“King of the Jews” was an insult to him by the Romans. As to him being recognized as the Messiah:
See Mark 8:29:
Peter’s Confession of Christ
…28 They answered, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others say You are one of the prophets.” 29 “But who do you say I am?” He asked. Peter answered, “You are the Christ.” 30 And Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about Him.…
Also:
Matthew 16:16 — And Simon Peter answered and said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.
and
John 1:41-49 — John 1:41-49New International Version (NIV)
41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter[a]).
Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael
43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.”
44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked.
“Come and see,” said Philip.
47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”
48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked.
Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”
49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”
Okay, but all of these references: Christ, Messiah, King of Israel... still does sound like they thought he was there to unite the tribes and throw off Roman rule.