Tonga marks 170 years under Christian monarchy [1]
Monday, December 7, 2015 - 22:01. Updated on Tuesday, December 8, 2015 - 10:06.
Photos by Pesi Fonua
Groups from Christian churches in Tonga came together for a 'March for Jesus 2015' in central Nuku’alofa this morning, 7 December.
The march was organised by a Pray for Tonga Group, chaired by HM Queen Nanasipau’u, and marked 170 years since Tonga had its first Christian king, King George Tupou I, who was crowned on 4 December 1845.
The December 4 public holiday was marked today, Monday.
Tupou I, as Tonga’s first Christian monarch, brought peace to the country, which had been ravaged by civil wars for years before the arrival of the Christian missionaries.
At the time, Tongans held a conviction that Tupou I surrendered Tonga to God rather than to any of the colonial powers at the time.
Some of the prayers that were heard at Mala’e Pangai today, included one by Princess Mele Siu’ilikutapu who "re-surrendered Tonga to God", and pleaded with the good lord "to guide the leaders of the country at this very difficult time."