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Crown Prince of Tonga

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Crown Prince of Tonga
since 18 March 2012
StyleHis Royal Highness
ResidenceRoyal Palace, Nukuʻalofa
AppointerMonarch
Inaugural holderVuna Takitakimālohi
FormationDecember 4, 1845; 178 years ago (1845-12-04)
DeputyTaufaʻahau Manumataongo

The Crown Prince of Tonga is the heir to the throne of Tonga.

The Article 32 of the Constitution of Tonga provides for male-preference primogeniture, meaning that the eldest son of the King automatically succeeds to the crown upon the monarch's death, and that the eldest daughter may succeed to the crown only if she has no living brothers and no deceased brothers who left surviving legitimate descendants.[1] By convention, the heir to the throne also bears the noble title of Tupoutoʻa; this has been the case since then-crown prince Tāufaʻāhau was conferred with the title in the late 1930s.[2]

The current Crown Prince of Tonga is Tupoutoʻa ʻUlukalala, who became heir apparent to the throne on 18 March 2012 upon the accession of his father, Tupou VI, as King.[3]

Succession to George Tupou I

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The long reign of King George Tupou I (r. 1845–1893), the first constitutional monarch of Tonga, saw six different heirs apparent to the Tongan throne. The only legitimate son of the King, Vuna Takitakimālohi, died unmarried in January 1862, leaving the King without an heir.[4] The succession would remain vacant for thirteen years until the promulgation of the Constitution of Tonga in 1875, which legitimized Vuna's half-brother Tēvita ʻUnga and named him Crown Prince.[5] By 1889, the King would outlive ʻUnga and all three of his grandchildren – ʻUelingatoni Ngū, Nalesoni Laifone and ʻElisiva Fusipala Taukiʻonetuku. That left his great-grandson Tāufaʻāhau, Fusipala's son, as the next Crown Prince, who would succeed his great-grandfather in 1893 as George Tupou II.[6][7][8]

Crown Princes of Tonga since 1845

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Portrait Name Relation to monarch Birth Became Crown Prince Ceased to be Crown Prince Death Monarch
Vuna Takitakimālohi Sole legitimate son c. 1844 4 December 1845 January 1862
deceased
George Tupou I
Tēvita ʻUnga Son c. 1824 4 November 1875 18 December 1879
deceased
ʻUelingatoni Ngū Grandson 3 August 1854 18 December 1879 11 March 1885
deceased
Nalesoni Laifone Grandson c. 1859 11 March 1885 6 June 1889
deceased
ʻElisiva Fusipala Taukiʻonetuku Granddaughter 18 May 1850 6 June 1889 September 1889
deceased
Tāufaʻāhau Double great-grandson 18 June 1874 September 1889 18 February 1893
acceded to throne as George Tupou II
5 April 1918
Sālote Mafile‘o Pilolevu Eldest daughter 13 March 1900 5 April 1918
acceded to throne as Sālote Tupou III
16 December 1965 George Tupou II
Tupoutoʻa Tungī Eldest son 4 July 1918 16 December 1965
acceded to throne as Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV
10 September 2006 Sālote Tupou III
Tupoutoʻa Eldest son 4 May 1948 16 December 1965 10 September 2006
acceded to throne as George Tupou V
18 March 2012 Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV
Tupoutoʻa Lavaka Younger brother 12 July 1959 27 September 2006 18 March 2012
acceded to throne as Tupou VI
Living George Tupou V
Tupoutoʻa ʻUlukalala Eldest son 17 September 1985 18 March 2012 Incumbent Living Tupou VI

Timeline

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Tupoutoʻa ʻUlukalalaTupou VIGeorge Tupou VTāufaʻāhau Tupou IVSālote Tupou IIIGeorge Tupou IIʻElisiva Fusipala TaukiʻonetukuNalesoni LaifoneʻUelingatoni NgūTēvita ʻUngaVuna Takitakimālohi

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Constitution of Tonga: Article 32". WIPO Lex. Archived from the original on 31 August 2019. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  2. ^ Marcus 1978, p. 41.
  3. ^ "Tonga Crown Prince weds". Radio New Zealand International. 12 July 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2012.
  4. ^ Rodman & Rutherford 2007, p. 26–27.
  5. ^ Spurway 2015, p. 155.
  6. ^ Wood-Ellem 1999, pp. 309, 314, 322, 324.
  7. ^ Biersack 1996, p. 274.
  8. ^ Hixon 2000, p. 202.

Bibliography

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