Halaevalu Mataʻaho ʻAhomeʻe | |||||
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Queen Mother of Tonga | |||||
Queen consort of Tonga | |||||
Tenure | 16 December 1965 – 10 September 2006 | ||||
Coronation | 4 July 1967 | ||||
Born | Tonga | 29 May 1926||||
Died | 19 February 2017 Mercy Hospital, Auckland, New Zealand | (aged 90)||||
Burial | 1 March 2017 | ||||
Spouse | |||||
Issue |
George Tupou V of Tonga Salote, Princess Royal Prince Fatafehi 'Alaivahamama'o Tuku'aho Aho'eitu Tupou VI of Tonga | ||||
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Father | Ahomeʻe (Manu-ʻo-pangai) | ||||
Mother | Heuʻifanga Veikune |
Halaevalu Mata'aho ʻAhomeʻe (29 May 1926 – 19 February 2017) [1] was Queen of Tonga from 1965 to 2006, as the wife of King Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV. She was the mother of King George Tupou V and the current King of Tonga, Tupou VI. [2]
Halaevalu Mataʻaho ʻAhomeʻe was born on 29 May 1926, [1] the eldest daughter of the Hon. Tevita Manu-’o-pangai, ‘Ahome’e, sometime Governor of Vava’u and Ha’apai and Minister for Police and his wife, Heuʻifanga Veikune, a great-granddaughter of the Tu'i Tonga. [1] [3] [4] She was also a great-great-granddaughter of Enele Maʻafu. [4]
She was educated at St Joseph's Convent School, Nuku’alofa, and St Mary's College, in Auckland, New Zealand. [5]
On 10 June 1947, Halaevalu married her distant relative Crown Prince Tāufaʻāhau of Tonga [6] (eldest son of Queen Sālote Tupou III of Tonga (1900-1965) and Prince Viliami Tungī Mailefihi).
The Queen Mother celebrated her 85th birthday in 2011 with a five-day celebration held in May. [3] The celebrations began with a garden party for more than one hundred Tongan women held at the home of the President of the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga, Rev. Dr. ‘Ahio. [3] The Queen Mother attended a Roman Catholic mass at St. Mary's Cathedral in Ma'ufanga with King Siaosi Tupou V on May 26, 2011. [3] The Tongan Ministry of Education, Women Affairs and Culture held a student celebration for her birthday on May 27, with primary school students from Pangai Lahi to Teufaiva Park, presenting the Queen Mother with birthday gifts. [3] A private party was held in Ha'avakatolo the next day, followed by a church service held at the Centennial Church on Sunday, May 29, and a luncheon at the Royal Palace in Nukuʻalofa. [3]
The Queen Mother embarked on a two-week trip to the U.S. state of Utah in July and August 2011. [7] Specifically, the Queen Mother came to visit the Tongan United Methodist Church in West Valley City, Utah, whose congregation had raised approximately $500,000 in less than a year to pay off the mortgage on the building. [7] The Mayor of West Valley City, Michael K. Winder, awarded the Queen Mother the key to the city on July 27, 2011. [7] She also met with Utah Governor Gary Herbert the next day. [7]
On 19 February 2017, the Queen Mother died aged 90, which was confirmed by her granddaughter Princess Lātūfuipeka Tukuʻaho, High Commissioner of Tonga to Australia, a week after she was flown to Auckland, New Zealand, for minor medical issues; the cause of death, however, was not released publicly.
The Queen Mother was flown back to Tonga by the Royal Beechcraft G.18S Aircraft on February 28 flanked by the C-130 Hercules of the Royal New Zealand Air Force, after lying-in-state at the Tongan royal residence, 'Atalanga in Epsom, Auckland.
See the Tongan language page and ancestor's page ...
Ancestors of Halaevalu Mataʻaho ʻAhomeʻe | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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