Salote Topou III (1900–1965)

views updated

Salote Topou III (1900–1965)

Queen of Tonga. Name variations: Salote Tupou III; Queen Salote. Born on March 13, 1900; died in 1965; daughter of King George Topou (or Tupou) II; educated at the Diocesan Ladies' College of the Church of England (Auckland) and the University of Sydney; married Sione (John) Fe'iloakitau Kaho (Prince Viliami Tungi or Tugi), in 1917 (died 1941); children: sons Taufa or Tung (b. 1918, later known as King Tafua'ahou Topou IV), and Jione Gu Manumataogo.

Ruled Tonga (1918–65); created an Honorary Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (1932), and Honorary Grand Commander of the Order of the British Empire (1945).

When Salote Topou III was born on March 13, 1900, she was the crown princess of the South Pacific kingdom of Tonga, an approximately 250-square-mile region of about 150 coral and volcanic islands. Her family line had governed these islands since the 10th century. In 1845, when Salote's great-great-grandfather had become king of the consolidated State of Tonga, the modern kingdom began. As King George Topou I, he established a constitutional monarchy and reigned until his death at 96 in 1893. Salote's father George Topou II succeeded him, but, due to financial difficulties in the kingdom, in 1900 he negotiated a treaty with Great Britain whereby Tonga became a British protectorate. Tonga largely maintained its independence as a self-governing region, however. As a tribute to the English monarchs Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and George III, who reigned when the idea of a treaty between Tonga and Great Britain was first entertained, all Tongan monarchs were named after them, with the female monarchs named Salote, Polynesian for Charlotte.

Prior to ascending the throne, Salote Topou III received her education at the Diocesan Ladies' College of the Church of England (Auckland, New Zealand) and at the University of Sydney (Australia). In 1917, her marriage to Sione (John) Fe'iloakitau Kaho, otherwise known as Prince Viliami Tungi, united Tonga's two noblest families. After her father's death, she took the throne on April 12, 1908, and in accordance with Tongan tradition her husband served as Salote's prime minister. They had two surviving sons, the eldest of whom, Prince Taufa Topou, assumed his father's post on the latter's death in 1941.

Queen Salote proved to be an immensely popular ruler both at home and abroad. Her regal physical presence—made more impressive by a height of more than six feet—and gracious

demeanor caused The New York Times to dub her "Britain's most popular coronation guest." The Tongan people adored her as a benevolent and enlightened monarch, among whose accomplishments was the institution of free and compulsory education. Tongans also enjoyed free medical care as well as a kingdom largely devoid of crime and with ample land and housing. Reported the London Times, "Tonga has neither dissensions at home nor enemies abroad and must be one of the happiest countries of the world." Queen Salote's policies brought nearly universal literacy to the islands, which developed a reputation as the most peaceful and harmonious region on earth. (This reputation had been in the makings as early as the 1770s, when English navigator James Cook responded to the hospitality he found on his visits there by naming the region the Friendly Islands.) "There is no question of the high character of Queen Salote," wrote J.C. Furnas of The New York Times, she is "universally respected by her people and everybody else in the Pacific."

Queen Salote was a Methodist who served as the head of the Wesleyan Free Church of Tonga and the Tonga Red Cross. In 1932, she was named an Honorary Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire and in 1945 was elevated to Honorary Grand Commander of the order. Upon her death in 1965, Salote was succeeded by her eldest son who took the throne as King Tafua'ahou Topou IV. Five years later, Tonga regained complete independence from Great Britain.