Ta'isi Olaf Frederick Nelson (24 February 1883 – 28 February 1944) was a Samoan businessman and politician. He was one of the founding leaders of the anti-colonial Mau movement.[1][2]
Olaf Nelson (centre) in 1933
Nelson residence in Tuaefu, around 1936
The Clock Tower in Apia, a gift from the Nelson Family.
Biography
Nelson was born on 24 February 1883 in Safune on the island of Savai'i to Swedish trader August Nelson and his Samoan wife, Sina Tugaga, whose family had links to the Sa Tupua, a prominent chiefly family.[3] His name Ta'isi is a matai chief title from his mother's family from the Savai'i village of Asau. Nelson grew up in the family's home village of Faleolo until the age of eight, when he was sent to the Marist Brothers School in Apia. He left the school at the age of thirteen and became an apprentice at the DH & PG firm.[4] He worked at DH & PH for four years, during which time he founded Samoa's first brass band.[4]
After leaving DH & PG, Nelson returned to Savai'i and took over his father's business,[4] which had started on 1895 under the name - Nelson and Robertson Limited.[5] He expanded his father's copra trading business throughout the islands, and by the time he was thirty-five, Nelson was one of the wealthiest members of the Apia community. He was influential in both the Samoan and European communities.
Under German rule, the colonial administrators treated Nelson as an equal, but after New Zealand seized control in 1914, Nelson was excluded and alienated by the new government. Despite being elected to the Legislative Council in 1924, he could do little as he and the other elected members were constantly overruled by the more numerous government appointees. This treatment turned Nelson into one of the major forces in the Samoan independence movement, known as the Mau.
In May 1927 Nelson founded a newspaper, the Samoa Guardian, to support its claims. In response to his growing public dissent, the New Zealand administration tried to brand Nelson as unscrupulous and a trouble maker.[6] The colonial administration's desperation to silence Nelson led them to exile him in January 1928, along with two other part-European members of the Mau.[7] During his five years of exile, Nelson took his protests as far as the League of Nations in Geneva. He returned to Samoa in May 1933,[8] and continued his advocacy.[9]General Hart, the New Zealand administrator, demanded that Nelson be excluded from any meeting (fono) swith the leadership of the Mau.[10][11] The Mau insistence that Nelson should be one of its delegates. General Hart ordered police raids on the Mau’s headquarters at Vaimoso and Nelson’s residence at Tuaefu, which occurred on 15 November 1933.[12] Eight Samoan chiefs, leaders of the Mau, who were members of a conference of 100 assembled at Tuatuanu’u were arrested on charges of collecting monies for unlawful purposes and engaging in Mau activities.[13][14] A week later a further 7 chiefs were arrested at Savaii.[12]
Six months after his return to Samoa, Nelson was convicted of 3 charges of being connected to the Mau, for which he was sentenced to ten additional years in exile as well as eight months imprisonment in New Zealand.[15][16] His appeal to the Full Court of the New Zealand Supreme Court quashed the sentence of imprisonment but upheld the ten years of exile.[17] The Privy Council in London rejected his appeal.[18] However, his exile was cut short in 1936, after Labour won the New Zealand general election in 1935. He returned to Samoa on 22 July 1936,[19] and helped in the signing of the co-operation agreement between Samoan leaders and the New Zealand administration. He was subsequently elected to the Legislative Council in 1938,[20] and re-elected in 1941.
Nelson died in 1944,[21] and it was not until 1962 that his dream of Samoan independence was realised.
Legacy
Ta'isi had six daughters. Viopapa Lucy, Irene Gustave Noue, Olive Nelson (Malienafau), Joyce Rosabel Piliopo, Sina Hope and Calmar Josephine Taufau and one son, Ta'isi who died as a result of the influenza epidemic in 1919 aged 4.[22] Malienafau was the first Pacific Island graduate of the University of Auckland, graduating with a law degree in 1936.[23]
Ta-isi's grand-daughter is Dr Viopapa Annandale–Atherton.[22] In 1964 she was the first Samoan woman to graduate in medicine from the University of Otago and has committed her career to improving the health and welfare of women and children in the Pacific Islands.[24]
References
^"O. F. Nelson of Samoa". IV(10) Pacific Islands Monthly. 17 May 1934. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
^Pedersen, Susan (2015). The Guardians: The League of Nations and the Crisis of Empire. Oxford University Press. pp. 169–192. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199570485.001.0001/acprof-9780199570485. ISBN978-0-19-957048-5.
^ abc"Samoan Patriot". XIV(11) Pacific Islands Monthly. 19 June 1944. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
^"Late – Fifty Years Old – Nelson & Robertson Ltd". XV(7) Pacific Islands Monthly. 17 February 1945. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
^"Western Samoa – A Continuing Disappointment". II(10) Pacific Islands Monthly. 19 May 1932. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
^"Pig-Headed New Zealand and Stubborn Samoa". III(3) Pacific Islands Monthly. 19 October 1932. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
^"Exile Returns". III(11) Pacific Islands Monthly. 24 June 1933. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
^"Is it Stalemate in Samoa?". IV(1) Pacific Islands Monthly. 22 August 1933. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
^Correspondent (20 September 1933). "The Deadlock in Samoa". IV(2) Pacific Islands Monthly. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
^"Mau Defies General Hart - Stalemate Continues in Samoa". IV(3) Pacific Islands Monthly. 24 September 1933. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
^ ab"Stern Action by N.Z. Ends Samoan Deadlock". IV(5) Pacific Islands Monthly. 21 December 1933. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
^"Police Act – Arrests and Raids in Western Samoa". IV(4) Pacific Islands Monthly. 22 November 1933. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
^"Suppression of the Mau". IV(5) Pacific Islands Monthly. 21 December 1933. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
^"Banished For Ten Years". IV(8) Pacific Islands Monthly. 16 March 1934. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
^"O. F. Nelson to Appeal – His Treatment in N.Z. Arouses Protest". IV(9) Pacific Islands Monthly. 29 April 1934. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
^"O. F. Nelson – Banishment Stands: Goal Sentence Quashed". IV(12) Pacific Islands Monthly. 19 July 1934. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
^"Mr. O. F. Nelson's Exile From Samoa – English Privy Council Refuses Appeal". V(10) Pacific Islands Monthly. 21 May 1935. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
^"Mr Nelson Returns to Samoa". VII(1) Pacific Islands Monthly. 19 August 1936. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
^"O. F. Nelson Tops The Poll". IX(5) Pacific Islands Monthly. 15 December 1938. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
^"Death of Mr. O. R. Nelson". XIV(8) Pacific Islands Monthly. 20 March 1944. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
Laracy, Hugh. 'Nelson, Olaf Frederick 1883 - 1944'. Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, updated 7 April 2006 Dictionary of New Zealand Biography
‘Guardians and Wards’ : (A study of the origins, causes, and the first two years of the Mau in Western Samoa.) Albert Wendt New Zealand Electronic Text Centre
March 06, 2023
olaf, frederick, nelson, february, 1883, february, 1944, samoan, businessman, politician, founding, leaders, anti, colonial, movement, olaf, nelson, centre, 1933, nelson, residence, tuaefu, around, 1936, clock, tower, apia, gift, from, nelson, family, biograph. Ta isi Olaf Frederick Nelson 24 February 1883 28 February 1944 was a Samoan businessman and politician He was one of the founding leaders of the anti colonial Mau movement 1 2 Olaf Nelson centre in 1933 Nelson residence in Tuaefu around 1936 The Clock Tower in Apia a gift from the Nelson Family Biography EditNelson was born on 24 February 1883 in Safune on the island of Savai i to Swedish trader August Nelson and his Samoan wife Sina Tugaga whose family had links to the Sa Tupua a prominent chiefly family 3 His name Ta isi is a matai chief title from his mother s family from the Savai i village of Asau Nelson grew up in the family s home village of Faleolo until the age of eight when he was sent to the Marist Brothers School in Apia He left the school at the age of thirteen and became an apprentice at the DH amp PG firm 4 He worked at DH amp PH for four years during which time he founded Samoa s first brass band 4 After leaving DH amp PG Nelson returned to Savai i and took over his father s business 4 which had started on 1895 under the name Nelson and Robertson Limited 5 He expanded his father s copra trading business throughout the islands and by the time he was thirty five Nelson was one of the wealthiest members of the Apia community He was influential in both the Samoan and European communities Under German rule the colonial administrators treated Nelson as an equal but after New Zealand seized control in 1914 Nelson was excluded and alienated by the new government Despite being elected to the Legislative Council in 1924 he could do little as he and the other elected members were constantly overruled by the more numerous government appointees This treatment turned Nelson into one of the major forces in the Samoan independence movement known as the Mau In May 1927 Nelson founded a newspaper the Samoa Guardian to support its claims In response to his growing public dissent the New Zealand administration tried to brand Nelson as unscrupulous and a trouble maker 6 The colonial administration s desperation to silence Nelson led them to exile him in January 1928 along with two other part European members of the Mau 7 During his five years of exile Nelson took his protests as far as the League of Nations in Geneva He returned to Samoa in May 1933 8 and continued his advocacy 9 General Hart the New Zealand administrator demanded that Nelson be excluded from any meeting fono swith the leadership of the Mau 10 11 The Mau insistence that Nelson should be one of its delegates General Hart ordered police raids on the Mau s headquarters at Vaimoso and Nelson s residence at Tuaefu which occurred on 15 November 1933 12 Eight Samoan chiefs leaders of the Mau who were members of a conference of 100 assembled at Tuatuanu u were arrested on charges of collecting monies for unlawful purposes and engaging in Mau activities 13 14 A week later a further 7 chiefs were arrested at Savaii 12 Six months after his return to Samoa Nelson was convicted of 3 charges of being connected to the Mau for which he was sentenced to ten additional years in exile as well as eight months imprisonment in New Zealand 15 16 His appeal to the Full Court of the New Zealand Supreme Court quashed the sentence of imprisonment but upheld the ten years of exile 17 The Privy Council in London rejected his appeal 18 However his exile was cut short in 1936 after Labour won the New Zealand general election in 1935 He returned to Samoa on 22 July 1936 19 and helped in the signing of the co operation agreement between Samoan leaders and the New Zealand administration He was subsequently elected to the Legislative Council in 1938 20 and re elected in 1941 Nelson died in 1944 21 and it was not until 1962 that his dream of Samoan independence was realised Legacy EditTa isi had six daughters Viopapa Lucy Irene Gustave Noue Olive Nelson Malienafau Joyce Rosabel Piliopo Sina Hope and Calmar Josephine Taufau and one son Ta isi who died as a result of the influenza epidemic in 1919 aged 4 22 Malienafau was the first Pacific Island graduate of the University of Auckland graduating with a law degree in 1936 23 Ta isi s daughter Noue went on to marry Tupua Tamasese Mea ole who became Joint Head of State when Samoa attained Independence in 1962 They sired Olf Efi Nelson who went on to become Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese Tupuola Ta isi Efi the third Prime Minister of Samoa and from 2007 to 2017 the Head of State of Samoa The Nelson Memorial Public Library was donated to the Samoan people by the Nelson Family in Ta isi s memory His other grandson Misa Telefoni Retzlaff Hermann Theodor Retzlaff was in parliament from 1988 to 2010 and the Deputy Prime Minister of Samoa from 2000 to 2010 Retzlaff s son is Lemalu Herman Retzlaff Taisi s great grandson who was appointed Attorney General of Samoa in 2016 Ta isi s grand daughter is Dr Viopapa Annandale Atherton 22 In 1964 she was the first Samoan woman to graduate in medicine from the University of Otago and has committed her career to improving the health and welfare of women and children in the Pacific Islands 24 References Edit O F Nelson of Samoa IV 10 Pacific Islands Monthly 17 May 1934 Retrieved 27 September 2021 Pedersen Susan 2015 The Guardians The League of Nations and the Crisis of Empire Oxford University Press pp 169 192 doi 10 1093 acprof oso 9780199570485 001 0001 acprof 9780199570485 ISBN 978 0 19 957048 5 Deryck Scarr 1990 The History of the Pacific Islands Kingdoms of the Reefs Macmillan Publishers p 265 ISBN 978 0 7329 0210 0 a b c Samoan Patriot XIV 11 Pacific Islands Monthly 19 June 1944 Retrieved 28 September 2021 Late Fifty Years Old Nelson amp Robertson Ltd XV 7 Pacific Islands Monthly 17 February 1945 Retrieved 28 September 2021 Western Samoa A Continuing Disappointment II 10 Pacific Islands Monthly 19 May 1932 Retrieved 26 September 2021 Pig Headed New Zealand and Stubborn Samoa III 3 Pacific Islands Monthly 19 October 1932 Retrieved 26 September 2021 Exile Returns III 11 Pacific Islands Monthly 24 June 1933 Retrieved 26 September 2021 Is it Stalemate in Samoa IV 1 Pacific Islands Monthly 22 August 1933 Retrieved 26 September 2021 Correspondent 20 September 1933 The Deadlock in Samoa IV 2 Pacific Islands Monthly Retrieved 27 September 2021 Mau Defies General Hart Stalemate Continues in Samoa IV 3 Pacific Islands Monthly 24 September 1933 Retrieved 27 September 2021 a b Stern Action by N Z Ends Samoan Deadlock IV 5 Pacific Islands Monthly 21 December 1933 Retrieved 27 September 2021 Police Act Arrests and Raids in Western Samoa IV 4 Pacific Islands Monthly 22 November 1933 Retrieved 27 September 2021 Suppression of the Mau IV 5 Pacific Islands Monthly 21 December 1933 Retrieved 27 September 2021 Banished For Ten Years IV 8 Pacific Islands Monthly 16 March 1934 Retrieved 27 September 2021 O F Nelson to Appeal His Treatment in N Z Arouses Protest IV 9 Pacific Islands Monthly 29 April 1934 Retrieved 27 September 2021 O F Nelson Banishment Stands Goal Sentence Quashed IV 12 Pacific Islands Monthly 19 July 1934 Retrieved 27 September 2021 Mr O F Nelson s Exile From Samoa English Privy Council Refuses Appeal V 10 Pacific Islands Monthly 21 May 1935 Retrieved 27 September 2021 Mr Nelson Returns to Samoa VII 1 Pacific Islands Monthly 19 August 1936 Retrieved 28 September 2021 O F Nelson Tops The Poll IX 5 Pacific Islands Monthly 15 December 1938 Retrieved 28 September 2021 Death of Mr O R Nelson XIV 8 Pacific Islands Monthly 20 March 1944 Retrieved 28 September 2021 a b See O Brien Tautai 125th Pacific Ball The University of Auckland www alumni auckland ac nz Archived from the original on 2019 01 23 Retrieved 2017 09 23 A woman of the Pacific www otago ac nz Retrieved 2021 10 12 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint url status link Patricia O Brien Tautai Samoa World History and the Life of Ta isi O F Nelson Honolulu University of Hawai i Press 2017 O Brien Patricia Ta isi O F Nelson and Sir Maui Pomare Samoans and Maori Reunited Journal of Pacific History 49 1 2014 http www tandfonline com toc cjph20 current VDdbMl7rPG4 Laracy Hugh Nelson Olaf Frederick 1883 1944 Dictionary of New Zealand Biography updated 7 April 2006 Dictionary of New Zealand Biography Guardians and Wards A study of the origins causes and the first two years of the Mau in Western Samoa Albert Wendt New Zealand Electronic Text Centre Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Olaf Frederick Nelson amp oldid 1137305428, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
