scholars on the culture and history of the island. Family He was born on 4 March 1867 and was o ...
Rano, a Tupahotu clansman who accompanied King Siméon Riro Kāinga to Chile in 1898 and later became a cultural informant on Rapa Nui culture. Their other children were Victoria Veritahi, Magdalena Ukahetu, Margarita Uka, and Hipólito. The penultimate King
Atamu Tekena Atamu Tekena or Atamu te Kena, full name Atamu Maurata Te Kena ʻAo Tahi (c. 1850 – August 1892) was the penultimate ‘ Ariki or King of Rapa Nui (i.e. Easter Island) from 1883 until his death. In 1888, he signed a treaty of annexation cedi ...
of Easter Island ceded the island to
Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
(represented by Captain
Policarpo Toro Policarpo Toro Hurtado (born in Melipilla, Chile on February 6, 1856 – died 1921 in Santiago, Chile) was a Chilean naval officer. He enlisted in the Chilean Navy in 1871 and visited Easter Island in 1875. From 1877 to 1879, he joined the E ...
) on 9 September 1888. Ika was one of ''to'opae'' (advisors) to sign the agreement. However, the treaty of annexation was never ratified by Chile and Toro's colony failed. The Chilean government abandoned the settlement in 1892 due to political troubles on the mainland, which was embroiled in
civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
, and this prompted the Rapa Nui to reassert their independence. After the 1892 death of Tekena, Siméon Riro Kāinga and Ika were candidates for the throne. Although both were of the Miru clan, Ika was more closely related to Kerekorio Manu Rangi, the last undisputed ''‘ariki mau'', who died during an outbreak of
tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...
in 1867. However, Kāinga's cousin Maria Angata Veri Tahi 'a Pengo Hare Kohou, a Catholic
catechist Catechesis (; from Greek language, Greek: , "instruction by word of mouth", generally "instruction") is basic Christian religious education of children and adults, often from a catechism book. It started as education of Conversion to Christia ...
and prophet, organized many of the island's women in his support. Riro was allegedly elected primarily because of his good looks and Angata's influence. Ika was appointed as his prime minister. The Rapa Nui unsuccessfully attempted to reclaim indigenous sovereignty in the absence of direct Chilean control from 1892 to 1896. However, Chile reasserted its claim, and the island was later leased to Enrique Merlet and his ranching company. Alberto Sánchez Manterola was appointed Merlet's representative and also appointed Chile's maritime sub-delegate. They restricted the islanders' access to most of their land except a walled-off settlement at
Hanga Roa Hanga Roa (; ) (Rapanui language: ''Long bay'') is the main town, harbour, and seat of Easter Island, a municipality of Chile. It is located in the southern part of the island's west coast, in the lowlands between the extinct volcanoes of Terev ...
, which they were not allowed to leave without permission. The young king attempted to protest the company's abuse but died under suspicious circumstances at
Valparaíso Valparaíso () is a major city, Communes of Chile, commune, Port, seaport, and naval base facility in the Valparaíso Region of Chile. Valparaíso was originally named after Valparaíso de Arriba, in Castilla–La Mancha, Castile-La Mancha, Spain ...
. News of the king's death did not reach the island until March 1899. Subsequently, Sánchez declared the native kingship abolished. According to the accounts of Bienvenido de Estella, Sánchez declared to the islanders, "Ya no hay más rey en la isla. ¡Yo mando!" while Ika responded "No, todavía hay rey: yo lo soy" Sánchez later wrote in 1921, “...desde que se supo la muerte del Rey puse mano firme para terminar con esta dinastía y creo haberlo conseguido porque no se habló más del sucesor de Riro Roco.” Riro Kāinga has been generally referred to as the last king of Easter Island. However, two other candidates for the kingship existed after him including Ika and
Moisés Tuʻu Hereveri Moisés Jacob Tu‘u Hereveri ( – 3 September 1925) was elected ''‘ariki'' (Kings of Easter Island, king) of Easter Island, Rapa Nui (Easter Island) from 1901 until 1902. He was the last Rapa Nui to claim the traditional kingship in the early ...
. When the news of Riro's death arrived in Easter Island, Prime Minister Ika was considered the natural successor. He was proclaimed king on 8 January 1900. He led an unsuccessful strike against Sánchez and the company. Ika's resistance became ineffective with the increased coercive power of the colonial authority and the company. In the end of March 1900, the schooner ''Maria Luisa'' brought Merlet and a dozen armed guardians to join the force of the company. Merlet. Restoring the so-called "pax merletiana", Merlet burned the Rapa Nui owned plantations to make them dependent on the company's grocery store. In May 1900, Chilean Naval corvette '' Baquedano'' under the command of Captain Arturo Wilson Navarrete brought back two Rapa Nui who had accompanied King Riro to the continent three years ago, Tepano and José Pirivato. Pirivato would later become a partisan of Ika and later Angata. The captain intended to deport any disruptors, but Sánchez felt confident enough to tell the captain that it was not necessary to deport anyone. The Rapa Nui complained about the mistreatment and low salaries with Captain Wilson through an interpreter (one of the Rapa Nui returning from the continent) although to no satisfactory results. In mid-November 1900, Sánchez was succeeded by Horacio Cooper White who was more despotic than his predecessor. Chilean shepherd Manuel A. Vega, who had married King Riro's widow Véronique Mahute, led a revolt in 1901. Ika's successor Hereveri led another unsuccessful indigenous rebellion from 1901 to 1902. In 1902, Chile appointed Ika's son-in-law Juan Tepano Rano as ''
cacique A cacique, sometimes spelled as cazique (; ; feminine form: ), was a tribal chieftain of the Taíno people, who were the Indigenous inhabitants of the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles at the time of European cont ...
'' in an attempt to end indigenous resistance. A decade later, Angata led another unsuccessful rebellion against the ranching company in 1914. Each revolts were crushed when the Chilean navy arrested the ringleaders of the revolt and exiled them to mainland Chile. The kingship remained vacant for a century after Ika and Hereveri. An independence movement has continued on the island. In 2011, Riro Kāinga's grandson,
Valentino Riroroko Tuki Valentino Riroroko Tuki (13 February 1932 — 29 July 2017) was a claimant to the Rapa Nui throne of Easter Island. He was the grandson of the last King Simeón Riro Kāinga, who died in 1899 and belonged to the Miru clan, descendants of the foun ...
, declared himself king of Rapa Nui.


See also

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History of Easter Island Geologically one of the youngest inhabited territories on Earth, Easter Island (also called Rapa Nui), located in the mid-Pacific Ocean, was, for most of its history, one of the most isolated. Its inhabitants, the Rapa Nui, have endured famines, ...


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Bibliography

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Further reading

* * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Ika, Enrique Rapa Nui monarchs History of Easter Island 1850s births Year of death unknown Roman Catholic monarchs