Mo'orea

Moʻorea is a mountainous volcanic island just across the sea west of Tahiti, surrounded by a reef and lagoon. Cook and Opunohu bays cut into the northern coast beneath steep ridges, and Polynesian communities cultivated the valleys below the peaks. The island’s chiefs maintained close ties and rivalries with Tahiti and the Leeward Islands.

Pōmare II sought refuge on Moʻorea in 1808 after a coalition of Tahitian rivals opposed him. From there he returned to Tahiti with allies in 1815 and defeated Opuhara at Feʻi Pī. Christian missions gained influence during this period, and a printing press was established at ʻĀfareaitu on Moʻorea in 1817. Two years later Pōmare promulgated a new written code of laws for his kingdom.