Vunivalu of Bau
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Nobility of Fiji |
|
Titles |
Turaga na Vunivalu ni Bau is the Paramount Chief of the Kubuna Confederacy, loosely translated the title means Warlord of Bau. The succession to the title does not follow primogeniture, but the candidate must be a high ranking member of the Tui Kaba clan.
Contents |
[edit] A brief History
The Vunivalu was not always the senior Chieftain in Kubuna and Bau the title was considered subordinate to the Roko Tui Bau. Power struggles between the various chiefly households came to a head with the exile of the Vunivalu Tanoa Visawaqa in the early 1800’s after a series of murders and reprisals. His son Seru Epenisa Cakobau however was allowed to remain in Bau during his fathers exile. Cakobau gained power by subverting the Lasakau people to plot and execute the overthrow of the ruling group lead by Ratu Ravulo Vakayaliyalo in 1837 and reinstated his father as ruler.
Cakobau eventually succeeded to the title and created much of its prestige by styling himself King of Fiji, and leading the process that culminated in cession of the islands to the United Kingdom in 1874
The position has been vacant since the death of the last Vunivalu, Ratu Sir George Cakobau, in 1989.
[edit] Search for a successor
Recently, there have been moves to choose a successor. On 9 June 2005, Senator Ratu George Cakobau, Jr. (son of the last Vunivalu) announced that the chiefs of Matanitu o Bau (the traditional chiefly government of Bau, which includes the districts of Dravo, Namata, Nausori, and Nuku), had selected four chiefly candidates, to be submitted to the Tui Kaba clan, which will be asked to choose one of them as the next Vunivalu. The four candidates are Ratu George Cakobau, Jr. himself, his brother Ratu Epenisa Cakobau, Ratu George Kadavulevu Naulivou, and former Vice-President Ratu Jope Seniloli. A second meeting held a week later tentatively proposed Senator Cakobau as the new Vunivalu.
Senator Cakobau's appointment has not been finalized and is not without controversy. Adi Finau Tabakaucoro, a member of the Tui Kaba clan and a senior chief, complained on 27 June that the proper procedures were not being followed. The new Vunivalu should be elected by the whole clan, she said, rather than chosen by a few elders. She thought it wrong to exclude from the list of candidates the name of Senator Cakobau's sister, Adi Samanunu Talakuli Cakobau, because she was the eldest child of the last Vunivalu.
[edit] Other Titles
The Vunivalu when installed, also takes the title of Tui Levuka, as he is the traditional leader of the Levuka people of Lakeba, Lau. The wife of the Vunivalu is titled Radini Levuka.
[edit] Vunivalu of Bau
| Order | Vunivalu | Reigned | Lived |
| 1. | Ratu Nailatikau | ? - 1770 | ? - 1770 |
| 2. | Ratu Banuve Baleivavalagi | 1770 - 1803 | ? - February 1803 |
| 3. | Ratu Naulivou Ramatenikutu | 1803 - 1829 | ? - 1829 |
| 4. | Ratu Tanoa Visawaqa | 1829 - 1832 | ? - 8 December 1852 |
| 5. | Navuaka Komainaqaranikula Tui Veikoso | 1832 - 1837 | ? - ? |
| . | Ratu Tanoa Visawaqa | 1837 - 1852 | s.a. |
| 6. | Ratu Seru Epenisa Cakobau | 1852 - 1883 | 1815 - February 1883 |
| 6. | Ratu Epeli Nailatikau† | 1883 - 1901 | 1842 - 1901 |
| 7. | Ratu Penaia Kadavulevu† | 1901 - 1914 | ? - 1914 |
| 8. | Ratu Popi Seniloli | 1914 - 1936 | ? - 1936 |
| 9. | Ratu Tevita Naulivou† | 1936 - 1957 | ? - 1957 |
| 10. | Ratu Sir George Cakobau | 1957 - 1989 | 6 November 1912 - 25 November 1989 |
| † Never officially installed as Vunivalu, but posthumously generally recognized as such.
|
|||
[edit] External link
- Article on Bau and the Vunivalu with some historical details.
[edit] Notes and References
- Fiji and the Fijians, by Thomas Williams, James Calvert.
- Voyage Round the World: Embracing the Principal Events of the Narrative of the United States... - Page 383, by Charles Wilkes - 1849 - 668 pages
- Elites: choice, leadership and succession - Page 116, by João de Pina-Cabral, Antónia Pedroso de Lima - Social Science - 2000, ..The two together form the clan of Vunivalu. They say two chiefs cannot be ... They used to hold the chieftainship while the clan of Vunivalu upheld the ...
- The Fijians - Page 62, 1908, ...The Mikado and the Shogun are analogues of the Roko Tui and the Vunivalu.1 In Fiji, the process of scission was found in every stage of evolution. ...
- The Golden Bough A Study in Magic and Religion: A New Abridgement from the Second and Third Editions - Page 149, by Sir James George Frazer - 1998 - 908 pages, ...The Mikado and Tycoon of Japan had their counterparts in the Roko Tui and Vunivalu of Fiji. ... The Vunivalu was the Root of War or War King. ...
- Book ‘Matanitu’ the struggle for power in early Fiji by David Routledge 1985 – published by the Institute of Pacific studies and the University of the South Pacific Fiji, Chapter 2 Struggle between the Chiefs 1760 to 1842 Page 40,56
- Tukutuku Raraba – History of Bau – Chapter 1 Page 1, records tabulated by the Native Lands and Fisheries Commission, the book The Pacific Way – A Memoir by Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara published by the University of Hawaii press Honolulu refers to the ‘Tukutuku Raraba’ as the ‘registrar of land owners rights and customs’
- Oceania By University of Sydney, Australian National Research Council - 1930, The battle of Lomaloma established Ratu Tanoa once and for all in the position of paramount chief; it also gave him complete control over the priestly ...
- Fiji’s Heritage a history of Fiji by Kim Gravelle reprinted under its new name in 2000 it was originally published as Fiji Times a history of Fiji in 1979. ISBN 982-214-001-0, Published by Tiara enterprises Nadi, Part 10 Page 44 – reference to Paper by Deve Toganivalu documenting Bauan pre-history and the superiority of the Roko Tui Bau as supreme Chief of Bau and the Vunivalu as his second.
- Reference showing that Naulivou used Charlie savage and mercenaries to carry out his bidding and solidifying his power as Vunivalu,as outlined in the book The Cambridge History of the Pacific Islanders, Page 189 - 190, By Malama Meleisea, Donald Denoon, Karen .L Nero, Jocylyn Linnekin, Stewart Firth
- Book – Apologies to Thucydides: Understanding History as culture and Vice Versa – pages 27, 52, 63, 162, 198, 211, 216, 233, 249, By Marshal Sahlins, Reference to the sanctity of the RokoTui Bau and also the battle near Vanuabalavu. Also the continued friction between the Roko Tui Bau and The Vunivalu. Also reference to the Masau as Matanivanua to the Roko Tui Bau and the Lasakau betrayal
