King of Tonga dies at age 63

19.03.2012

The king of the South Pacific nation of Tonga died "peacefully" Sunday at a hospital in Hong Kong, a Tongan government official said Monday. He was 63.

A cause of death has not been released by the government.

"Tonga has just woken up to the sad news of the passing of King George Tupou V," said Paula Ma'u, an official in Ministry of Information and Communication. "We are all in mourning."

Ma'u said His younger brother, Crown Prince Tupouto'a Lavaka, who is heir to the throne, was with him when he died.

Tonga, with a population of 106,000, is the only monarchy that remains in the Pacific. George V ascended to the throne after the death of his father in September 2006.

Tonga is an archipelago of 171 islands directly south of Western Samoa. Less than a third of the islands are inhabited. The present dynasty was founded in 1845 after the Tongan islands were first united.