Samoan high chiefs welcomed to Christchurch

Tupua Tamasese Mea'ole (3 June 1905 – 5 April 1963) was a Western Samoan paramount chief. He held the royal title of

Tupua Tamasese Tupua (known as Tupua Tamasese) is a state dynasty and one of the four paramount chiefly titles of Samoa, known as the Tama-a-Aiga or 'Sons of the Great Families'). It is the titular head of one of Samoa's two great royal families - Sā Tupua, the ...

from 1929 to 1963, and O le Ao o le Malo (Head of State) jointly with

Malietoa Tanumafili II Malietoa Tanumafili II (4 January 1913 – 11 May 2007), addressed Susuga Malietoa Tanumafili II, was the Malietoa, the title of one of Samoa's four paramount chiefs, and the head of state, or '' O le Ao o le Malo'', a position that he held f ...

from 1962 until his death the following year.

Biography

He was born in Vaimoso 1905 as the one of three sons of the paramount chief Tupua Tamasese Lealofi II. He was educated at the Marist school in

Apia Apia () is the capital and largest city of Samoa, as well as the nation's only city. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (''itūmālō'') of Tuamasaga. ...

.Tamasese: Architect of West Samoan Independence
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', May 1963, pp41–47 In 1929, he was installed as Tupua Tamasese when his elder brother and Mau leader,

Tupua Tamasese Lealofi III Tupua Tamasese Lealofi-o-ā'ana III (4 May 1901 – 29 December 1929) was a paramount chief of Samoa, holder of the Tupua Tamasese dynastic title and became the leader of the country's pro-independence Mau movement from early 1928 until his assa ...

was assassinated by colonial police during a Mau parade in Apia. He married Noue in 1934, a daughter of Olaf Frederick Nelson. The couple had four children; two daughters and two sons. In 1936 he was appointed to the Legislative Council, and in 1938 he was appointed as one of the ''Fautua'' (advisor to the Administrator). In the same year he became president of the Mau. As a ''Fautua'', he continued to serve in the Legislative Council and its successor, the Legislative Assembly until 1957. He was also a member of the Council of State and the Executive Council until 1959. Away from politics, Tamasese was involved in business, serving as chair of the board of the Western Samoa Trust Estates Corporation, a director of the Bank of Western Samoa and a member of the Copra Board. In 1953, he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal. In the 1957 New Year Honours he was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

. In preparations for independence, Tamasese chaired the constitutional conventions of 1954 and 1960. When Western Samoa attained independence in 1962, the new constitution made Tupua Tamasese and

(the two Fautua) joint heads of state. Upon Tamasese's death in April 1963, Malietoa continued to serve as sole head of state, whilst the title of

was passed to his eldest nephew, Tupua Tamasese Lealofi IV, who would go on to become the second Prime Minister of Samoa.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meaole, Tupua Tamasese 1905 births Members of the Legislative Council of Samoa Members of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa Commanders of the Order of the British Empire O le Ao o le Malo of Samoa 1963 deaths People from Tuamasaga