Rocard is a submarine volcano in French Polynesia , located between the island of Mehetia and the Teahitia seamount. The volcano's summit is 2515m below sealevel. It has erupted in March 1966, September 1971, and July 1972.
113-681: The volcano was first located in 1976 using seismograph records, and its existence confirmed by a bathymetric survey. In 2011 and 2013, seismic records suggested shallow magma outpouring from the volcano. This French Polynesia -related geography article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about a specific oceanic location or ocean current is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . French Polynesia French Polynesia ( / ˌ p ɒ l ɪ ˈ n iː ʒ ə / POL -ih- NEE -zhə ; French : Polynésie française [pɔlinezi fʁɑ̃sɛːz] ; Tahitian : Pōrīnetia Farāni )
226-515: A no-confidence vote in the Assembly of French Polynesia on 31 August after the longtime former president of French Polynesia, Gaston Flosse , hitherto opposed to independence, sided with his long enemy Oscar Temaru to topple the government of Gaston Tong Sang. Oscar Temaru, however, had no stable majority in the Assembly of French Polynesia, and new territorial elections were held in February 2008 to solve
339-530: A xenophobic discourse and fanning the flame of nationalism. All the indigenous languages of French Polynesia are Polynesian . French Polynesia has been linguistically diverse since ancient times, with each community having its own local speech variety. These dialects can be grouped into seven languages on the basis of mutual intelligibility : Tahitian , Tuamotuan , Rapa , Austral , North Marquesan , South Marquesan , and Mangarevan . Some of these, especially Tuamotuan, are really dialect continua formed by
452-670: A banquet ruse on the night after the battle for being easily defeated by Lapulapu and the people of Mactan and failing to kill Lapulapu) and eventually made their way to the Moluccas in November 1521. Laden with spices, they attempted to set sail for Spain in December, but found that only one of their remaining two ships, the Victoria , was seaworthy. The Victoria , captained by Juan Sebastián Elcano , finally returned to Spain by 6 September 1522, completing
565-705: A colony in 1888 (eight years after the Windward Islands) after many native resistances and conflicts called the Leewards War , lasting until 1897. In the 1880s, France claimed the Tuamotu Archipelago , which formerly belonged to the Pōmare Dynasty , without formally annexing it. Having declared a protectorate over Tahuata in 1842, the French regarded the entire Marquesas Islands as French. In 1885, France appointed
678-476: A deconcentrated subdivision of the government of French Polynesia. These are called circonscriptions ('districts'). The head of a circonscription is the tavana hau , known as administrateur territorial in French ('territorial administrator'), but the Tahitian title tavana hau is most often used. The president of French Polynesia's government appoints the tavana hau , who directly reports to
791-495: A distance for about a half-hour, but uselessly; for the shots only passed through the shields.... Recognizing the captain, so many turned upon him that they knocked his helmet off his head twice.... An Indian hurled a bamboo spear into the captain's face, but the latter immediately killed him with his lance, which he left in the Indian's body. Then, trying to lay hand on sword, he could draw it out but halfway, because he had been wounded in
904-476: A false start in the estuary of Río de la Plata ), weather conditions forced the fleet to stop their search to wait out the winter. They found a sheltered natural harbor at the port of Saint Julian , and remained there for five months. Shortly after landing at St. Julian, there was a mutiny attempt led by the Spanish captains Juan de Cartagena , Gaspar de Quesada and Luis de Mendoza . Magellan barely managed to quell
1017-453: A governor and established a general council, thus giving it the proper administration for a colony. The islands of Rimatara and Rūrutu unsuccessfully lobbied for British protection in 1888, so in 1889 they were annexed by France. Postage stamps were first issued in the colony in 1892. The first official name for the colony was Établissements de l'Océanie (Establishments in Oceania); in 1903
1130-418: A gunboat in 1838. In 1842, Tahiti and Tahuata were declared a French protectorate , to allow Catholic missionaries to work undisturbed. The capital of Papeetē was founded in 1843. In 1880, France annexed Tahiti, changing the status from that of a protectorate to that of a colony . The island groups were not officially united until the establishment of the French protectorate in 1889. After France declared
1243-438: A hand-written copy of his notes from the journey. He would later travel through Europe giving copies to other royals including John III of Portugal , Francis I of France , and Philippe Villiers de L'Isle-Adam . After returning to his home of Venice, Pigafetta published his diary (as Relazione del primo viaggio intorno al mondo ) around 1524. Scholars have come to view Pigafetta's diary as the most thorough and reliable account of
SECTION 10
#17328756925581356-664: A large land territory (particularly in the larger islands such as Tahiti or Nuku Hiva ) or because they are made up of atolls distant from each other (particularly in the Tuamotu archipelago), which led to the creation of associated communes for each inhabited atoll. 17 communes (out of French Polynesia's 48 communes) have banded together in three separate communities of communes . These indirectly elected intercommunal councils are still relatively new in French Polynesia, and unlike in metropolitan France and its overseas regions it
1469-772: A local assembly and government, French Polynesia is not in a free association with France, like the Cook Islands with New Zealand . As a French overseas collectivity, the local government has no competence in justice, university education, security and defense. Services in these areas are directly provided and administered by the Government of France, including the National Gendarmerie (which also polices rural and border areas in metropolitan France), and French military forces . The collectivity government retains control over primary and secondary education, health, town planning, and
1582-474: A mayor in charge of managing local affairs within the commune. Municipal elections occur every six years on the same date as in the rest of the French Republic (the last municipal elections took place in 2020 ). 30 communes are further subdivided in 98 associated communes which have each a delegate mayor and a registry office. These 30 communes were subdivided in associated communes either because they have
1695-601: A member of the Pacific Community , a regional development organization. Since 28 March 2003, French Polynesia has been an overseas collectivity of the French Republic under the constitutional revision of article 74, and later gained, with law 2004-192 of 27 February 2004, an administrative autonomy, two symbolic manifestations of which are the title of the President of French Polynesia and its additional designation as an overseas country . Anthropologists and historians believe
1808-441: A nearly complete personal circumnavigation of the globe for the first time in history. Magellan was born in northern Portugal c. 1480. His father, Pedro de Magalhães, was a minor member of Portuguese nobility and mayor of the town. His mother was Alda de Mezquita. Magellan's siblings included Diogo de Sousa and Isabel Magellan. He was brought up as a page of Queen Eleanor , consort of King John II . In 1495 he entered
1921-403: A patchwork of different dialects. The distinction between languages and dialects is notoriously difficult to establish, and so some authors may view two varieties as dialects of the same language, while others may view them as distinct languages. In this way, North and South Marquesan are often grouped together as a single Marquesan language, and Rapa is often viewed as part of Austral subfamily. At
2034-517: A permanent limp. He was accused of trading illegally with the Moors . The accusations were proven false, but he received no further offers of employment after 15 May 1514. Later in 1515, he was offered employment as a crew member on a Portuguese ship, but rejected this. In 1517, after a quarrel with Manuel I of Portugal, who denied his persistent requests to lead an expedition to reach the Spice Islands from
2147-522: A protectorate over Tahiti in 1842 and fought a war with Tahiti (1844–1847) , the British and French signed the Jarnac Convention in 1847, declaring that the kingdoms of Raiatea , Huahine and Bora Bora were to remain independent from both powers and that no single chief was to be allowed to reign over the entire archipelago. France eventually broke the agreement, and the islands were annexed and became
2260-528: A second vessel of the Félix Éboué class, ( Philip Bernardino ), is to be deployed in Tahiti to further reinforce France's maritime surveillance capabilities in the region. As of 2021, two smaller port and coastal tugs (RPCs), Maroa and Manini , were also operational in the territory. Flottille 35F of French naval aviation deploys a detachment of three AS 365N Dauphin helicopters in Tahiti. The helicopters carry out
2373-489: A small force on the morning of 27 April 1521. During the resulting battle against Lapulapu's troops, Magellan was struck by a "bamboo" spear ( bangkaw , which are actually metal-tipped fire-hardened rattan ), and later surrounded and finished off with other weapons. Antonio Pigafetta and Ginés de Mafra provided written documents of the events culminating in Magellan's death: When morning came forty-nine of us leaped into
SECTION 20
#17328756925582486-483: A status of expanded autonomy for French Polynesia in 2004, failed to secure an absolute majority in the 2004 French Polynesian legislative election , resulting in deadlock at the Assembly of French Polynesia . Flosse's longtime opponent, the pro-independence leader Oscar Temaru , whose pro-independence coalition had won one less seat than Flosse's party in the Assembly, was nonetheless elected president of French Polynesia by
2599-533: A steady grunting of staccato, nonlexical syllables. Ferdinand Magellan Ferdinand Magellan ( c. 1480 – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer best known for having planned and led the 1519–22 Spanish expedition to the East Indies , which achieved the first circumnavigation of Earth in history. During this expedition, he also discovered the Strait of Magellan , allowing his fleet to pass from
2712-570: A storm while surveying nearby waters, though no men were killed. Following the winter, the fleet resumed their search for a passage to the Pacific in October 1520. Three days later, they found a bay which eventually led them to a strait, now known as the Strait of Magellan , which allowed them passage through to the Pacific. While exploring the strait, one of the remaining four ships, the San Antonio , deserted
2825-723: A total land area of 3,521 square kilometres (1,359 sq mi), scattered over more than 2,000 km (1,200 miles) of ocean. There are 121 islands in French Polynesia and many more islets or motu s around atolls . The highest point is Mount Orohena on Tahiti. It is made up of five archipelagos. The largest and most populated island is Tahiti, in the Society Islands. Aside from Tahiti, some other important atolls, islands, and island groups in French Polynesia are: Ahē , Bora Bora , Hiva ʻOa , Huahine , Maiʻao , Maupiti , Mehetiʻa , Moʻorea , Nuku Hiva , Raʻiātea , Tahaʻa , Tetiʻaroa , Tubuai and Tūpai . French Polynesia
2938-484: A variety of roles in the territory or may be embarked on the frigate Prairial as required. The National Gendarmerie deploys some 500 active personnel and civilians, plus around 150 reservists, in French Polynesia. The patrol boat Jasmin of the Maritime Gendarmerie is also based in the territory and is to be replaced by a new PCG-NG patrol boat in about 2025–2026. The islands of French Polynesia make up
3051-461: A western route, a feat never before accomplished. Bergreen further states that Magellan claimed to Charles that his Malaccan or Sumatran slave Enrique had been a native of the Spice Islands and used Enrique and letters from Serrão to "prove" that the islands were so far east that they would fall within the Spanish sphere of influence if the world were truly to be divided in half. (The details of
3164-566: A woman from Amboina and became a military advisor to the Sultan of Ternate , Bayan Sirrullah . His letters to Magellan later proved decisive, giving information about the spice-producing territories. After taking a leave without permission, Magellan fell out of favour. In mid-1513 he was sent to fight against the Moroccan stronghold of Azemmour and there, in August, he sustained a leg wound resulting in
3277-464: Is an overseas collectivity of France and its sole overseas country . It comprises 121 geographically dispersed islands and atolls stretching over more than 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) in the South Pacific Ocean . The total land area of French Polynesia is 3,521 square kilometres (1,359 sq mi), with a population of 278,786 (Aug. 2022 census) of which at least 205,000 live in
3390-454: Is composed of two CN-235 tactical transport aircraft drawn from the Air Force's ET 82 "Maine" transport squadron. As of mid-2024, three principal French Navy vessels are based in the territory, including: the surveillance frigate Prairial , the patrol and support ship Bougainville and Teriieroo to Teriierooiterai , a vessel of the new Félix Éboué class of patrol vessels. In 2026
3503-404: Is home to four terrestrial ecoregions: Marquesas tropical moist forests , Society Islands tropical moist forests , Tuamotu tropical moist forests , and Tubuai tropical moist forests . French Polynesia is divided in five administrative subdivisions ( subdivisions administratives ): The five administrative subdivisions are not local councils; they are solely deconcentrated subdivisions of
Rocard - Misplaced Pages Continue
3616-424: Is not mandatory for the communes in French Polynesia to join an intercommunal council. The three intercommunal councils in existence as of 2022, all formed on a voluntary basis, were: These communities of communes, as elsewhere in the French Republic, are not full-fledged territorial collectivities , but only federations of communes. From a legal standpoint, the only territorial collectivities in French Polynesia are
3729-470: Is the capital of French Polynesia. Although not an integral part of its territory, Clipperton Island was administered from French Polynesia until 2007. Hundreds of years after the Great Polynesian Migration , European explorers began traveling through the region, visiting the islands of French Polynesia on several occasions. Traders and whaling ships also visited. In 1842, the French took over
3842-555: The 2013 French Polynesian legislative election by a wide margin, only two weeks before the United Nations re-registered French Polynesia on its list of non-self governing territories. This was interpreted by political analysts as a rejection by French Polynesian voters of Temaru's push for independence as well as the consequence of the socioeconomic crisis affecting French Polynesia after years of political instability and corruption scandals. Gaston Flosse, whose anti-independence party
3955-706: The Atlantic into the Pacific Ocean and perform the first European navigation to Asia via the Pacific . Magellan died in the Philippines during his voyage , and his crew completed the return trip to Spain in 1522. Born c. 1480 into a family of minor Portuguese nobility , Magellan became a skilled sailor and naval officer in service of the Portuguese Crown in Asia. King Manuel I refused to support Magellan's plan to reach
4068-573: The French municipal elections held in March 2008 , several prominent mayors who were member of the Flosse-Temaru coalition lost their offices in key municipalities of French Polynesia, which was interpreted as a disapproval of the way Gaston Tong Sang, whose party French Polynesian voters had placed first in the territorial elections the month before, had been prevented from becoming president of French Polynesia by
4181-585: The Moluccas , or Spice Islands, by sailing westwards around the American continent. Magellan then proposed the same plan to King Charles I of Spain , who approved it. In Seville , he married, fathered two children, and organized the expedition. In 1518, for his allegiance to the Hispanic monarchy , Magellan was appointed an admiral of the Spanish fleet and given command of the expedition—the five-ship "Armada of Molucca." He
4294-561: The Sea of Magellan , in his honor, until the 18th century) and lends his name to the Strait of Magellan . His name has also since been applied to a variety of other entities , including the Magellanic Clouds (two dwarf galaxies visible in the night sky of the southern hemisphere), Project Magellan (a Cold War -era US Navy project to circumnavigate the world by submarine), and NASA's Magellan spacecraft . Even though Magellan did not survive
4407-464: The Society Islands and the remaining population lives in the rest of the archipelago. French Polynesia is divided into five groups of islands: Among its 121 islands and atolls, 75 were inhabited at the 2017 census. Tahiti , which is in the Society Islands group, is the most populous island, being home to nearly 69% of the population of French Polynesia as of 2017 . Papeete , located on Tahiti,
4520-692: The Tuāmotu-Gambier administrative division, and the Marquesas Islands administrative division, the 2nd representing much of Tahiti outside Papeete and the Austral Islands administrative subdivision, and the 3rd representing the Leeward Islands administrative subdivision and the south-western suburbs of Papeete. French Polynesia also sends two senators to the French Senate . The defence of
4633-468: The world music scene in 1992, recorded by French musicologist Pascal Nabet-Meyer with the release of The Tahitian Choir 's recordings of unaccompanied vocal Christian music called himene tārava . This form of singing is common in French Polynesia and the Cook Islands, and is notable for a unique drop in pitch at the end of the phrases, a characteristic formed by several different voices, accompanied by
Rocard - Misplaced Pages Continue
4746-590: The 1980s, but in absolute terms their population peaked at the 2007 census, when 24,265 lived in French Polynesia (not counting their children born there). With the local economic crisis, their population declined to 22,278 at the 2012 census, and 22,387 at the 2017 census. At the 1988 census, the last census which asked questions regarding ethnicity, 66.5% of people were ethnically unmixed Polynesians , 7.1% were ethnically Polynesians with light European or East Asian mixing, 11.9% were Europeans (mostly French ), 9.3% were people of mixed European and Polynesian descent,
4859-456: The 2007 census), 0.6% reported a Chinese dialect (41% of which was Hakka ) (down from 1.0% at the 2007 census), and 0.4% another language (more than half of which was English ) (down from 0.5% at the 2007 census). At the same census, 95.2% of people whose age was 15 or older reported that they could speak, read and write French (up from 94.7% at the 2007 census), whereas only 1.3% reported that they had no knowledge of French (down from 2.0% at
4972-462: The 2007 census). 86.5% of people whose age was 15 or older reported that they had some form of knowledge of at least one Polynesian language (up from 86.4% at the 2007 census but down from 87.8% at the 2012 census), whereas 13.5% reported that they had no knowledge of any of the Polynesian languages (down from 13.6% at the 2007 census but up from 12.2% at the 2012 census). French Polynesia appeared in
5085-514: The Assembly in June 2004 thanks to the votes of two non-aligned Assembly members. This resulted in several years of political instability, as neither the pro- nor the anti-independence camps were assured of a majority, depending on the votes of smaller non-aligned parties representing the interests of the distant islands of French Polynesia (as opposed to Tahiti). Temaru was toppled from the presidency of French Polynesia in October 2004, succeeded by Flosse who
5198-527: The Atlantic toward South America. In late November, they made landfall at Cabo de Santo Agostinho , near present day Recife . The Tupi natives, having already engaged with Portuguese and French loggers, were familiar with Europeans, and the encounter was cordial. In December, they arrived at Guanabara Bay , the location of present-day Rio de Janeiro . Magellan and the crew stayed onshore for two weeks, replenishing their provisions and peacefully interacting with
5311-631: The Cebuanos. The king then told the Spaniards to go to the island of Mactan to kill his enemy Lapulapu . The Spaniards went to the island of Mactan just as Rajah Humabon told them to. However, they did not initially come by force and wanted to Christianize them. Unlike the people of Cebu who accepted the new religion readily, the King of Mactan, Datu Lapulapu, and the rest of the island of Mactan resisted. On 27 April, Magellan and members of his crew attempted to subdue
5424-532: The Dutch West India Company, charted the location of six islands in the Tuamotu Archipelago and two islands in the Society Islands, one of which was Bora Bora . British explorer Samuel Wallis became the first European navigator to visit Tahiti in 1767. French explorer Louis Antoine de Bougainville also visited Tahiti in 1768, while British explorer James Cook arrived in 1769, and observed
5537-665: The French central State. At the head of each administrative subdivision is an administrateur d'État ('State administrator'), generally simply known as administrateur , also sometimes called chef de la subdivision administrative ('head of the administrative subdivision'). The administrateur is a civil servant under the authority of the High Commissioner of the French Republic in French Polynesia in Papeete . Four administrative subdivisions (Marquesas Islands, Leeward Islands, Tuamotu-Gambier, and Austral Islands) each also form
5650-587: The Great Polynesian Migration commenced around 1500 BC as Austronesian peoples went on a journey using celestial navigation to find islands in the South Pacific Ocean. The first islands of French Polynesia to be settled were the Marquesas Islands in about 200 BC. The Polynesians later ventured southwest and discovered the Society Islands around AD 300. European encounters began in 1521 when Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan , sailing at
5763-516: The Kingdom of Cebu (Sugbo). To mark the arrival of Christianity in the Far East, Magellan then planted a Cross on the shorelines of the kingdom. Magellan set about converting the locals, including the king and his wife, Queen Humamay, to Christianity. Rajah Humabon was renamed "Carlos" and Queen Humamay was renamed "Juana" after the king and queen of Spain. After her baptism, the queen asked the Spaniards for
SECTION 50
#17328756925585876-526: The Mactan natives by force, but in the ensuing battle , the Europeans were overpowered and Magellan was killed by Lapulapu and his men. Following his death, Magellan was initially succeeded by co-commanders Juan Serrano and Duarte Barbosa (with a series of other officers later leading). The fleet left the Philippines (following a bloody betrayal by former ally Rajah Humabon, who had poisoned many Spanish soldiers on
5989-750: The Pacific. The other , commanded by Elcano, sailed west across the Indian Ocean and north along the Atlantic coast of Africa, finally returning to Spain in September 1522 and achieving the first complete circuit of the globe. While in the Kingdom of Portugal 's service, Magellan had already reached the Malay Archipelago in Southeast Asia on previous voyages traveling east (from 1505 to 1511–1512). By visiting this area again but now traveling west, Magellan achieved
6102-876: The Strait of Magellan into the Mar del Sur , which Magellan renamed the Mar Pacifico , or Pacific Ocean. The expedition landed at Guam after an arduous crossing of the Pacific, and then reached the Philippines . There, in April 1521, Magellan was killed in the Battle of Mactan . Under the command of captain Juan Sebastian Elcano , the expedition finally reached the Spice Islands. The fleet's two remaining ships then split ways, one attempting, unsuccessfully, to reach New Spain by sailing east across
6215-458: The anti-independence camp, and Fritch was excluded from Gaston Flosse's party in September 2015, before founding his own anti-independence party, Tapura Huiraatira , in February 2016. His new party managed to keep a majority in the Assembly of French Polynesia, and Fritch remained president of French Polynesia. Political stability has returned in French Polynesia since the split of the anti-independence camp in 2015–2016. Tapura Huiraatira won 70% of
6328-467: The arm with a bamboo spear. When the natives saw that, they all hurled themselves upon him. One of them wounded him on the left leg with a large cutlass, which resembles a scimitar, only being larger. That caused the captain to fall face downward, when immediately they rushed upon him with iron and bamboo spears and with their cutlasses, until they killed our mirror, our light, our comfort, and our true guide. Nothing of Magellan's body survived; that afternoon
6441-404: The assassination of the navigator. When Magellan eventually sailed to the open seas in August 1519, a Portuguese fleet was sent after him, though it failed to capture him. Magellan's fleet consisted of five ships carrying supplies for two years of travel. The crew consisted of about 270 men of different origins, though the numbers may vary downwards among scholars based on contradicting data from
6554-536: The balangays of Rajah Kulambo and reached its port on 7 April. Magellan met with the King of Cebu, Rajah Humabon , who asked them for tribute as a trade, thinking they were traders bartering with them. Magellan and his men insisted that they did not need to pay tribute as they were sent by the king of Spain, "the most powerful king in the world", and that they were willing to give peace to them if they wanted peace and war if they wanted war. Humabon then decided not to ask for any more tribute and welcomed them instead to
6667-482: The circumnavigation, and its publication helped to eventually counter the misinformation spread by Elcano and the other surviving mutineers. In an often-cited passage following his description of Magellan's death in the Battle of Mactan, Pigafetta eulogizes the captain-general: Magellan's main virtues were courage and perseverance, in even the most difficult situations; for example he bore hunger and fatigue better than all
6780-430: The circumnavigation. Of the 270 men who left with the expedition, only 18 or 19 survivors returned. After several weeks in the Philippines, Magellan had converted as many as 2,200 locals to Christianity, including Rajah Humabon of Cebu and most leaders of the islands around Cebu. However, Lapulapu , the leader of Mactan, resisted conversion. In order to gain the trust of Rajah Humabon, Magellan sailed to Mactan with
6893-614: The collectivity is the responsibility of the French Armed Forces . Some 900 military personnel are deployed in the territory – incorporating the Pacific-Polynesian Marine Infantry Regiment (RIMaP-P) – along with modest air transport and surveillance assets. The latter include three Falcon 200 Gardian maritime surveillance aircraft from French Naval Aviation , which are to be replaced by the more modern Falcon 2000 Albatros starting in 2025. The former
SECTION 60
#17328756925587006-505: The east (i.e., while sailing westwards, thus avoiding the need to sail around the tip of Africa ), he left for Spain. In Seville he befriended his countryman Diogo Barbosa and soon married the daughter of Diogo's second wife, Maria Caldera Beatriz Barbosa. They had two children: Rodrigo de Magallanes and Carlos de Magallanes, both of whom died at a young age. His wife died in Seville around 1521. Meanwhile, Magellan devoted himself to studying
7119-562: The eastern division implicit in the Tordesillas treaty would later be formalized in the 1529 Treaty of Zaragoza .) King Manuel saw all of this as an insult and did everything in his power to disrupt Magellan's arrangements for the voyage. The Portuguese king allegedly ordered that Magellan's properties be vandalized as it was the coat of arms of the Magellan displayed at the family house's façade in Sabrosa, his home town, and may have even requested
7232-434: The environment. The highest representative of the State in the territory is the High Commissioner of the Republic in French Polynesia ( French : Haut commissaire de la République en Polynésie française ). French Polynesia also sends three deputies to the French National Assembly in three constituencies, the 1st representing Papeete and its north-eastern suburbs, plus the commune (municipality) of Mo'orea-Mai'ao ,
7345-487: The exhausted fleet made landfall at the island of Guam and were met by native Chamorro people who came aboard the ships and took items such as rigging, knives, and a ship's boat . The Chamorro people may have thought they were participating in a trade exchange (as they had already given the fleet some supplies), but the crew interpreted their actions as theft. Magellan sent a raiding party ashore to retaliate, killing several Chamorro men, burning their houses, and recovering
7458-479: The expedition came from the crew of the San Antonio , led by Estêvão Gomes , which deserted the fleet in the Strait of Magellan and returned to Seville 6 May 1521. The deserters were put on trial, but eventually exonerated after producing a distorted version of the mutiny at Saint Julian, and depicting Magellan as disloyal to the king. The expedition was assumed to have perished. The Casa de Contratación withheld Magellan's salary from his wife, Beatriz, "considering
7571-474: The expedition's chronicler. Under questioning by Valladolid's mayor, the men claimed that Magellan refused to follow the king's orders (and gave this as the cause for the mutiny at Saint Julian), and that he unfairly favoured his relatives among the crew, and disfavoured the Spanish captains. One of the few survivors loyal to Magellan was Antonio Pigafetta. Though not invited to testify with Elcano, Pigafetta made his own way to Valladolid and presented Charles with
7684-402: The failure of subsequent expeditions which attempted to retrace his route, beginning with the Loaísa expedition in 1525 (which featured Juan Sebastián Elcano as second-in-command). The next expedition to complete a circumnavigation, led by Francis Drake , was not until 58 years after the return of the Victoria , in 1580. Magellan named the Pacific Ocean (which was sometimes referred to as
7797-541: The fleet, returning east to Spain. The fleet reached the Pacific by the end of November 1520. Based on the incomplete understanding of world geography at the time, Magellan expected a short journey to Asia, perhaps taking as little as three or four days. In fact, the Pacific crossing took three months and twenty days. The long journey exhausted their supply of food and water, and around 30 men died, mostly of scurvy . Magellan himself remained healthy, perhaps because of his personal supply of preserved quince . On 6 March 1521,
7910-445: The general council was changed to an advisory council and the colony's name was changed to Établissements Français de l'Océanie (French Establishments in Oceania). In 1940, the administration of French Polynesia recognised the Free French Forces and many Polynesians served in World War II. Unknown at the time to the French and Polynesians, the Konoe Cabinet in Imperial Japan on 16 September 1940 included French Polynesia among
8023-537: The government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Assembly of French Polynesia (the territorial assembly). Political life in French Polynesia was marked by great instability from the mid-2000s to the mid-2010s. The anti-independence right-wing president of French Polynesia, Gaston Flosse , who had been in power since 1991, had supported the resumption of the French nuclear weapons tests in 1995, and had obtained from his longtime friend and political ally Jacques Chirac , then president of France,
8136-456: The grieving rajah-king, hoping to recover his remains, offered Mactan's victorious chief a handsome ransom of copper and iron for them, but Datu Lapulapu refused. He intended to keep the body as a war trophy. Since his wife and child died in Seville before any member of the expedition could return to Spain, it seemed that every evidence of Ferdinand Magellan's existence had vanished from the earth. In
8249-574: The image of the Child Jesus ( Santo Niño ), which she was drawn to, and begged them for the image in contrition, amidst her tears. Magellan then gave the image of the Child Jesus, along with an image of the Virgin Mary , and a small cross to the queen as a gesture of goodwill for accepting the new faith. The king then had a Blood Compact with Magellan in order to cement the allegiance of the Spaniards and
8362-462: The immediate aftermath of the circumnavigation, few celebrated Magellan for his accomplishments, and he was widely discredited and reviled in Spain and his native Portugal. In Portugal, some regarded Magellan as a traitor for having sailed for Spain. In Spain, Magellan's reputation suffered due to the largely unflattering accounts of his actions given by the survivors of the expedition. The first news of
8475-539: The islands and established a French protectorate that they called Établissements français d'Océanie (EFO) (French Establishments/Settlements of Oceania). In 1946, the EFO became an overseas territory under the constitution of the French Fourth Republic , and Polynesians were granted the right to vote through citizenship. In 1957, the EFO were renamed French Polynesia. In 1983 French Polynesia became
8588-490: The last minute alliance between Flosse and Temaru's parties. Eventually, on 15 April 2008 the government of Gaston Flosse was toppled by a constructive vote of no confidence in the territorial assembly when two members of the Flosse-Temaru coalition left the coalition and sided with Tong Sang's party. Tong Sang's majority in the territorial assembly was very narrow, and he was toppled in February 2009, succeeded by Temaru (supported again by Flosse). Oscar Temaru's return to power
8701-493: The locals also wore and used a great amount of golden jewelry and golden artifacts, which piqued Magellan's interest. On 31 March, Magellan's crew held the first Mass in the Philippines , planting a cross on the island's highest hill. Before leaving, Magellan asked the rulers for the next nearest trading ports. They recommended he visit the Rajahnate of Cebu ("Zubu"), because it was the largest. They set off for Cebu , accompanied by
8814-444: The locals. Despite the pleasantries, the first fatal casualty of the expedition occurred. Two months earlier, during the Atlantic crossing, a member of the crew, Antonio Salomon, was caught raping a cabin boy. Tried and found guilty, he was garroted two months later on the shore of Guanabara Bay. From there, they sailed south along the coast, searching for a way through or around the continent. After three months of searching (including
8927-426: The many documents available. About 60 percent of the crew were Spaniards from virtually all regions of Castile . Portuguese and Italian followed with 28 and 27 seamen respectively, while mariners from France (15), Greece (8), Flanders (5), Germany (3), Ireland (2), England and Malaysia (one each) and other people of unidentified origin completed the crew. The fleet left Spain on 20 September 1519, sailing west across
9040-459: The many territories which were to become Japanese possessions , as part of the " Eastern Pacific Government-General " in the post-war world . However, in the course of the war in the Pacific the Japanese were not able to launch an actual invasion of the French islands. In 1946, Polynesians were granted French citizenship and the islands' status was changed to an overseas territory; the islands' name
9153-546: The most recent charts , investigating, in partnership with cosmographer Rui Faleiro , a gateway from the Atlantic to the South Pacific and the possibility that the Moluccas were Spanish under the demarcations of the Treaty of Tordesillas . After having his proposed expeditions to the Spice Islands —the Moluccas beside New Guinea —repeatedly rejected by King Manuel I of Portugal , Magellan proposed his project to Charles I ,
9266-450: The mutiny, despite at one point losing control of three of his five ships to the mutineers. Mendoza was killed during the conflict, and Magellan sentenced Quesada and Cartagena to being beheaded and marooned, respectively. Lower-level conspirators were made to do hard labor in chains over the winter, but were later freed. During the winter, one of the fleet's ships, the Santiago , was lost in
9379-471: The names of neighboring islands and local customs. After resting and resupplying, Magellan sailed on deeper into the Visayan Islands . On 28 March, they anchored off the island of Limasawa ("Mazaua") where they encountered a small outrigger boat ("boloto"). After talking with the crew of the boat via Enrique of Malacca (Magellan's slave-interpreter who was originally from Sumatra ), they were met by
9492-434: The new governor Afonso de Albuquerque , Magellan and Serrão participated in the conquest of Malacca . After the conquest their ways parted: Magellan was promoted, with a rich plunder. In the company of a Malay he had indentured and baptized, Enrique of Malacca , he returned to Portugal in 1512 or 1513. Serrão departed in the first expedition sent to find the " Spice Islands " in the Moluccas , where he remained. He married
9605-555: The outcome of the voyage", and she was placed under house arrest with their young son on the orders of Archbishop Fonseca . The 18 survivors who eventually returned aboard the Victoria in September 1522 were also largely unfavourable to Magellan. Many, including the captain, Juan Sebastián Elcano, had participated in the mutiny at Saint Julian. On the ship's return, Charles summoned Elcano to Valladolid , inviting him to bring two guests. He brought sailors Francisco Albo and Hernándo de Bustamante, pointedly not including Antonio Pigafetta,
9718-767: The overseas collectivity of French Polynesia and the 48 communes. Total population was 278,786 according to the August 18, 2022 census, 68.7% of whom lived on the island of Tahiti alone. The urban area of Papeete, the capital city, has 136,771 inhabitants (2017 census). At the 2017 census, 89.0% of people living in French Polynesia had been born there (up from 87.3% in 2007); 8.1% had been born in Metropolitan France (down from 9.3% in 2007); 1.2% were born elsewhere in overseas France (down from 1.4% in 2007); and 1.7% were from foreign countries (down from 2.0% in 2007). The population of natives of Metropolitan France living in French Polynesia has declined in relative terms since
9831-440: The political crisis. The party of Gaston Tong Sang won the territorial elections, but that did not solve the political crisis: the two minority parties of Oscar Temaru and Gaston Flosse, who together had one more member in the territorial assembly than the political party of Gaston Tong Sang, allied to prevent Gaston Tong Sang from becoming president of French Polynesia. Gaston Flosse was then elected president of French Polynesia by
9944-405: The president. The Windward Islands, due to their proximity to Papeete, do not form a deconcentrated subdivision of the government of French Polynesia. The 5 administrative subdivisions are themselves divided in 48 communes . Like all other communes in the French Republic, these are municipalities in which local residents with either a French or another EU citizenship elect a municipal council and
10057-562: The rest of us. He was a magnificent practical seaman, who understood navigation better than all his pilots. The best proof of his genius is that he circumnavigated the world, none having preceded him. Magellan has come to be renowned for his navigational skill and tenacity. The first circumnavigation has been called "the greatest sea voyage in the Age of Discovery ", and even "the most important maritime voyage ever undertaken". Appreciation of Magellan's accomplishments may have been enhanced over time by
10170-401: The same time, Ra'ivavae is often viewed as distinct from them. French is the sole official language of French Polynesia. An organic law of 12 April 1996 states that "French is the official language, Tahitian and other Polynesian languages can be used." At the 2017 census, among the population whose age was 15 and older, 73.9% of people reported that the language they spoke the most at home
10283-510: The seats in the Assembly of French Polynesia at the 2018 French Polynesian legislative election , defeating both Oscar Temaru's pro-independence party and Gaston Flosse's anti-independence party, and Édouard Fritch was re-elected president of French Polynesia by the Assembly in May 2018. By 2022, Édouard Fritch was the longest-serving president of French Polynesia since Gaston Flosse in the 1990s and early 2000s. Between 1946 and 2003, French Polynesia had
10396-474: The service of Manuel I , John's successor. In March 1505, at the age of 25, Magellan enlisted in the fleet of 22 ships sent to host Francisco de Almeida as the first viceroy of Portuguese India . Although his name does not appear in the chronicles, it is known that he remained there eight years, in Goa , Cochin and Quilon . He participated in several battles, including the battle of Cannanore in 1506, where he
10509-537: The service of the Spanish Crown , sighted Puka-Puka in the Tuāmotu-Gambier Archipelago . In 1606 another Spanish expedition under Pedro Fernandes de Queirós sailed through Polynesia sighting an inhabited island on 10 February which they called Sagitaria (or Sagittaria), probably the island of Rekareka to the southeast of Tahiti. In 1722, Dutchman Jakob Roggeveen while on an expedition sponsored by
10622-441: The so-called Demis (literally meaning "Half"), and 4.7% were East Asians (mainly Chinese ). Chinese, Demis, and the white populace are essentially concentrated on the island of Tahiti, particularly in the urban area of Papeete, where their share of the population is thus much greater than in French Polynesia overall. Despite a long history of ethnic mixing, ethnic tensions have been growing in recent years, with politicians using
10735-455: The status of an overseas territory ( territoire d'outre-mer , or TOM ). In 2003, it became an overseas collectivity ( collectivité d'outre-mer , or COM). Its statutory law of 27 February 2004 gives it the particular designation of overseas country inside the Republic ( pays d'outre-mer au sein de la République , or POM), but without legal modification of its status. Despite
10848-417: The stolen goods. On 16 March, the fleet sighted the island of Samar ("Zamal") in the eastern Philippine Islands . They weighed anchor in the small (then uninhabited) island of Homonhon ("Humunu"), where they would remain for a week while their sick crew members recuperated. Magellan befriended the tattooed locals of the neighboring island of Suluan ("Zuluan") and traded goods and supplies and learned of
10961-507: The terms of Article 74 of the French constitution and the Organic Law 2014–192 on the statute of autonomy of French Polynesia, politics of French Polynesia takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic French overseas collectivity, whereby the President of French Polynesia is the head of government , and of a multi-party system . Executive power is exercised by
11074-516: The territorial assembly on 23 February 2008 with the support of the pro-independence party led by Oscar Temaru, while Oscar Temaru was elected speaker of the territorial assembly with the support of the anti-independence party led by Gaston Flosse. Both formed a coalition cabinet. Many observers doubted that the alliance between the anti-independence Gaston Flosse and the pro-independence Oscar Temaru, designed to prevent Gaston Tong Sang from becoming president of French Polynesia, could last very long. At
11187-552: The transit of Venus . He would stop in Tahiti again in 1773 during his second voyage to the Pacific, and once more in 1777 during his third and last voyage before being killed in Hawaii. In 1772, the Spanish Viceroy of Peru Don Manuel de Amat ordered a number of expeditions to Tahiti under the command of Domingo de Bonechea who was the first European to explore all of the main islands beyond Tahiti. A short-lived Spanish settlement
11300-475: The trip, he has received more recognition for the expedition than Elcano has. Since Magellan was the one who began it, Portugal wanted to recognize a Portuguese explorer, although Spain wanted to recognize the role of Elcano and the funding of the Spanish King in the expedition. In 2019, the 500th anniversary of the voyage, Spain and Magellan's native Portugal submitted a new joint application to UNESCO to honour
11413-449: The two large balangay warships ("balanghai") of Rajah Kulambo ("Colambu") of Butuan , and one of his sons. They went ashore to Limasawa where they met Kulambo's brother, another leader, Rajah Siawi ("Siaui") of Surigao ("Calagan"). The rulers were on a hunting expedition on Limasawa. They received Magellan as their guest and told him of their customs and of the regions they controlled in northeastern Mindanao . The tattooed rulers and
11526-491: The water up to our thighs, and walked through water for more than two crossbow flights before we could reach the shore. The boats could not approach nearer because of certain rocks in the water. The other eleven men remained behind to guard the boats. When we reached land, those men had formed in three divisions to the number of more than one thousand five hundred persons. When they saw us, they charged down upon us with exceeding loud cries.... The musketeers and crossbowmen shot from
11639-554: The young king of Spain (later emperor Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire ) and became one of his subjects and navigators. Under the terms of the 1494 Treaty of Tordesillas , Portugal was to control the eastern routes to Asia that went around the Cape of Good Hope in Africa. Magellan instead proposed to seek a southwestern passage around South America to reach the Spice Islands by
11752-452: Was French (up from 68.6% at the 2007 census), 20.2% reported that the language they spoke the most at home was Tahitian (down from 24.3% at the 2007 census), 2.6% reported Marquesan and 0.2% the related Mangareva language (same percentages for both at the 2007 census), 1.2% reported any of the Austral languages (down from 1.3% at the 2007 census), 1.0% reported Tuamotuan (down from 1.5% at
11865-608: Was also made a Commander of the Order of Santiago , one of the highest military ranks of the Spanish Empire . Granted special powers and privileges by the king, he led the Armada from Sanlucar de Barrameda southwest across the Atlantic Ocean, to the eastern coast of South America, and south to Patagonia . Despite a series of storms and mutinies, the expedition successfully passed through
11978-470: Was brief as he fell out with Gaston Flosse and was toppled in November 2009, succeeded by Gaston Tong Sang. Tong Sang remained in power for a year and a half before being toppled in a vote of no confidence in April 2011, and succeeded by Temaru. Oscar Temaru's fifth stint as president of French Polynesia lasted two years, during which he campaigned for the re-inscription of French Polynesia on the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories . Temaru lost
12091-502: Was changed in 1957 to Polynésie Française (French Polynesia). In 1962, France's early nuclear testing ground in Algeria was no longer usable when Algeria became independent and the Moruroa atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago was selected as the new testing site; tests were conducted underground after 1974. In 1977, French Polynesia was granted partial internal autonomy; in 1984, the autonomy
12204-621: Was created in 1774, and for a time some maps bore the name Isla de Amat after Viceroy Amat. Christian missions began with Spanish priests who stayed in Tahiti for a year. Protestants from the London Missionary Society settled permanently in Polynesia in 1797. King Pōmare II of Tahiti was forced to flee to Mo'orea in 1803 ; he and his subjects were converted to Protestantism in 1812. French Catholic missionaries arrived on Tahiti in 1834; their expulsion in 1836 caused France to send
12317-489: Was extended. French Polynesia became a full overseas collectivity of France in 2003. In September 1995, France stirred up widespread protests by resuming nuclear testing at Fangataufa atoll after a three-year moratorium. The last test was on 27 January 1996. On 29 January 1996, France announced that it would accede to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty , and no longer test nuclear weapons. French Polynesia
12430-498: Was relisted in the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories in 2013, making it eligible for a UN-backed independence referendum. The relisting was made after the indigenous opposition was voiced and supported by the Polynesian Leaders Group, Pacific Conference of Churches, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Non-Aligned Movement, World Council of Churches, and Melanesian Spearhead Group. Under
12543-496: Was the big winner of the 2013 election, succeeded Oscar Temaru as president of French Polynesia in May 2013, but he was removed from office in September 2014 due to a corruption conviction by France's highest court. Flosse was replaced as president of French Polynesia by his second-in-command in the anti-independence camp, Édouard Fritch , who was also Flosse's former son-in-law (divorced from Flosse's daughter). Fritch fell out with Flosse in 2015 as both leaders were vying for control of
12656-426: Was toppled in March 2005, succeeded by Temaru again who was toppled in December 2006, succeeded by Gaston Tong Sang , a close ally of Flosse. On 14 September 2007, the pro-independence leader Oscar Temaru was elected president of French Polynesia for the third time in three years (with 27 of 44 votes cast in the territorial assembly). He replaced former president Gaston Tong Sang , opposed to independence, who lost
12769-446: Was wounded, and the Battle of Diu in 1509. He later sailed under Diogo Lopes de Sequeira in the first Portuguese embassy to Malacca , with Francisco Serrão , his friend and possibly cousin. In September, after arriving at Malacca, the expedition fell victim to a conspiracy and ended in retreat. Magellan had a crucial role, warning Sequeira and risking his life to rescue Francisco Serrão and others who had landed. In 1511, under
#557442