Mala'ekula

Malaekula (lit.'Red square'), alternatively spelled Malae Kula, is the royal burial grounds located in central Nukualofa, Tonga, reserved solely for Tongan monarchs, their spouses and their children. Extended family members (such as cousins, nephews, nieces and in-laws) are buried in alternate chiefly cemeteries. Royal family members of previous generations (i.e. the Tui Tonga line) were largely interred in the langi in Mua. Malaekula is a short distance south of the royal palace along the Hala Tui, known officially in English as the "Kings Road". It is named as such for being the final road every Tongan monarch travels before reaching their final resting place in Malaekula. The Hala Tu is also known as the Hala Paini ("pine road") for the Norfolk pines (considered royal trees in Tonga) that once lined its flanks; after being planted initially by early Europeans, the trees have all since died due to the underlying seawater beneath the earth. Malaekula was built following the death of the first king of modern Tonga, George Tupou I. His tomb is located in the very middle of the cemetery, visible from the palace grounds when peering down the Hala Tui. Malae in Tongan is the royal word for cemetery; kula meaning red. It is named in remembrance of the historic kātoanga kula ("red festival") held on the grounds in 1885. The festival was a fundraising event for the recent

Cemetery data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).