Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Hale O Keawe

To help tell the story of Hale O Keawe, the following includes quotes from John Papa ʻĪʻi (who became an attendant of Kamehameha I and later a companion and personal attendant to Liholiho (later King Kamehameha II,)) William Ellis (missionary who circled the island of Hawaiʻi in 1823) and Hiram Bingham (missionary.)

“The Hale O Keawe in Honaunau was called Ka-iki-ʻAlealea (The little ʻAlealea,) and was a puʻuhonua. Kaikiholu and Pakaʻalana on Hawaii, Kakaʻe in ʻIao, Maui; Kūkaniloko in Wahiawa, Oʻahu; and Holoholoku in Wailua, Kauaʻi, were also places to which one who had killed could run swiftly and be saved.”

“The person whose writing this is often went about them, including the Hale O Keawe. He has seen this house (hale ʻaumakua iwi) where the bones were deposited, standing majestically on the left (or south) side of Akahipapa.”

“The house stood by the entrance of a wooden enclosure, with door facing inland towards the farming lands of South Kona.”

“The heir to the kingdom entered the Hale O Keawe during his journey around to the various luakini heiau of Kanoa in Hilo, Wahaʻula in Puna, and Punaluʻu in Kaʻū. The journey began in Kailua, thence to Kawaihae and from there on around the island to the Hale O Keawe.“

“The appearance of the house was good. Its posts and rafters were of kauila wood, and it was said that this kind of timber was found in the upland of Napu’u. It was well built, with crossed stems of dried ti leaves, for that was the kind of thatching used.”

“The appearance inside and outside of the house was good to look at. The compact bundles of bones (pukuʻi iwi) that were deified (hoʻokuaʻia) were in a row there in the house, beginning with Keawe’s near the right side of the door by which one went in and out, and going to the spot opposite the door (kuʻono).”

“At the right front corner of the house where the unwrapped bones of those who had died in war, heaped up like firewood. In that pile of bones were the bones of Nahiolea, father of M Kekūanāoʻa. The person whose writing this is saw his own father remove his tapa shoulder covering and place it on a bundle among the other bundles of bones. He must have asked the caretaker about all of them and their names, and they were told to him. That was why he did so.”

“When the writer saw his father doing this he asked, ‘Have we a near kinsman in this house?’ His father assented. There are some people who have relatives in this house of ‘life’, but perhaps most of them are dead. The chiefs were descended from Hāloa and so were their retainers (kauwa kupono). The chiefs were born, such as Lono-i-ka-makahiki and Kama-lala-walu and so on down, and so were the retainers (i.e., the junior members of the family.)”

“After the chief ʻIolani (Liholiho) had finished his visit to the house, a pig was cooked and the gathering sat to worship (hoʻomana) the deified persons there. When that was done, the chief and those who went in with him ate together. After the eating was over, the kapu was removed. The travellers left the Hale O Keawe and sailed by canoe, landing at Kamakahonu in Kailua in the evening. There they met Kamehameha. That must have been in the year 1817.” (John Papa ʻĪʻi)

A few years later (1823,) William Ellis and others visited Honaunau and Hale O Keawe. Ellis documented this, noting, “Honaunau, we found, was formerly a place of considerable importance, having been the frequent residence of the kings of Hawaii, for several successive generations.”

“The monuments of the ancient idolatry, with which this place abounds, were, from some cause unknown to us, spared, amidst the general destruction of the idols, &c. that followed the abolition of the aitabu, in the summer of 1819.”

“The principal object, that attracted our attention, was the ‘hare o Keave’ (house of Keawe,) a sacred depository of the bones of departed kings and princes, probably erected as a depository for the bones of the king whose name it bears, and who reigned in Hawaii, about eight generations back.”

“It is a compact building, 24 feet by 16, constructed with the most durable timber, and thatched with ti leaves, standing on a bed of lava, which runs out a considerable distance into the sea. It is surrounded by a strong fence, or paling, leaving an area in the front and at each end, about twenty-four feet wide, paved with smooth fragments of lava laid down with considerable skill.”

“Several rudely carved male and female images of wood were placed on the outside of the enclosure; some on low pedestals, under the shade of an adjacent tree; others on high posts, on the jutting rocks that hung over the edge of the water.”

“A number stood on the fence at unequal distances all around; but the principal assemblage of these frightfull representatives of their former deities, was at the south-east end of the enclosed space, where, forming a semicircle, twelve of them stood in grim array, as if perpetual guardians of ‘the mighty dead’ reposing in the house adjoining.”

“A pile of stones was neatly laid up in the form of a crescent, about three feet wide, and two feet higher than the pavement, and in this pile the images were fixed. They stood on small pedestals three or four feet high, though some were placed on pillars eight or ten feet in height, and curiously carved.”

“The principal idol stood in the centre, the others on either hand, the most powerful being placed nearest to him. He was not so large as some of the others, but was distinguished by the variety and superior carving of his body, and especially of his head.”

“Once they had evidently been clothed, but now they appeared in the most indigent nakedness. A few tattered shreds round the neck of one that stood on the left hand side of the door, rotted by the rain, and bleached by the sun, were all that remained of numerous and gaudy habiliments, with which their votaries had formerly arrayed them.”

“A large pile of broken calabashes and cocoanut shells Jay in the centre, and a considerable heap of dried and partly rotten wreaths of flowers, branches of shrubs and hushes, and fragments of tapa, (the accumulated offerings of former days,) formed an unsightly mound immediately before each of the images.”

“The horrid stare of these idols, the tattered garments upon some of them, and the heaps of rotting offerings before them, seemed to us no improper emblems of the system they were designed to support; distinguished alike by its cruelty, folly, and wretchedness.”

“…we looked in and saw many large images, some of wood very much carved, others of red feathers, with widely distended mouths, large rows of sharks teeth, and glaring pearl-shell eyes.”

“We also saw several bundles of .human bones, cleaned, carefully tied up, and placed in different parts of the house, together with some rich shawls and other valuable articles, probably worn by those, to whom the bones belonged, as the wearing apparel, and other personal property of the chiefs, is generally buried with them.”

“Adjoining the Hare O Keave, to the southward, we found a pahu tabu (sacred inclosure) of considerable extent; and were informed by our guide, that it was one of the pohonuas of Hawaii, of which we had so often heard the chiefs and others speak. There are only two on the island, the one, which we were then examining, and another at Waipiʻo, on the north-east part of the island, in the district of Kohala.”

ʻThe zeal of Kaʻahumanu led her as early as 1829 to visit the Hale O Keawe at Honaunau, a cemetery associated with dark superstitions, and surrounded with horrid wooden images of former generations. The regent visited the place not to mingle her adorations with her early contemporaries and predecessors to the relics of departed mortals, but for the purpose of removing the bones of twenty-four deified kings and princes of the Hawaiian race….” (Bingham)

“… when she saw it ought to be done, she determined it should be done: and in company with Mr. Ruggles and Kapiolani, she went to the sacred deposit, and caused the bones to be placed in large coffins and entombed in a cave in the precipice at the head of Kealakekua Bay.” (Bingham)

Hale O Keawe is part of the Puʻuhonua O Hōnaunau National Historical Park, originally established in 1955 as City of Refuge National Historical Park (renamed on November 10, 1978.)

© 2025 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Hale O Keawe was Depository of the Kings of Hawaii, at Honaunau
Hale O Keawe was Depository of the Kings of Hawaii, at Honaunau
Sketch of Hale-o-Keawe by Dampier, 1825
Sketch of Hale-o-Keawe by Dampier, 1825
Seawalls at the east end of Hale o Keawe-1921
Seawalls at the east end of Hale o Keawe-1921
Robert_C._Barnfield_-_watercolor_painting_of_Hale_o_Keawe-1886
Robert_C._Barnfield_-_watercolor_painting_of_Hale_o_Keawe-1886
Puuhonua_O_Honaunau-Smith
Puuhonua_O_Honaunau-Smith
Puuhonua_O_Honaunau-Kekahuna-SP 201979-map
Puuhonua_O_Honaunau-Kekahuna-SP 201979-map
Puuhonua_O_Honaunau-Hale_O_Keawe-lower_left
Puuhonua_O_Honaunau-Hale_O_Keawe-lower_left
Image removed from Hale-o-Keawe and later presented to the Bishop Museum
Image removed from Hale-o-Keawe and later presented to the Bishop Museum
Hale-O-Keawe
Hale-O-Keawe
Hale-o-Keawe-(hawaiireporter)
Hale-o-Keawe-(hawaiireporter)
Hale_O-Keawe-(NPS)
Hale_O-Keawe-(NPS)
Hale_O_Keawe_Platform_and_Vicinity
Hale_O_Keawe_Platform_and_Vicinity
Hale_o_keawe
Hale_o_keawe
Hale_o_keawe
Hale_o_keawe
Hale O Keawe-Ellis-1823
Hale O Keawe-Ellis-1823
Hale o Keawe platform after the 1960s restoration-(NPS)
Hale o Keawe platform after the 1960s restoration-(NPS)
Andrew Bloxam's drawings of the exterior appearance and interior arrangement of Hale-o-Keawe
Andrew Bloxam’s drawings of the exterior appearance and interior arrangement of Hale-o-Keawe

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Declaration of War

It starts with the delivery of a simple package … two ʻulu maika stones wrapped in kapa.

This was an announcement of war between two aliʻi. It was an offer, and a threat.

The kilo (reader of omens) and the kuhikuhipuʻuone (seer, soothsayer) were familiar with the thought behind those white and black stones, and they also understood the ki-leaf knots which were made.

The white stone signified peace and not war, showing the clean thought of the person who sent it, and it might be reciprocated by the return of that stone without a wrapping.

The black stone was a symbol of war between the one who sent it and the one to whom it was sent. (Desha)

The recipient was asked to make a choice.

If the recipient aliʻi sought peace, he returned the white stone. That would show his good intentions and that he was asking that they dwell in affection without starting a war between them.

If he agreed to war between himself and the aliʻi who had sent those stones, then he would take the black stone and wrap it in black kapa, and return it to the aliʻi who had sent the stones.

This action would announce war between them, the stone symbolizing the black thought between them. This would lead to preparations for war.

Kamehameha used this in his conquest of the Islands.

On receipt by Keawemauhili, he chose the white stone and sent it back to Kamehameha showing his good will toward him.

The messenger to Keawemauhili returned with that stone and appeared before Kamehameha and his court. Kamehameha opened up the kapa bundle and saw the white stone within and he turned and said to his chiefs:

“My makua kane (uncle) of Hilo does not desire to oppose me, and it would not be well for our side to go to war with him. It would be a cause for the god to favor him and desert us, as there is no wrongdoing on that side, and we alone desire to make war.”

However, Keʻeaumoku, his uncle and war-seeking advisor said while he returned the white stone, it was deficient. He said Kamehameha should have also asked for the sweet tasting ‘anae (mullet) and the fat awa (milkfish) of Hilo. Kamehameha sent his messenger with that request.

Keawemauhili immediately commanded the konohiki of his fishpond to fetch some fish for the ali‘i Kamehameha, saying: “Fetch four fat ‘anae and also four fat awa, and wrap them in seaweed to keep them alive until they arrive before my keiki Kamehameha.” Keawemauhili also sent back a bundle with two stones wrapped in ki leaves, both white coral.

The later death of Kanekoa at the hands of Keoua led Kamehameha to make war plans, Keawemauhili of Hilo and Keoua of Kaʻu joined forces – Kamehameha attacked Keawemauhili.

A later declaration of war was sent to Kahekili.

In the spring of 1790, Kamehameha invaded the island of Maui. One of the bloodiest battles of Kamehameha’s time was fought and won by him at ʻIao Valley. So many men were killed in this battle that their bodies filled the river, which gave the name of the battle Kepaniwai (the damning of waters.)

After the battle, Kamehameha was on the island of Molokai; he sent a messenger to Kahekili, the King of Maui and Kauai, carrying to symbolic stones, one white and the other black.

“This stone, the white one, is a symbol of farming, of fishing, of the feeding of mankind, and is a stone of rule of government also. This black stone is a stone of war.”

Kahekili paused for a while, then turned again and questioned the messenger: “Ea, does Kamehameha say by these stones that he desires to sail to O‘ahu to make war?” “Yes,” the messenger replied.

If the King returned the white stone, it was equivalent to giving Kamehameha their kingdom without battle; but if the black stone came back, he would prepare for war. Kahekili answered that when his body should be covered with the black tapa (when he was dead,) then Kamehameha could take possession of the Kingdom without battle.

This was acceptable for the time being. Kamehameha waited. Kahekili died in 1794.

“The appropriate time has now come to fulfill that thought of our uncle in giving the land. I am blameless in taking that land because it was previously conveyed to me because of those words of bequest by our uncle.” (Kamehameha; Desha)

In 1795 Kamehameha sailed from his home island of Hawaiʻi with an army of thousands of warriors, including a handful of non-Hawaiian foreigners to battle Kalanikūpule (Kahekili’s son.).

The war apparently ends with some of Kalanikūpule’s warriors pushed/jumping off the Pali. When the Pali Highway was being built, excavators counted approximately 800-skulls, believed to be the remains of the warriors who were defeated by Kamehameha.

Finally, Kamehameha’s messenger delivered to Kaumuali‘i of Kauai a black stone, which was a really beautiful ʻulu maika, and some small black ʻulu maika. Those excellent large and small stones were marked with cord (kahamaha ia). Besides these excellent large and small stones, a white maika stone wrapped in kï leaves.

The large and small black maika stones were as though Kamehameha was saying to Kaumuali‘i through these stones: “Perhaps by strength Kauai might be gotten or perhaps not.” That was the nature of those black maika stones—they were words of war.

The white maika stone wrapped in ki leaves was a denial of war, showing the white thought in Kaumuali‘i’s heart, that he did not desire war.

The fine-meshed net expressed the thought that the other islands of Hawai‘i were bound under Kamehameha, in other words, Hawai‘i, Maui, Lānai, Kahoʻolawe, Molokai, and O‘ahu. If the discussion went well, then Kauai and Ni‘ihau would be included in the fine-meshed net.

Kaumuali‘i kept the black stones which had been sent him and returned the white maika stone wrapped in kī leaves to the messenger. It was wrapped in the fine-meshed net, and also a section of bamboo was given the messenger.

Kauai’s opposing factions (Kaumuali‘i versus Keawe) were extremely vulnerable as they had been weakened by fighting each other (Keawe died and Kaumuali‘i was, ultimately, ruler of Kauai and Ni‘ihau.) Kamehameha’s two attempts at invading Kauai were foiled (by storm and sickness.)

The island was never conquered; in the face of the threat of a further invasion, in 1810, at Pākākā on Oʻahu, negotiations between King Kaumuali‘i and Kamehameha I took place and Kaumualiʻi yielded to Kamehameha. The agreement marked the end of war and thoughts of war across the islands.

The image shows Kamehameha as a young warrior. (Herb Kane) (Lots of information here from Desha.)

© 2025 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Young_King_Kamehameha-(HerbKane)
Young_King_Kamehameha-(HerbKane)

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Punahou Taro Patch

“Long ago an aged couple dwelled near the present spring. At a time of drought and famine, the people were obliged to search the mountains for ti root and wild yams for food, and to trudge to Kamo‘ili‘ili to fill their calabashes with drinking water.”

“One night the old woman dreamed that a man appeared to her, to whom she complained bitterly about having to go so far for water, whereupon he said: “He wai no” (“There is water”) and told her that beneath the trunk of an old hala tree nearby she would find it.”

“She awoke her husband and told him the dream, but he made light of it. The next night he had a similar dream. The apparition directed him to go to the sea and catch some red fish, to roast them in ti leaves, reserving a part as an offering to the family deities, and then to pull up the old hala tree by the roots.”

“He awoke, and lo! it was a dream. But the impression it made on him was so strong that in the morning he hastened to carry out the directions which he had received, and when at last he pulled up the hala tree, water oozed out from beneath its roots.”

“He dug out the place, and thus formed the spring, which was named Kapunahou. A pond was formed below the spring, and by it were irrigated a dozen or more taro patches.” (Sterling and Summers)

Prehistorically and historically, the area of densest population in all the Hawaiian Islands was that flanking Waikīkī on the island of O‘ahu. Here the chiefs had their residences near the now famous beach and the offshore waters where conditions were ideal for their prized sport of surf riding.

A whaling captain, FD Bennett says that in Mānoa Valley yams were grown ‘chiefly for the supply of shipping.’ Menzies with Vancouver in 1792, described the plantations behind Waikīkī as ‘little fields planted with taro, yams, sweet potatoes, and the

cloth plant.’ (Handy, Handy & Pukui)

This in early times idyllic area was flanked by the great wet-taro lands of Mānoa, and the area between that valley and the sea which was one continuous spread of taro land and fishponds; by Pauoa, Nu‘uanu, Waiolani, Kapalama, and Kalihi. (Handy, Handy & Pukui)

Mānoa, due to its broad, well-watered valley, was probably settled early by the Hawaiians, who probably cleared much of the lower areas near streams for wetland taro cultivation.

“In upper Manoa the whole of the level land in the valley bottom was developed in broad taro flats . The terraces extended along Manoa Stream as far as there is a suitable land for irrigating.”

“Some of the lower portion of the old taro area, in land from the slightly elevated land south west of Rocky Hill, is now covered by streets and houses. But except for this, the extensive terrace area is still intact and could be replanted.”

“Most of it is under grass and unused. About 100 terraces are still being cultivated, but these do not constitute more than one tenth of the total area capable of being planted.”  (Sterling and Summers)

There was a famous terraced area below what is now the Punahou School campus. “Kauawaahila afterwards made some kalo patches [there], and people attracted by the water and consequent fertility of the place came and settled about ….”

“More and more kalo patches were excavated and the place became a thriving settlement. The spring became known as Ka Punahou, and gave its name to the surrounding place”. (Nakuina, Thrum 1892)

The first recorded landlord (Konohiki) of Kapunahou was Kame‘eiamoku, one of the twin supporters of Kamehameha I. This was in 1795.  The twins were originally Kamehameha’s guardians (Kahus) and later supported his rise to power.

In recognition of this support, Kamehameha gave Moanalua and Kapunahou to Kame‘eiamoku. Kameʻeiamoku died at Lahaina in 1802. Kapunahou passed on to his son, Ulumaheihei. Ulumaheihei was renamed Hoapili by Kamehameha I.

Hoapili lived at Kapunahou for, some twenty years and when Kamehameha I stayed at Waikīkī (1804-1811) he visited Hoapili there. Hoapili gave Kapunahou to his daughter, Liliha. This probably happened when Hoapili moved to Lahaina to become the Governor of Maui.

Liliha was married to Boki, the Governor of O‘ahu.  Shortly after this, Ka‘ahumanu, Queen Regent, became an ardent supporter of the missionaries who had arrived in 1820.

In 1829, she wished to give Hiram and Sybil Bingham a gift of land and consulted Hoapili. He suggested Kapunahou (although he had already given it to Liliha).

According to A. F. Judd, “Not unnaturally, Liliha demurred the proposal, but Boki consented. And Liliha’s resentment could avail nothing against the wish of her father, her husband, and the highest chief of the land.” The land was given to the Binghams, but by missionary rules, it was really given to the mission as a whole.

© 2025 Ho‘okuleana LLC

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kealakīpapa

Maunalua, the traditional name for the area now known as Hawai‘i Kai, literally means two mountains in reference to Kuamo‘okāne (Koko Head) and Kohelepelepe (Koko Crater), on the east side of O‘ahu.

Numerous small valleys are contained within, and a Keahupua o Maunalua (Kuapā Fishpond) is also located on the coastline in the western portion of this ahupua‘a. (KSBE)

Before Western contact, there was a close association between the regions of Wawamalu (Sandy Beach) and Waimanalo. (Ka Iwi Master Plan)

The land of Maunalua was formerly an ‘ili (subdivision) of the Waimanalo ahupua‘a and originally belonged to Ko‘olaupoko district. (KSBE) This “would indicate an easy route of communication between the two lands.”  (McAllister)

During his visit to Maunalua in 1810, John Papa ‘Īʻī noted the ancient trail system of Oʻahu and its connection to Maunalua. He wrote, “go along Keahia and so on to Maunalua, to the sea of Koko, to Makapuu, and so on”. This mention of the trail indicates that this route extended through Maunalua, continued on to Kealakīpapa Valley, and ended at Waimānalo. (Nohopapa)

“This path may have existed in 1822, when Mathison passed from Waimanalo to Maunalua, but it was not known to him. Mathison was guided by an English sailor who had settled in Waimanalo.” (McAllister)

Before Western contact, there was a close association between the regions of Wawamalu (Sandy Beach) and Waimanalo. (Ka Iwi Master Plan)

“Running from a point slightly mountainwards of the [Makapu‘u] lighthouse road up Kealakipapa Valley, down the Waimanalo gap, and through the village site in Waimanalo, are the remains of an old road.”

“It has not been definitely determined whether it is of old Hawaiian origin or of post-European construction. … The name of the valley, Kealakipapa (paved roadway), indicates that a trail at least has been here for many years.”  (McAllister)

In 1851, William Webster, a land agent of the Hawaiian Kingdom, produced the earliest map of Maunalua. The map depicts a road extending from the cliff of Makapu‘u Bay to Kealakīpapa Valley, which might be the ancient trail previously mentioned by ʻĪʻī.  (Nohopapa)

The name Ka Iwi is derived from the Ka Iwi Channel, which lies between the islands of Molokai and Oahu.  This area of Ka Iwi can be divided into four topographic regions: a coastal zone (referred to as Queen’s Beach); a valley (Kealakīpapa Valley); a rocky headland (Makapu’u Head); and a coastal bench.

Queen’s Beach generally refers to the shoreline area from Kaloko Beach to the rock cliffs of Makapu’u Head. Kealakīpapa Valley comprises the area from Makapu’u Saddle down to Queen’s Beach.

Makapu‘u Head, rising northeast of Kealakīpapa Valley, reaches 647 feet above sea level at its highest point.  Kealakīpapa Valley through to Queen’s Beach allows the viewer to see both the windward and leeward shores from this vantage point. (Ka Iwi Master Plan)

Access between the two areas was by way of the road named Kealakīpapa, which is now generally the route of Kalanianaole Highway. “An ali’i who lived at Wawamalu had the road built.  He made the people who annoyed him build the road.” (Pukui, Maunalua-net) It has also been referred to as the old “King’s Highway.”

The mouth of Kealakīpapa Valley, at Queen’s Beach, is wide and narrows to its head near the Makapu’u Lookout at 160 feet. (Ka Iwi Master Plan)

“In places the natural outcroppings of rocks have been used as steps, but where stones have been laid and a terraced wall built up to support the paving, this paving has been constructed with large stones laid at an angle sometimes as great as 45 degrees. From the foot of the gap the road ran into the village site on the Waimanalo side.”

“Near the top of the gap, on the Maunalua side, is a small walled enclosure which, according to Stokes, is said to have been made at the time of the rebellion in 1895. From the top of the gap down Kealakipapa Valley for about 600 feet the road is in fairly good condition and can be followed with ease.” (McAllister)

“The central part is paved with flat stones 1 to 2 feet in width, with smaller stones heaped about a foot in height on either side, Along this distance the road averages between 15 and 16 feet in width.”

“Farther into the valley the road runs into a heavy growth of kiawe. Here it is generally without the side rock-walls, about 11 feet wide, and of arched or curved surface.”

“Throughout the lower part of the valley the road is in a poor state of preservation. On the immediate mountain side of the lighthouse road it cannot be found. Seaward of the lighthouse road it appears again and seems to end some 140 feet from the present road, for on the sea side of this point it cannot be found.” (McAllister)

“The plain below Kamiloiki and Kealakipapa was known as Ke-kula-o-Kamau[u]wai. This was the famous potato-planting place from which came the potatoes traded to ships that anchored off Hahaione in whaling days.” (Handy)

In 1859, Maunalua was included in the Kona district with the Revised Laws of Hawai‘i 1925, setting the district boundaries from Makapu‘u Head to Moanalua inclusive. (KSBE)

© 2025 Ho‘okuleana LLC

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Hawaiian Kingdom Constitution and US Governance Documents

Over the centuries, the islands weren’t unified under single rule.  Leadership sometimes covered portions of an island, sometimes covered a whole island or groups of islands.  Island rulers, Aliʻi or Mōʻī, typically ascended to power through warfare and familial succession.

The kapu system was the common structure, the rule of order, and religious and political code.  This social and political structure gave leaders absolute rule and authority.

Rank depended primarily upon blood; but of great importance was the conduct of life by which one could, by carelessness in preserving the kapu and in making proper marriages, lose caste and prerogatives under the severe discipline of the Aha-ali‘i (Council of Chiefs,) or could, through a royal marriage, raise the rank of one’s descendants upon the family line. (Beckwith)

“Beginning with Kamehameha I, Hawaiian ali‘i had been keenly aware of the vulnerability of Hawai‘i to Western imperialist powers. He and his chiefs knew that the sheer numbers and military might of the Western powers could not be resisted by Hawaiian defenses.”

“As a result, Kamehameha I began looking for ways to protect his Hawai‘i Island Kingdom from Western powers even before he had succeeded in uniting the Hawaiian Islands.”

“Their traditional world had been changing for decades: increased contact with Western influences in the late eighteenth century, the Kamehameha wars, and Kamehameha’s death followed by the abrogation of the kapu system in 1819, population decline due to Western diseases, … rapidly changing economics and their traditional way of life, in general.”

“When the [American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions] ABCFM missionaries arrived [in 1820] with this background and learned that the ‘ai kapu had been abrogated, they believed it to be caused by divine intervention. But they were met with understandable apprehension.”

“The mō‘i and ali’i were engaged in a search for sovereignty in Euro-American terms. In order to maintain their independence in an era of imperialism, they created a nation that would be recognized as sovereign by other civilized nations.”

“Allegedly ‘primitive’ societies were being annexed by European nations throughout the Pacific in the mid nineteenth century, including closely related Polynesian societies in New Zealand, Tahiti, and the Marquesas.”

“As Britain, France, and the United States vied for power and influence in the Pacific, each sent warships to the islands demanding special treatment for its resident citizens and threatening to take over the kingdom.”

“In response to these pressures, Kamehameha III and the high-ranking chiefs were engaged in transforming the Hawaiian system of law and governance into an Anglo-American political system under the rule of law.”

“Their strategy was to create a ‘civilized’ nation, in European terms, to induce those European and American powers whose recognition defined sovereign status to acknowledge the kingdom’s independence.” (Sally Engle Merry)

“William Richards, an ABCFM missionary, became an important resource for the chiefs when he arrived among the Second Company in 1823. He and his wife, Clarissa, were stationed at Lahaina one month after their arrival in Honolulu.”  (Kokua Aku, Kokua Mai; Woods, Nogelmeier and Sai)

William Richards briefly went to the continent.  “When Mr Richards returned from a visit to the United States his place as minister at Lahaina had been filled by Dr. Baldwin and Mr Richards had been withdrawn.”

“Hoapill therefore requested that Mr Richards become instructor for the king and his court, since he had been a father to the chiefs of the royal family at Lahaina and to those of all Maui, and had carried them through their troubles.” (Kamakau)

“It was thus that Mr Richards had taught the chiefs of Maui, ‘The power of the law must be alike over rich and poor; in order to govern peacefully the law must have power over all alike’; and these few words had given him such a reputation for fairness and effectiveness that the king now chose Mr Richards as minister and instructor in the affairs of government.” (Kamakau)

“Richards’ initial service in his new position was a course of lectures to the chiefs on political economy and the general science of government. Writing just a week after he began his new work, he stated:

‘I lecture to the chiefs on Political economy, every day at 10 o’clock, making use of Waylands system as the foundation … I endeavor to propose some practical subject every day.’” (Richards, Kuykendall)

“Mr. Richards was chosen as their leader to teach the chiefs to understand the ways in which other races of men lived.”  (Kamakau)

“Richards was the mapmaker, but the ali’i were the captains who made the crucial decisions about what direction to sail the ship of state.”

“The Hawaiian ali‘i (chiefs) and their Hawaiian advisors developed the pathbreaking 1839 Declaration of Rights and 1840 Constitution with instruction and guidance from William Richards”. (Kokua Aku, Kokua Mai; Woods, Nogelmeier and Sai)

“The Hawaiian people believed in William Richards (Rikeke), the foreigner who taught the king to change the government of the Hawaiian people to a constitutional monarchy and end that of a supreme ruler, and his views were adopted.”

By means of these lessons in political economy with the chiefs he was educating them to confer together as leaders of other governments did, to compare the constitutional form of government with governments which had no constitution …

… and to see that the constitutional form of government belonged to those governments which were most famous and whose king, chiefs, and people were most advanced. Such governments excelled in knowledge and wealth and represented progress in the search after wealth and trade.

Thus the minds of the chiefs became enlightened. ‘So this is it! [said they] Here is the way to gain wealth and honor.’ Perhaps these chiefs were right, perhaps wrong.

“(He) met king & chiefs daily when other public business did not prevent, and as fast as (he) could prepare matter read it to them in the form of lectures. (He) endeavored to make the lectures as familiar as possible, by repeating them, and drawing the chiefs into free conversation on the subject of the Lecture.”

“They uniformly manifested a becoming interest in the school thus conducted, and took an active part in the discussion of the various topics introduced in the Lectures. The Lectures themselves were mere outlines of general principles of political economy, which of course could not have been understood except by full illustration drawn from Hawaiian custom and Hawaiian circumstances. …”

“The conversation frequently took so wide a range that there was abundant opportunity to refer to any and to every fault of the present system of government. But when the faults of the present system were pointed out & the chiefs felt them & then pressed (him) with the question, ‘Pehea la e pono ai,’ (How will it be bettered?)” (Richards Report to the Sandwich Islands Mission, May 1, 1839)

“During the year (Richards had) been called on to translate various documents and laws, some of which were transmitted to the USA & some were for promulgation at the Islands. (He had) said scarcely nothing to the king and chiefs respecting the existing evils or defects in the government, except as the subject has come up naturally and almost necessarily while discussing established principles of Political Economy.”

“A system of laws has been written out by (Boaz) Mahune, a graduate of the (Lahainaluna) high school, and he was directed by the King to conform them to the principles of Political Economy which they had learned. Those laws are some what extensive and protect all private property.”

“According to this code, no chief has any authority over any man, any farther than it is given him by specific enactment, and no tax can be levied, other than that which is specified in the printed law, and no chief can act as a judge in a case where he is personally interested, and no man can be dispossessed of land which he has put under cultivation except for crimes specified in the law.” (Richards Report to the Sandwich Islands Mission, May 1, 1839)

Mahune (with others from Lahainaluna) drafted the 1839 Hawaiian Bill of Rights, also known as the 1839 Constitution of Hawaiʻi.  This document was an attempt by King Kamehameha III and his chiefs to guarantee that the Hawaiian people would not lose their tenured land, and provided the groundwork for a free enterprise system.

Many refer to that document as Hawaiʻi’s Magna Charta (describing certain liberties, putting actions within a rule of law and served as the foundation for future laws.)  It served as a preamble to the subsequent Hawaiʻi Constitution (1840.)

It was a great and significant concession voluntarily granted by the king to his people. It defined and secured the rights of the people, but it did not furnish a plan or framework of the government.  (Kuykendall)

The Declaration of Rights of 1839 was influenced by Christian fundamentals, as well as rights noted in the US Declaration of Independence; it recognized three classes of persons having vested rights in the lands; 1st, the Government; 2nd, the Chiefs; and 3rd, the native Tenants. It declared protection of these rights to both the Chiefly and native Tenant classes.

Constitution of 1840

Then, Kauikeaouli (Kamehameha III) initiated and implemented Hawaiʻi’s first constitution (1840) (one of five constitutions governing the Islands – and then, later, governance as part of the United States.)  Of his own free will he granted the Constitution of 1840, as a boon to his country and people, establishing his Government upon a declared plan. (Rex v. Booth – Hanifin)

That constitution introduced the innovation of representatives chosen by the people (rather than as previously solely selected by the Aliʻi.)  This gave the common people a share in the government’s actual political power for the first time.

In addition, the 1840 Constitution recognized rights of the people; its preamble read, “’God hath made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on the earth,’ in unity and blessedness. God has also bestowed certain rights alike on all men and all chiefs, and all people of all lands.”

“Absolute monarchy had come to an end in 1840. Since that time the kingdom had been governed under no less than four constitutions: the original one freely granted by Kamehameha III in 1840; one adopted by the legislature with the concurrence of the same King in 1852; one promulgated by Kamehameha V in 1864 on his own authority; and one granted in 1887 by Kalākaua as the result of a popular uprising (the Bayonet Constitution).” (Spaulding – Kosaki)

For two centuries, the trend in Hawaiʻi has been toward expanding the numbers of people who have a say in all parts of their government: from Kamehameha I’s near-absolute monarchy to a hereditary oligarchy, to an oligarchy open to men with money, to American republic.  (Hanifin)

How do the Hawaiian Kingdom Constitution (1840) & Declaration of Rights (1839) compare with the US Declaration of Independence (1776)?

Both documents assert the sovereignty of their respective entities. The Declaration of Independence proclaims the sovereignty of the thirteen American colonies from British rule, while the Hawaiian Constitution asserts the sovereignty of the Hawaiian Kingdom.

Both documents emphasize the importance of individual rights. The Declaration of Independence declares that all individuals are endowed with certain unalienable rights, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Similarly, the Hawaiian Constitution guarantees various rights to its citizens, such as the right to due process, freedom of speech, and religious freedom.

Both documents outline the establishment of a government structure. The Declaration of Independence expresses the intention to form a new government that derives its powers from the consent of the governed. Similarly, the Hawaiian Constitution establishes a governmental framework, delineating the roles and responsibilities of different branches of government.

Both documents acknowledge the concept of natural law. The Declaration of Independence asserts that governments are instituted to secure the natural rights of individuals. Likewise, the Hawaiian Constitution recognizes the principles of natural law and acknowledges the importance of maintaining harmony and balance with the natural environment.

While there are some similarities between the Declaration of Independence and the Hawaiian Constitution, it is important to note that they have different historical contexts and purposes. The Declaration of Independence marked the birth of a new nation, while the Hawaiian Constitution was a governing document for the Hawaiian Kingdom. (Alika Desha, ChatOn)

Click HERE for more on this.

© 2025 Ho‘okuleana LLC