Melanesia · FJI
Fiji
The story · 8 chapters
How it was drawn
Rival chiefdoms on some 300 islands fought for supremacy until Cakobau's Bau prevailed, ceded the islands to Britain in 1874, and became independent within the same borders in 1970.
Play the story Take the first lessonThrough the ages
Rivals in history
The kingdoms, empires and states Fiji fought or stood against, from the first to today.
- Chiefdom of Rewa1843 to 1855
Bau and its neighbour Rewa, two powerful chiefdoms of eastern Viti Levu, fight a long war for supremacy from 1843. It ends in Bau's favour by 1855, leaving Cakobau the strongest chief in western and central Fiji.
- Tongan chiefs of Lau1848 to 1874
Ma'afu, a Tongan prince, settles in Lau in 1848 and makes eastern Fiji a Tongan power base. Tonga helps Cakobau win at Kaba in 1855, but Ma'afu remains his great rival until both sign the cession to Britain in 1874.
- United States1849 to 1871
After the house of the American consul John Brown Williams burns in 1849, the United States holds Cakobau responsible. American warships press the claim through the 1850s and 1860s, and the debt pushes Cakobau to seek British rule.
- British Empire1874 to 1970
Britain rules Fiji from the cession of 1874. It brings in Indian indentured labourers and keeps most land in Fijian hands. Pressure for self-government grows after the Second World War, and Fiji gains independence peacefully in 1970.
- Empire of Japan1942 to 1945
Fijian troops fight Japanese forces in the Solomon Islands. On Bougainville in 1944, Corporal Sefanaia Sukanaivalu, wounded while rescuing comrades, is killed and earns a posthumous Victoria Cross, Fiji's first.
In 1972 Tonga claims the Minerva Reefs, two submerged atolls south of Fiji, and builds markers on them. Fiji has disputed the claim ever since. The quarrel flared again in 2011 and remains unresolved.
Today
Fiji now
D. Fijians traded with Polynesian groups in Samoa and Tonga, and by about 900, much of Fiji was in the Tu’i Tongan Empire’s sphere of influence. The Tongan influence declined significantly by 1200, while Melanesian seafarers continued to periodically arrive in Fiji, further mixing Melanesian and Polynesian cultural traditions. The first European spotted Fiji in 1643 and by the 1800s, European merchants, missionaries, traders, and whalers frequented the islands.
- Capital
- Suva
- Government
- parliamentary republic
- Head of government
- Sitiveni Rabuka
- Head of state
- Wiliame Katonivere
- Languages
- Fiji Hindi, English, Fijian
- Area
- 18,333 km²
Through time
Then and now
- Population924,2002023 · 309,500 in 1950
- Life expectancy67.3 years2023 · 51.7 years in 1950
- Living in cities60%2025 · 9% in 1950
- Literacy68%1950
- Political regimeElectoral democracy2025 · Closed autocracy in 1950
- Military alliancesNone of these2024 · None of these in 1950
- Military spending1.3% of GDP2025
- War deathsNone2025
Population: HYDE 3.3, Gapminder and UN WPP. GDP per capita: Maddison Project Database 2023. Urban share: UN WPP. Life expectancy: Riley, HMD, UN WPP. Literacy: OWID historical estimates, World Bank, UNESCO. Military spending: SIPRI. War deaths: UCDP. Political regime: V-Dem, Regimes of the World. All via Our World in Data (CC BY 4.0). Alliances and organization memberships: compiled by Atlas. Satellites in orbit: CelesTrak SATCAT. Modern borders, backcast.
Relations
Close partners and tensions
Close partners
- Australia
- New Zealand
- United States
Summarised from World Bank and Wikipedia data, updated 23 October 2026.