Pacific Empire, Violence, Passive Resistance and League of Nations Mandates

What is it about?

This article traces a friendship that shaped the Samoan resistance movement in Samoa New Zealand. It connects two leading men for the first time - Ta'isi O. F. Nelson and Sir Maui Pomare - and shows how their friendship linked methods of resistance against British rule by the Maori in the 1880s and then Samoans in the 1920s. The friendship between these two influential men was political and cultural, binding contemporary politics with ancient connections between Polynesian communities.

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Why is it important?

This is the first time this friendship has been the subject of historical focus. It uses new sources and makes connections that significantly reshape the history of British Empire, New Zealand Empire and the history of Samoa. As Samoa was a League of Nations Mandate, this article also draws the international order of the day into view and shows how all these layers of influence filtered down through this friendship.