ThePolynesian Confederation was a hypotheticalconfederation planned mainly by theking of HawaiʻiKalākaua. The aim was to protect thePolynesian peoples fromEuropean andAmerican imperialism since when theUnited Kingdom took overFiji, there were only three independent archipelagos:Hawaiʻi,Sāmoa andTonga.[1][2]
In 1829, theKingdom of Hawaiʻi, looking to expand its sandalwood trade, sent an expedition toVanuatu consisting of two armedbrigs, theKamehameha and theBecket, under the command of ChiefsBoki and Manuia. The ships brought along around 800Hawaiians and supplies intended to build a settlement. They arrived atErromango and began settling with the intention of colonizing it. TheBecket later ventured to find theKamehameha, which had gone missing; it was later discovered it had actually sank. The locals at Erromango resisted the Hawaiians and destroyed the settlement. When theBecket returned, it picked up the surviving Hawaiians and returned to Hawaiʻi, but most of the Hawaiians died on the return voyage, including Manuia.[3][4]
On June 28, 1880, a Hawaiian government minister by the name ofWalter M. Gibson initiated a resolution, which stated that due to its geographical and political status, the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi would be entitled to lead a confederation of Polynesian countries. The government of the kingdom voted unanimously to pass the resolution six months later, and Gibson was named the person responsible for the operation.[1]
In addition to the still independent states, Kalākaua also tried to get countries already colonized by the Europeans in his confederation.Pōmare V, theking of Tahiti, had been planning to visitHonolulu in 1882, butthe monarchy was abolished in 1880, and the French colonizers didn't want the two island groups to be in contact with each other. Kalākaua was planning to visit Tahiti in 1887, but after he was forced to sign theBayonet Constitution, the trip was cancelled.[5]
In 1884, the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi employed Captain Alfred N. Tripp to command theschoonerJulia in order to find workers in Polynesia. At the same time, Tripp was commissioned as the Special Commissioner for Central and Western Polynesia. TheJulia also had the secondary mission of improving relations between the Polynesian nations of the South Pacific and the Hawaiian Kingdom.[6]
In 1886, Kalākaua founded theRoyal Order of the Star of Oceania, meant to award people who contributed to the creation of the confederation. One of its 15 Grand Crosses was given to kingMālietoa Laupepa of Sāmoa when he agreed to join the confederation.[7]
Kalākaua sent theKaimiloa, commanded byJohn E. Bush, to sail around Polynesia in order to recruit local leaders to join the confederation. This caused anxiety in Europe and the United States. TheGerman ambassador to the United States worried about a rumored Hawaiian plan to annex Sāmoa.[8]
Bush stayed in Sāmoa as an ambassador and began to formulate a constitution for the confederation, which was approved by theHawaiian legislature in March 1887.[9] But the confederation was never officially established. A possible reason is that it would have required too many changes to the Hawaiian system of government.[9]
TheImperial German Navy later arrived on Sāmoa, overthrew Mālietoa, and forced him into exile. The confederation plan was later invoked as a reason for theoverthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi.[8]