George Tupou V of Tonga for the purposes of assuring that political independence and neutrality were retained. On 24 February 2012, he visited pope Benedict XVI in Vatican City. During his reign, George Tupou V oversaw reforms within the Tongan honours system which both expanded the number of Orders in the Kingdom and created rules to make the award of these Orders more egalitarian. In September 2011, Tupou V had surgery to remove a kidney following the discovery of a tumour. On 15 September 2011 he received the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary from Pál Schmitt,
Coronation of the British monarch 1 January 1903 to celebrate the accession of Edward VII, who was represented by his brother the Duke of Connaught. In 1911, George V also held a durbar which he and his wife Queen Mary attended in person. Since it was deemed inappropriate for a Christian anointing and coronation to take place in a largely non-Christian nation, George V was not crowned in India; instead, he wore an imperial crown as he entered the Durbar. Tradition prohibited the removal of the Crown Jewels from the United Kingdom; therefore, a separate crown, known as the Imperial Crown of India, was created