1720s Constitutional Crisis

The 1720s Constitutional Crisis was a period of political unrest and controversy in the South Sea Islands. Triggered by the Commonwealth Men movement’s activities (beginning in 1720), the crisis was characterized by frequent elections to the Government of the South Sea Islands, mass protests, and political activism.

The crisis came to an end following the Legislative Assembly elections of March 1729, in which the Commonwealth Men candidates suffered a series of stinging electoral defeats, ending their presence in the Legislative Assembly.

Background

The Commonwealth Men movement was driven by two primary concerns:

• The belief that the non-hereditary Monarchy of the South Sea Islands should be abolished and replaced with an elected Head of State.
• Calls for the disestablishment of the Protestantse Kerk in de Zuidzee-eilanden following the introduction of a new standard prayer book in 1720. The prayer book removed many customary acts of worship and tried to impose uniformity on the churches of the Commonwealth, triggering anger among many worshippers.

These issues galvanized activists from across the political spectrum, leading to an escalating series of demands from the [Commonwealth Men]].

Timeline of the crisis

1720: the seeds of a crisis

Following its establishment in early 1720, the Commonwealth Men movement grew rapidly, quickly accumulating 2000 registered supporters (20% of the Commonwealth’s supporters. While the movement was founded by religious purists in Joseph Town, its growth was primarily down to supporters in Zuid-Richel.

Heartened by this, the leadership of the movement called for a referendum on abolishing the monarchy in December 1720. The sitting Legislative Assembly chose to resign en masse rather than succumb to this demand, leading Lieutenant Governor George Middlemore to call an election in January 1721.

1721: the tumultuous Assembly

In the run-up to the early elections, the Commonwealth Men arranged a series of public meetings and rallies across the Commonwealth, to drum up support for their movement and recruit new members. However, during these meetings, it became clear that supporters had joined to express a stark diversity of views, most of which were unrelated to the ambitions of the leadership.

When elections were held in January 1721, turnout was at a record low, with only 25% of eligible voters making it to the polls on a voting day characterized by unseasonably poor weather.

Voters returned a Legislative Assembly dominated by Commonwealth Men, with religious firebrand Jorrick Snijder being elected as Speaker.

Immediately the differing goals of the Legislators became clear, with the leadership struggling to retain control of the gatherings. While Snijder’s priority was to bring forward a referendum on abolishing the Monarchy and disestablishing the state church, Legislators from Zuid-Richel dominated the assembly with motions regarding labor laws and industrial regulations.

With several sessions of the Legislative Assembly descending into heated arguments, with personal attacks being hurled across the chamber, the Lieutenant Governor suspended the Assembly, urging Snijder to negotiate a legislative program with his colleagues before reconvening.

1721: the new legislative program

After 18 months of wrangling, the Legislative Assembly reconvened, having established a program based on:

Holding a constitutional referendum in February 1722 to settle the question of the Monarchy and state church.

In return for supporting the Joseph Town faction’s demand for a referendum, the Zuid-Richel faction would be granted legislative time to hammer out a revised minimum wage law immediately after the constitutional issues were resolved.

Almost immediately, however, tensions began to build between the competing factions, with several members of the Zuid-Richel publicly stating that they would support holding a referendum but vote against the change when the vote was held.

1722:the referendum flounders

While the Government of the South Sea Islands passed a motion in January 1722 setting a referendum date, the Protestantse Kerk in de Zuidzee-eilanden intervened less than a week later. The church announced the withdrawal of its controversial new prayer book and order of service, stating that the decision was taken after a period of prayer and consideration, and was unrelated to the upcoming plebiscite.

With the prayer book withdrawn, and only the abolishing of the Monarchy left on the ballot, more and more members of the Commonwealth Men (including those in the Legislative Assembly) stated that their demands had been met, and they would vote against the constitutional changes when the referendum was held.

Opinion poll after opinion poll showed Snijder and the leadership of the Commonwealth Men heading for a disastrous result in the referendum. This led to Legislative Assembly to postpone the vote until June 1723, stating that the public needed more time to process the change.

1723:tensions build

At the beginning of 1723, the polls showed no change, and the Commonwealth Men leadership became increasingly confrontational, particularly towards the Zuid-Richel grouping within the Legislative Assembly.

Snijder and the purist members from Joseph Town accused their colleagues from Zuid-Richel of sabotaging the referendum by publicly declaring their intention to vote against the proposal. On that basis, Snijder indicated that the promised minimum wage discussions would now be axed, and the referendum was postponed once again.

1724:the assembly dissolved

After 18 months of legislative deadlock, Lieutenant Governor George Middlemore announced in May 1724 that the Legislative Assembly would be dissolved immediately, with fresh elections to be held in January of the following year.

Unlike the 1721 vote, public interest in the vote was extremely high, with many islanders feeling outraged at the conduct of their elected officials. Supporters of moderate candidates began to fly the flags of Nova England and the South Sea Islands on their cars and homes, outwardly demonstrating their preference for a return to normality.

While the Commonwealth Men stood candidates in every seat, their candidates were generally given a cold response at public meetings and on doorsteps, with Snijder’s reelection rally in Joseph Town interrupted by a large, vocal counter-demonstration.

The Commonwealth Men’s support in Zuid-Richel, however, remained consistent, with their candidates campaigning on minimum wage and labor relation issues, much to the dismay of the movement’s leadership. Ultimately, the Commonwealth Men would expel the Zuid-Richel candidates from the movement 1 month before the vote.

1725: Commonwealth Men wiped out

When the public went to the polls in January 1725, large queues formed at polling stations, with voters keen not to allow apathy to lead the Commonwealth into more years of stagnation.

While dejected-looking Commonwealth Men did make their way to the polls, it was clear to all that their movement was in for a rough day.

Sure enough, when the results were announced on January 17th, the Commonwealth Men had lost their seats in the Legislative Assembly. The expelled candidates in Zuid-Richel, however, performed well, with nearly all of their sitting members of the Legislative Assembly reelected.

The new Legislative Assembly would turn out to be a combination of pro-Monarchy moderates, and the former Commonwealth Men faction from Zuid-Richel.

The new assembly agreed to use the first 18 months to resolve the issues from the 1721 program, with minimum age and labor law legislation given priority and a referendum on the Monarchy to be held in 1726.

1726: referendum held

On the eve of the referendum on the abolition of the Monarchy in April 1726, the result was seen by most as a foregone conclusion, with pro-Monarchy flags, banners, and posters visible across the South Sea Islands. In the run up to the day of the vote, several mass rallies had been held, attended by tens of thousands of Islanders, leading to chaos on many roads across the Commonwealth as rallies outgrew their designated routes.

While pro-abolition meetings were held and the campaign was largely mutually respectful, it was clear to many voters that the status quo would prevail.

A carnival atmosphere prevailed on the day of the vote, with a national holiday declared to ensure that everyone would be able to participate. Street gatherings, community events and other festivities were arranged to coincide with the vote.

After the polls closed at 22.00, Lieutenant Governor George Middlemore released a pre-recorded radio message:

Dear South Sea Islanders,

Today we showed the very best of our Commonwealth, as communities across these islands came together in peace, cordiality, and with a spirit of openness to exercise their democratic rights.

Whatever the results are when they’re announced this evening, tomorrow we will still be the South Sea Islands, laws will still need to be passed, important matters will still need to be discussed, and daily life will have to go on.

While there will be those who are filled with joy when the result is announced, equally there will be those who feel a sense of disappointment, perhaps even grief. Both are natural reactions to a situation where you feel like you’re doing the right thing for the right reasons, and I urge you all to be magnanimous in victory or graceful in defeat, recognizing the merit and good intentions of your fellow Islanders.

These past years have been difficult in many ways, with a level of political intensity that is frankly alien to our typically tranquil Commonwealth. Some of us have attempted to justify things done by those we support, even if we would abhor those same acts if they’d been carried out by our opponents. Too many of us have been willing to believe the worst in those we disagree with, and the routine business of government has been reframed as an existential, win-or-die situation, which it certainly needn’t be.

Whatever the outcome of today’s vote, we can only succeed when we work together for the common good, accepting setbacks with good grace, and realizing that the well-intentioned designs of our opponents aren’t intended to hurt us.

God bless the South Sea Islands, and thank you all for today’s demonstration of cordiality and fraternity, which I am confident will continue tomorrow, and for every day after that.

When the result as announced, 99.5% of votes cast were against the abolition of the monarchy.

1727 – 1728: return to normality

With the referendum held and labor/minimum wage laws reformed in line with the wishes of the representations of Zuid-Richel, the Legislative Assembly declared that the remaining years of its term would be dedicated to catching up on the legislative backlog left by the previous years of turmoil.

This assembly dealt with the backlog in a spirit of cooperation, leading to a rapid return to normality and a decrease in communal tensions.

1729: Fresh elections

With the legislative backlog cleared and the Government of the South Sea Islands functioning normally once again, the first elections of the post-Commonwealth Men era were held in February 1729, with candidates back to campaigning on local community issues and routine matters.