Pōmare IV | |||||
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Queen of Tahiti | |||||
Reign | 11 January 1827 – 17 September 1877 | ||||
Predecessor | Pōmare III | ||||
Successor | Pōmare V | ||||
Regent | Teriʻitariʻa Ariʻipaeavahine Teriʻitoʻoterai Teremoemoe Council of Chiefs |
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Born |
Pare, Tahiti |
28 February 1813||||
Died | 17 September 1877 Royal Palace, Papeete, Tahiti |
(aged 64)||||
Burial | Pōmare Royal Cemetery, Papaʻoa, ʻArue | ||||
Spouse |
Tapoa II Ariʻifaʻaite |
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Issue among others... |
Ariʻiaue Pōmare V Teriʻimaevarua II Tamatoa V Punuariʻi Teriʻitapunui Teriʻitua Tuavira |
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House | House of Pōmare | ||||
Father | Pōmare II | ||||
Mother | Teriʻitoʻoterai Tere-moe-moe | ||||
Religion | Protestantism | ||||
Signature |
Full name | |
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ʻAimata Pōmare IV Vahine-o-Punuateraʻitua |
Pōmare IV (28 February 1813 – 17 September 1877), more properly ʻAimata Pōmare IV Vahine-o-Punuateraʻitua (otherwise known as ʻAimata – "eye-eater", after an old custom of the ruler to eat the eye of the defeated foe), was the Queen of Tahiti between 1827 and 1877. She was the fourth monarch of the Kingdom of Tahiti.
Pōmare was the daughter of Pōmare II and Teriʻitoʻoterai Tere-moe-moe, his second wife. Her grandfather was Pōmare I.
She succeeded as ruler of Tahiti after the death of her brother Pōmare III when she was only 14 years old.
In 1843, the French declared Tahiti a French protectorate and installed a governor at Papeete. She fought in vain against French intervention, writing to the King of France and Queen Victoria, asking in vain for British intervention, and exiling herself to Raiatea in protest. What followed was the bloody French-Tahitian War which lasted from 1843 to 1847, involving every kingdom of the Society Islands. The Tahitians suffered many casualties, but the French losses were also great. Although the British never assisted the Tahitians, they actively condemned France and war nearly broke between the two powers in the Pacific. These conflicts ended in the defeat of the Tahitian forces at the Fort of Fautaua. The French were victorious, but they weren't able to annex the island due to diplomatic pressure from Great Britain, so Tahiti and Moorea continued to be ruled under the French protectorate. A clause to the war settlement was that Queen Pōmare's allies in Huahine, Raiatea, and Bora Bora would be allowed to remain independent.
Pōmare IV eventually relented and ruled under the French administration from 1847 until 1877. Pōmare IV is buried in the Royal Mausoleum, Papaʻoa, ʻArue. She was succeeded by Pōmare V, who reigned 1877–1880.