Prince Fatafehi Tuʻipelehake
OBE (Sione Ngū Manumataongo; 7 January 1922 – 10 April 1999)
was the youngest son of Queen
Sālote Tupou III of
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...
. He was the
prime minister of Tonga
The prime minister of Tonga (historically referred to as the premier) is the head of government of Tonga. Tonga is a monarchy with the List of monarchs of Tonga, king, currently Tupou VI, former prime minister, as head of state. The current p ...
from 1965 to 1991, a record tenure of over 25 years, serving under his brother King
Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV
Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV (Siaosi Tāufaʻāhau Tupoulahi; 4 July 1918 – 10 September 2006) was List of monarchs of Tonga, King of Tonga from 1965 until his death in 2006. He was the tallest and heaviest Tongan monarch, weighing and measuring . ...
.
Early life
Tuʻi Pelehake attended
Newington College
Newington College is a multi-campus Independent school, independent Uniting Church in Australia, Uniting Church Single-sex education, single-sex and Mixed-sex education, co-educational Pre-school education, early learning, Primary school, primar ...
,
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, (1941–1942) and
Gatton Agricultural College, Queensland, Australia.
On 10 June 1947, Fatafehi married (13 November 1924 – 16 March 1993) in a double marriage ceremony () with his older brother, the Crown Prince (at the time known as Tupoutoʻa-Tungī), who also married
Halaevalu Mataʻaho ʻAhomeʻe. He received the title
Tuʻi Pelehake (Fatafehi) from his mother (
Queen Sālote) in 1944, and he also received the second-highest title of Tonga, Tuʻi Faleua (king of the second house).
From a non-traditional side, he was conferred an honorary
CBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
in 1966.
He inherited from his mother an artistic side; he was a well-known poet and composer.
Politics
His career was with his brother in the government. His first assignment was as governor of
Vavaʻu
Vavau is an island group, consisting of one large island (ʻUtu Vavaʻu) and 40 smaller ones, in Tonga. It is part of Administrative divisions of Tonga, Vavaʻu District, which includes several other individual islands. According to tradition, ...
(1949–1952), later of
Haʻapai (1952–1953), and he then served as Minister of Health and Lands.
Prime minister
In 1965 he took over as
Prime Minister of Tonga
The prime minister of Tonga (historically referred to as the premier) is the head of government of Tonga. Tonga is a monarchy with the List of monarchs of Tonga, king, currently Tupou VI, former prime minister, as head of state. The current p ...
when his brother had to vacate the post on becoming king. He remained prime minister until he resigned in 1991 due to serious health problems.
[ His last years were spent in a wheelchair on a life support system.
He kept the both titles of Tuʻi Pelehake and Tuʻi Faleua for so many years, that they became synonymous with him. But after his death, only the former was conferred to his son ]ʻUluvalu Sione ʻUluvalu Ngū Takeivūlai Tukuaho (7 October 1950 – 5 July 2006 (6 July in Tonga)) became the Tui Pelehake, an hereditary title in the kingdom of Tonga, after the death of his father in 1999.
As his father was the brother of King Tā ...
, while the latter returned to the king.
He died on 10 April 1999 in Auckland after a long illness.
Descendants
Besides his son who inherited his positions, he also had four daughters and two sons :
* Princess Mele Siuʻilikutapu;
* Princess ʻElisiva Fusipala Vahaʻi;
* Prince ʻUluvalu Takeivulangi, 6th Tuʻipelehake;
* Princess Lavinia Mata ʻo Taone Maʻafu;
* Princess Sinaitakala ʻOfeina-ʻe-he Langi Fakafanua;
** Fatafehi Fakafanua, 8th Lord Fakafanua, current Speaker of the Tongan Legislative Assembly;
**Princess Sinaitakala Tukuʻaho, who is married to her double second cousin
A cousin is a relative who is the child of a parent's sibling; this is more specifically referred to as a first cousin. A parent of a first cousin is an aunt or uncle.
More generally, in the kinship system used in the English-speaking world, ...
, Crown Prince Tupoutoʻa ʻUlukalala
* Lord Viliami Tupoulahi Mailefihi, 7th Tuʻipelehake.
** Prince Viliami Sione Ngu Takeivulai,
Honours
National
* : Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the Royal Order of Pouono
* : Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown of Tonga
* : Recipient of the Royal Tongan Medal of Merit
* : Recipient of the King Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV Silver Jubilee Medal
Foreign
* : Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
(1977)Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal
The Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal () is a commemorative medal instituted to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II on 2 June 1953.
Award
This medal was awarded as a personal souvenir from the Queen to members of the Royal Family ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tuʻipelehake, Fatafehi
1922 births
1999 deaths
People educated at Newington College
Prime ministers of Tonga
Government ministers of Tonga
Tongan royalty
Honorary Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Governors of Vavaʻu
People from Nukuʻalofa
University of Queensland alumni
Tongan expatriates in Australia
Ministers of health of Tonga
Ministers of foreign affairs of Tonga
Sons of queens regnant
Children of prime ministers of Tonga
Officers_of_the_Order_of_the_British_Empire