Protectorate of Wallis and Futuna | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1888–1961 | |||||||||
 | |||||||||
| Status | A French protectorate that governed Wallis and Futuna from 1888 to 1961. | ||||||||
| Capital | Mata-Utu | ||||||||
| Common languages | French (official), Wallisian, Futunan, Latin (religion), English (commerce) | ||||||||
| Religion | Catholicism | ||||||||
| Resident of Wallis and Futuna | |||||||||
| Governor | |||||||||
| Prime Minister | |||||||||
| Historical era | 19th century – 20th century | ||||||||
• Established | 5 March 1888 | ||||||||
• First requests for a protectorate by King Soane Patita Vaimua Lavelua I | February, October 1842 | ||||||||
• New requests for a protectorate by Queen Amelia Tokagahahau Aliki | 1881, 1884 | ||||||||
• Signing of the protectorate for Wallis Island | 5 April 1887 | ||||||||
• Signing of the protectorate for Futuna | 16 February 1888 | ||||||||
• Futuna attached to Wallis, unified protectorate established | 5 March 1888 | ||||||||
• New protectorate treaty signed | 19 May 1910 | ||||||||
• Request for annexation (rejected in 1924) | 1913 | ||||||||
• Copra crisis | 1930s | ||||||||
• Capture of Wallis and Futuna by Free France and establishment of an American base | 27 May 1942 | ||||||||
• Departure of American troops | April 1946 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 29 July 1961 | ||||||||
| Area | |||||||||
| 1959 | 274 km2 (106 sq mi) | ||||||||
| Population | |||||||||
• 1959 | 17,000 | ||||||||
| Currency | Franc | ||||||||
| |||||||||
The Protectorate of Wallis and Futuna was a French protectorate from March 5, 1888, to July 29, 1961, over the islands of Wallis, Futuna, and Alofi, in the Pacific Ocean. It was established at the request of the customary kings, under the influence of Catholic Marist missionaries who had converted the population in 1840–42 and sought French protection against the advance of Protestants in the region. In April 1887, the protectorate over Wallis was signed. It was extended to Futuna the following year, although these islands were administratively attached to New Caledonia until 1909. Given the islands' low strategic interest and remoteness, there was no real colonization.
The protectorate is headed by a resident sent by France. Residing in Wallis, he is responsible for maintaining law and order, managing the budget and collecting taxes, building infrastructure, and also has the power to validate the appointment of customary kings. Nevertheless, the French administration has to contend with the customary powers (Lavelua in Wallis, kings in Futuna, and their chiefdoms), which have authority over the Wallisians and Futunians, with the powerful Catholic Church, which oversees the population and manages education as well as morality control, and with the merchants, some of whom get involved in politics. Nevertheless, some residents tried to increase their power, such as Jean-Joseph David, who sought to develop Wallisian infrastructure and exports at breakneck speed in the 1930s. Futuna, on the other hand, is difficult to reach, and the French administration is represented by a missionary. Futuna's trajectory therefore differs markedly from that of Wallis.
Inhabitants relied on subsistence farming and fishing to meet their needs, and these Polynesian societies, organized around give-and-take, were unaware of the market economy. The only commercial activity, encouraged by France, was the export of copra, but this collapsed in the 1930s.[1]
.jpg)
The Second World War represented a major turning point: by remaining loyal to the Vichy regime, the islands were cut off from the world for 17 months, before being recaptured by the Free French and Wallis taken over by the American army. The construction of infrastructures, the arrival of strong purchasing power, and the discovery of the Western model of society upset the socio-economic and political balance. A large-scale emigration to New Caledonia and the New Hebrides began, reinforced by the dilapidated economic situation following the departure of the Americans in 1944. The protectorate became "archaic". The population voted overwhelmingly in favor of a change of status in the 1959 referendum, and on July 26, 1961, the protectorate came to an end: Wallis and Futuna became an overseas territory.[2]