Pa Tepaeru Terito Ariki, Lady Davis (14 August 1923 – 3 February 1990) was Pa Ariki, one of the two ''

ariki An ariki (New Zealand, Cook Islands), ꞌariki (Easter Island), aliki (Tokelau, Tuvalu), ali‘i (Samoa, Hawai‘i), ari'i (Society Islands, Tahiti), aiki or hakaiki (Marquesas Islands), akariki (Gambier Islands) or ‘eiki (Tonga) is or was a mem ...

'' titles of the Takitumu tribe on the island of

Rarotonga Rarotonga is the largest and most populous of the Cook Islands. The island is volcanic, with an area of , and is home to almost 75% of the country's population, with 13,007 of a total population of 17,434. The Cook Islands' Parliament buildings a ...

of the

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

from 1924 until 1990. She is one of the authors of "

Te Atua Mou E "" ("God is Truth") is the national anthem of the Cook Islands. It was adopted in 1982, replacing the previous New Zealand anthem "God Defend New Zealand". History The music is by Sir Tom Davis, then Prime Minister of the Cook Islands. The ly ...

" ("God is Truth"), the national anthem of the Cook Islands. She was president of the

House of Ariki The House of Ariki () is a parliamentary body in the Cook Islands. It is composed of Cook Islands high chiefs (''ariki''), appointed by the King's Representative. While it functions in a similar way to the House of Lords and the Senate of Canada ...

from 1980 to 1990.

Early life

Pa Tepaeru Terito was an only child, born on 14 August 1923. Her father died four months later. Her mother then remarried. She was raised and educated by her great paternal uncle, Makea'nui Tinirau Teremoana Ariki, head of the Makea Nui Ariki, and his wife Tutini. She was appointed as Pa Ariki at the age of one in 1924, thanks in part to the support of Tupe Short,"''It seems that Pa Terito appointed in 1924, was brought in to the status through the actions of Tupe Short.''
In re Pa Ariki (2004) CKHC 3; Application 286.2004; 2 July 2004, paragraph 20
/ref> an important member of the Kainuku Ariki family, and probably of Makea Nui Tinirau. She was the 47th person to hold the title of Pa Ariki. In 1934, Pa Terito attended school in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

at the

Hukarere Girls' College Hukarere Girls' College is a girls secondary boarding school in the Hawke's Bay Region of New Zealand. It has a strong Māori character and follows the Anglican tradition. The School motto "Kia Ū Ki Te Pai" means "Cleave to that which is good" ...

in Napier. She returned to the Cook Islands in the mid-1940s to assume her role as ''ariki''. She worked as a secretary for the government and later for a private firm.

Conversion to the Baháʼí Faith

In the 1950s, Pa Terito converted to the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...

, becoming the first non-Christian ''ariki''. Her conversion seemed to anger some of the people of Takitumu. According to her, "One of the ministers said to me: 'Pa Ariki, you really have to do something about being a Baha'i. Your people are very angry with you'. (...) My People (held) a meeting (and said): 'Young lady, your ancestors accepted the Gospel' and all this kind of thing and I said: 'Yes, they had their reasons and I've got mine. What you are asking me? Give it up? I would rather give you up. If you ask me to give the title up and leave the country or give up being Baha'i, I'd leave the country.' And they looked at me, because ma'am, they knew I meant it." Her cousin, Makea Nui Tapumanoanoa Teremoana Ariki, also did not approve. "She said to me, 'I do not like you being Baha'i, it's against our family tradition." Pa Terito promised that there would be no attempt to proselytize on her part and agreed to attend the Sunday service at the Cook Islands Christian Church in

Ngatangiia Ngatangiia is one of the five districts that make up the island of Rarotonga in the Cook Islands. It is located in the east of the island, to the south of the districts of Matavera and Avarua, and northeast of the district of Titikaveka Titikave ...

Family life

Pa Terito married George Tamarua Ani Rima Peyroux in 1946. They had nine children, three sons: Teariki-Upoko-O-Te-Tini-Tini (Sonny), Hironui Maoata Rapu Malcolm and George Meredith Ani Akatauira, and six daughters: Marie Rima Desiree, Mahinarangi Margaret, Bambi Tetianui O Pa Paiaoro, Isabell, Kairangi Elizabeth, and Memory Teariki Tutini Memory Teao Manea. In 1977, she was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal. After a divorce, in 1979 she married Tom Davis, then Prime Minister of the archipelago, in a Baha'i ceremony. As an ''ariki'', she refused to be called "first lady", saying "I do not mind being addressed as 'queen' but I do object to the 'first lady'. I did not have to marry a politician to become a first lady. I was ''born'' a first lady!" Pa Terito's relations with her husband were sometimes difficult. She repeatedly opposed his political decisions. In March 1986, she openly criticized plans to open a resort in Muri on tribal lands. It seems that the discussion that ensued in the intimacy of the couple turned into a fight, at least that is what the local rumor, very active in the Cook Islands, asserted. The local and New Zealand press also echoed it.

Geoffrey Henry Sir Geoffrey Arama Henry (16 November 1940 – 9 May 2012) was a Cook Island politician who was twice the Prime Minister of the Cook Islands. He was leader of the Cook Islands Party (CIP) from 1979 to 2006. Early life Henry was a native of A ...

took the opportunity to ask for the resignation of Tom Davis, evoking marital violence. Davis then disappeared for a few days. Officially he had accidentally injured himself, suffering from cuts to the ear, chest, and groin, which fed the rumor all the more. A neighbour living near the couple said, on condition of anonymity, "if the cut in the groin had been longer than a half inch, Sir Thomas would today be a soprano in the church of Ngatangiia." This accounting was later denied by Pa Terito, who declared that her husband had injured himself in his sleep by turning onto a hunting knife. The hotel project was abandoned.

Death

Pa Terito died suddenly on 3 February 1990 on a plane that brought her to New Zealand to attend

Waitangi Day Waitangi Day ( mi, Te Rā o Waitangi), the national day of New Zealand, marks the anniversary of the initial signing – on 6 February 1840 – of the Treaty of Waitangi, which is regarded as the founding document of the nation. The first Wait ...

, which commemorates the

Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in the treatment of the M ...

. The Cook Islands had two days of official mourning following her death. Her state funeral was attended by thousands. She was buried according to the Baha'i rite. Her eldest daughter Marie Peyroux succeeded her to the title as Pa Tepaeru Teariki Upokotini Marie Ariki.

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