Last week, we moved focus to an ongoing rivalry between Rewa and Bau. In going through written records, it is clear that Cakobau appeared to change friends and allegiances almost impulsively. His first direct conflict with Rewa resulted from Ro Qaraniqio’s attacks on Suva. Qaraniqio was Ro Kania’s brother and the Roko Tui Suva was Tanoa’s son from one of his many wives. Thus, the vengeance on Rewa was expected and, even though it was delayed, it took place in December 1845. After drubbing Rewa, Cakobau continued with his schemes and campaigns. Rewa, however, was smarting from that defeat and was not going to accept it without retaliation. Preparations for this began soon afterwards.
After Rewa – 1845
READERS will recall that the king of Rewa at the time was Ro Kania, who was Cakobau’s mother’s sister’s son. Ro Kania, the Roko Tui Dreketi, was also married to Cakobau’s half-sister. There are some indications that he had misgivings about his brother, Qaraniqio’s attacks on Suva that incurred the wrath of Tanoa and Cakobau.
Anyway, during the rout of 1845 as Rewa burned, Kania came to Cakobau’s canoe on the Wailevu River and asked to be spared. It was obvious that he was banking on his relationships with Bau and had conventional expectations.
Cakobau’s response, however, was transgressive. He ordered Komainaua, who baulked, to kill the chief.
This was the same Komainaua who had clubbed Ratu Raivalita and connived against Bau in its struggles with Cakaudrove between 1839-1841. Those intrigues between the iSokula (Cakaudrove) and Bau are for another narration. But it does show that Bauan resources were spread widely depending on the whims and changing ambitions of Cakobau. Anyway, Komainaua and two others refused to kill Kania whose head was suddenly cleft open by an angry Cakobau wielding a battle-axe (Lyth TFR, 1:207).
After Ro Kania died, his somewhat rebellious and flamboyant brother Qaraniqio ascended to the throne in Rewa. He rebuilt the destroyed village and started to work on turning the coastal villages bordering Bau against the Vunivalu.
The success of this campaign was seen in the fact that the mainland from Kaba to Namena was in revolt and Ovalau declared independence. In the meantime, Bauan support for Cakaudrove against Natewa in 1846 paid dividends, but losses during the ill-fated beche-de-mer campaigns against Macuata in 1852 far outweighed these. Suddenly, Bau was running a rocky stretch.
The humiliating battle against Macuata exposed hitherto-unseen weaknesses in Cakobau’s control over his dominions, and especially his hold over the beche-de-mer trade.
The white traders strategically joined forces with Rewa, former Bauan towns that had flipped and rebel forces within Bau itself to present a unified force against Cakobau (cf. Derrick, 1950, pp108-9; Williams and Calvert, 1859, pp.471-72). Coastal Northerners began to trade independently with Europeans. “White residents of Levuka, in collusion with the visiting beche-de-mer vessels, effectively put an embargo on Bau, causing a serious shortage of ammunition and other valuable goods” (Sahlins, 2004. p.163). Bau’s woes were far from over as the American Consul John Williams called on the “civilised nations” to destroy Cakobau in a Sydney newspaper.
The Kaba wars (1853)
In 1853, the uncomfortable struggle between white-ruled Levuka and Lovoni came to the fore as Levuka was razed to the ground by the defiant Lovoni people.
The European settlers blamed Cakobau for the fire and suddenly, Cakobau could no longer depend on their strategic support for his ongoing struggles with Rewa.
As seen earlier, their attempts to capture the beche-de-mer trade had already focused “clandestinely” on supporting Rewa and its allies both around and within Bau.
The forces against Bau, both ancient and the more recent had established a stronghold at Kaba and their defiance could not be ignored by Cakobau.
Cakobau, thus, made an abortive attempt to crush Kaba, a promontory on mainland Viti Levu just off the coast of Bau. That defeat saw Cakobau’s army flee in panic and suddenly Bau looked truly vulnerable to its long plotting enemies.
This loss at Kaba was particularly humiliating for Cakobau because not only did he lose the home base of his clan, the Tui Kaba, but because he also lost a large canoe, a stack of arms and his prized schooner Thakombau.
More was to follow: a fire razed much of Bau in March 1854 and a hurricane flattened whatever remained two weeks later. It looked like even the gods had turned against Cakobau.
Indeed, the evil eye had truly turned on Cakobau as he was suddenly afflicted with “fistula in Perineo” as diagnosed by the missionary doctor, Reverend R.B. Lyth (DB: 19 July 1854). This disease, more precisely known as “perineal fistula”, is the presence of a fistulous tract across/between/adjacent to the anal sphincters and is usually an inflammatory condition that affects all anal functions. It can be very uncomfortable and painful having a dire effect on the quality of life of the afflicted.
Cakobau was thus under siege both externally from a formidable force aligned against him and an internal force that was painfully eating up his body from the inside.
The situation had become so dire that, in 1854, Bau unsuccessfully sued for peace with Rewa as Rewa prepared for a final assault to vanquish Bau once and for all. Cakobau however, was not done as he converted to Christianity through the missionary James Calvert in 1854 (Mennell, 1892). This brought the Tongan forces both from Lau and Tonga to his aid. Bau’s fortunes were about to turn.
The Kaba wars (1855)
On 25 January 1855, the leader of Rewa, Qaraniqio (aka Bativudi) died suddenly and unexpectedly. This pushed Rewa to make peace with Bau on 9 February 1855. This demise of the king of Rewa was kept secret for both known and unknown reasons. He had been down with dysentery and any leakage of the news of his illness/death would have broken the collective resolve of the Rewan war effort.
Qaraniqio had also been unconscious for a few hours before his death; thus, he passed away mute without passing on the charge to his successor.
This baton was taken up by Ratu Rabici after the customary 10-day mourning period.
Rabici, not yet 20 years old was the son of Bativuaka, a brother to Qaraniqio. He came to the fore when the Rewan and allied forces were in disarray following the sudden and unexpected death of Qaraniqio whom they respected and trusted.
It needs to be noted that Rabici was not a unanimously chosen successor and had not risen to that level of acceptance yet especially because he had succeeded into the apex of a “ruling kindred notorious for generations of patricidal and fratricidal strife over the kingship” (Sahlins, 2004. P.166).
Rabici, thus became one of the leaders who continued the war at the command of forces that had frayed and lost focus. Another leader of the local ‘rebels’ at Kaba was Ratu Mara Kapaiwai who was Cakobau’s cousin so rival to the title of Vunivalu.
Here is what is recorded of the Battle of Kaba 1855:
April 7, 1855: Ratu Mara Kapaiwai and his men took up position on the promontories of the small town of Kaba.
Cakobau and his alliance pushed into the town stealthily during the early hours of the morning. Some of Cakobau’s men had firearms which they had traded from American sailors in return for rice wine. Cakobau’s men, aided by King George of Tonga then annihilated Mara’s, who broke after less than an hour of fighting. 200 of Mara’s men were killed, and another 200 were captured.
This is when Seru’s conversion to Christianity and his subsequent endearment to Tonga paid dividends. To show his kindness and adherence to his new Christian faith, Cakobau let the prisoners go.
Bau had once again regained power over her old subjects.
That brought to an end the bitter rivalry between Bau and Rewa even though it would simmer on into modern Fiji.
Cakobau’s rejoicing at the conclusion of this battle in 1955, was also short-lived because he now found his supremacy challenged by Ma’afu and the Tongans who were ravaging territory claimed by Bau.
We will return to this later. But before we go there, we need to focus on a key figure who led the allied forces that crushed Bau in 1853 and again played a prominent role in 1855 – Ratu Mara Kapaiwai.
DR SUBHASH APPANNA is a senior USP academic who has been writing regularly on issues of historical and national significance. The views expressed here are his alone and not necessarily shared by this newspaper or his employers subhash.appana@usp.ac.fj