Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kamā‘ule‘ule

Kamā‘ule‘ule was the son of Kekuamanoha, a chief of Maui, and was a younger brother of Kalanimōku (but it was rumored that he was the son of Kahekili.) His nickname, ‘Boki’ or ‘Poki,’ came from a variation on ‘Boss’ (it was also the name of a supernatural dog.) Boki was appointed governor of O‘ahu and confirmed in his post by Kamehameha II. He married Liliha.

Boki agreed to the breaking of the tabus in 1819 and accepted the Protestant missionaries arriving in 1820, although he had been baptized as a Catholic aboard the French vessel of Louis de Freycinet, along with his brother Kalanimōku, the previous year. Boki and Liliha were among the ali‘i who accompanied King Kamehameha II and Queen Kamāmalu to England in 1824. Due to the sudden death of Kamehameha II from the measles, Boki lead the Hawaiian delegation to meet with King George IV.

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Entourage

On November 27, 1823, L’Aigle, an English whaling ship, took Kamehameha II (Liholiho), Kamāmalu and their entourage to England to gain firsthand experience in European ways. The king and his chiefs agreed that Liholiho needed a competent interpreter to travel with him and Frenchman John Rives went as interpreter.

Liholiho’s chosen party were Governor Boki and his wife, Liliha, Kapihe, Chief Kekuanaoa, steward Manuia, Naukana (Noukana), Kauluhaimalama, servant Na‘aiweuweu, and James Kanehoa Young. In London, Liholiho and Kamāmalu became ill; Kamāmalu (aged 22) died on July 8, 1824, Kamehameha II (age 27) died six days later, on July 14, 1824. The British Government dispatched HMS Blonde to return them back to Honolulu; they arrived on May 6, 1825.

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First Days

“On the 31st of March (1820,) a considerable number of the natives came off to our vessel, from the shores of Kohala … to look at the strangers. On the 1st of April, as we were abreast of Kawaihae … The next morning, our brig being in Kawaihae bay, I made my first visit on shore … and called on Kalanimoku …”

“With him, I visited Puukohola, the large heathen temple at that place … This monument of idolatry, I surveyed with mingled emotions of grief, horror, pity, regret … of grief and horror … and of hope, that soon temples to the living God would take the place of these altars of heathen abomination.” “… Kalanimōku, his wives, and two of the widows of Kamehameha, embarked with us and as we together proceeded toward Kailua, the residence of the king … “On the morning of the 4th of April, 163 days from Boston, we came to anchor, abreast of the village of Kailua.” (Hiram Bingham)

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Church of the Ali‘i

One of the earliest names for the church at Kawaiaha‘o was the King’s Chapel. Kawaiahaʻo Church was commissioned by Queen Kaʻahumanu during the reigns of Kamehameha II and Kamehameha III. The current building replaced previous thatched churches and was designed by Rev. Hiram Bingham. The church was constructed between 1836 and 1842 of 14,000 slabs of coral rock quarried from an offshore reef on the southern coast of Oʻahu.

Perhaps the greatest occasion of all occurred on June 5, 1825 when ten Hawaiians made “a full declaration of their desire to be numbered among the disciples of Christ.” These were Kalanimōku, Ka‘ahumanu, Kapule, Kapi‘olani, Keali‘iahonui, Kalakua, Namahana (or Opi‘ia,) Kaiu, La‘anui and Richard Kala‘aia‘ulu (who had arrived from the Cornwall School in 1823.) These were not just any Hawaiians, they represented the high chiefs at the time. They were the Ali‘i Founders of Kawaiaha‘o.

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Was Christianity Forced or Sought?

To help answer the question posed in the title, we look at portions of letters written during the first decade of the arrival of the missionaries by various chiefs/chiefesses that were in power at that time. Follow the link to the full post – it includes a link to some of the Ali‘i letters – these letters are part of the Ali‘i Letters Collection at Mission Houses.

Related to that, there is also a link to an audio of Puakea Nogelmeier’s presentation at Mission Houses related to the translation project he worked on associated with these letters from the ali‘i to missionaries. In it he noted many believe the missionaries “just kind of came in and took over. They got off the boat and said ‘stop dancing,’ ‘put on clothes,’ don’t sleep around.’” He noted, “And it’s so not the case.”