1845, the kingdom of Tonga was formed by the union of several islands. After the constitutional monarchy was implemented in 1875, it became a British protectorate in 1900, and finally 1970 became independent on June 4, and became a member of the United Nations 188. On July 29th, 2008, King Tupou V of Tonga said that he would hand over power to the National Assembly, give up power and move towards democracy, but still retain the constitutional monarchy. He is the only country in the South Pacific that maintains a monarchy.