By the late 19th century Britain, America, and Germany all had their hackles raised and were tugging on Samoa in a three-way tug-of-war, which had a lot to do with commerce and the flexing of military muscles and not much to do with 'protecting' Samoa. Tensions escalated and more ships were called in until there were no fewer than seven warships bristling and snarling inside the small confines of the Apia harbour. The whole shebang started to look like a bad joke ('The British, the Americans and the Germans were in a Mexican standoff in Samoa...'), when the punch line was delivered. So busy were they watching each other that they failed to notice the falling barometer and before they knew it a cyclone of epic proportions had hit. After the dust had settled six of the ships had either sunk or been scuttled. The only surviving ship was the British ship Calliope. The cyclone knocked a bit of sense into the Europeans and they went to the table to negotiate but the result for the Samoan islands wasn't much better. Samoa was carved up piecemeal with Western Samoa being handed to the Germans, Eastern Samoa going to the Americans, and the British going home empty-handed.
Germany made the classic colonialist's error of disregarding local customs and kings and before long the indigenous inhabitants were chafing under autocratic foreign rule. The Western Samoans formed a resistance force, the Mau Movement, dedicated to the preservation of their culture and the establishment of independence. The outbreak of war in 1914 changed the Euro-Pacific arena and Germany had a few other problems on its hands apart from a rebellious Samoan resistance movement. As part of the war effort Britain asked New Zealand if they wouldn't mind, old chap, taking over the radio station in Western Samoa which they duly did in an operation that was more Dad's Army than the Dardenelles. Hoisting a white serviette (no-one could find a white flag or hanky), they were received by one or two minor...