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November 20, 2024 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Battle of Kalaeʻiliʻili

In Europe, Great Britain defeated France in the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763,) becoming the dominant power in Europe, North America and India.  The war cost a lot of money; to raise funds Britain decided to levy taxes on the Colonies on the American continent.

For instance, the passed Quartering Act (required the colonies to provide barracks and supplies to British troops;) Stamp Act (taxed newspapers, almanacs, pamphlets, broadsides, legal documents, dice and playing cards;) Sugar Act (increased duties on non-British goods shipped to the colonies) and Currency Act (prohibited American colonies from issuing their own currency.)

This marked the beginning of Colonial opposition to the British (1765) and Colonists cried out against ‘taxation without representation.’

Turmoil was in the Islands, as well – some folks on Maui were also feeling that they were not being treated fairly; in addition, a power struggle was emerging.

Wailuku was considered a Royal Center (politically, ceremonially and geographically important during traditional times) with many of the chiefs and much of the area’s population residing near or within portions of ‘Īao Valley and lower Wailuku.  (FWS)

The period immediately preceding contact with the Europeans was one of considerable upheaval and conflict.  (FWS)

After the death of Kamehamehanui (the late king of Maui,, which happened about 1765, Nāmāhana (the widow queen of Kamehamehanui) married Keʻeaumoku.  (Fornander)

Nāmāhana’s brother, Kahekili, then became King of Maui, was displeased that Nāmāhana had taken Keʻeaumoku for her husband, and he became Keʻeaumoku’s enemy.

Nāmāhana and Keʻeaumoku lived at the large and fertile land of Waiheʻe.

Some people on Maui felt that the abundance of resources would have allowed all to be well fed; they felt they were not getting their share.

In particular, Kahanana (at the time, a lesser chief in Waiheʻe) was neglected by Keʻeaumoku and his court when the chief of Waiheʻe distributed fish, after fortunate catches, among the subordinates and warriors living on the land.  (Fornander)

Kalākaua writes that “Kahekili induced Kahanana … to embroil Keʻeaumoku in a difficulty with his own people.”

One evening Kahanana killed three of Keʻeaumoku’s men.  An insurrection arose and Kahekili, who was in the vicinity, took the side of Kahanana.

The resultant Battle of Kalaeʻiliʻili (c. 1765) was fought because the rich agricultural resources of the Waiheʻe River Valley and the offshore marine resources were being unevenly distributed by the chief Keʻeaumoku and other Molokai chiefs.

A general fight ensued between the Kahanana party, being supported by Kahekili, and Keʻeaumoku.  Keʻeaumoku and his chiefs maintained their ground for some days, but were eventually overmatched, beaten and obliged to flee.  (Fornander)

The Battle reportedly marked the beginning of Kahekili’s reign and Keʻeaumoku and the Molokai chiefs were driven out of Waiheʻe.

But the anger of Kahekili pursued the fugitives.  Invading Molokai, he engaged Keʻeaumoku and his Molokai allies in a sea-fight and Kahekili was again victorious. The naval engagement off Molokai is called the battle of “Kalauonakukui.”  (Fornander)

Keʻeaumoku fled to Hāna, where Mahihelelima, the governor under Kalaniʻōpuʻu, received him and his wife and entertained them at Kaʻuiki.  (Fornander)

At Kaʻuiki, Keʻeaumoku appears to have found a short repose in his turbulent career; he was not heard of again for some years. It is probable that he made his peace with Kalaniʻōpuʻu and was permitted to remain at Hāna.  (Fornander)

It was later, there at Kaʻuiki, Hāna, Maui, in about 1768, that Keʻeaumoku and his wife Nāmāhana had their first child, Kaʻahumanu, future and famous Queen of Kamehameha the Great.

Again, several years pass by with Kalaniʻōpuʻu still holding portions of the Hāna district on Maui and the great fort of Kaʻuiki; but about the year 1775, the war between Hawaiʻi and Maui broke out again.  (Fornander)

Kahekili successfully defended his capital in Wailuku throughout the 1770s, until his defeat at the hands of Kamehameha’s forces.  (FWS)  (Kamehameha went on to conquer the Islands of Hawaiʻi, Maui Nui and Oʻahu by 1795 (defeating Kalanikūpule, Kahekili’s son) and ultimately ruled the island chain in 1810.)

Back on the continent, the discontent between the Colonists and the British Crown led to the American boycott of taxed British tea and the Boston Tea Party in 1773, and ultimately the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) and then the War of 1812.

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Filed Under: Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance, Place Names Tagged With: Kalaniopuu, Hana, Kauiki, Keeaumoku, Namahana, Kahanana, Hawaii, Waihee, Maui, Kahekili, Kaahumanu, Wailuku

December 4, 2022 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

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. (Kawaiaha‘o)

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.)

A probation period of six months was set for these candidates. (Damon)

By the time a newly constructed thatched church was nearly finished, “Sabbath Decr. 4th. This has been a day of uncommon interest; and the transactions of it form an era in the Sandwich Island Church.”

“Eight persons who have for more than six months stood as candidates for admission and who have given as satisfactory evidence of personal piety as the nature of their circumstances will admit, came forward & united themselves to our number …”

“… and entered into a solemn covenant to walk in all the ordinances of the Gospel; and subscribed with their own hands unto the Lord, binding themselves by the most solemn engagements to be his forever.”

“Seven of the candidates received baptism – Karaimoku having been baptized a number of years ago by a French Chaplain, only brought forward his little son, which it was a pleasing sight to witness in the arms of his father to be presented for Christian baptism – He received the name of Joseph Leleohoku.”

“Ka‘ahumanu was baptised by the Christian name of Elizabeth. – Opi‘ia by that of Lydia; Tapule Deborah; Keri‘iahonui – Aaron; La‘ahui – Gideon; Kaiu – Simeon. Kara‘aiaulu – Richard.” (Levi Chamberlain Journal)

The Kawaiaha’o Church register lists the names of those who, beginning on December 4, 1825, took their vows, and were baptized. Their signatures are on the church charter.

These were not just any Hawaiians, they represented the high chiefs at the time. They were the Ali‘i Founders of Kawaiaha‘o.

Kalanimōkū was a trusted and loyal advisor to Kamehameha I, Liholiho (Kamehameha II) and Kauikeaouli (Kamehameha III.) “Kalanimōku was prime minister of the king, and the most powerful executive man in the nation.” (Lucy Thurston) (Kalanimōku died February 7, 1827 at Kamakahonu, at Kailua-Kona.)

Kaʻahumanu, the favorite wife of Kamehameha I, was one of the most powerful people in the Islands at the time of the arrival of the missionaries. There were those who were higher by birth, and there were those who were higher by title, but there was probably none who held greater influence. (Ka‘ahumanu died June 5, 1832 at her home, Puka‘oma‘omao in Mānoa.)

Namahana (or Opi‘ia or Pi‘ia) was Ka‘ahumanu’s sister and former wife of Kamehameha I. When the missionaries first arrived in the Islands, they stopped at Kawaiahae. Namahana boarded the Thaddeus and sailed with them to Kailua-Kona. (She died in 1829.)

“Laʻanui was the paramount chief of the Waialua division from 1828 to his death in 1849, as well as the particular ‘lord’ (hakuʻāina) of Kawailoa, the district (ahupuaʻa) corresponding to the Anahulu River valley.” (Kirch) Laʻanui and Namahana (Piʻia) were one of the first couples to be married by Hiram Bingham. (La‘anui died September 12, 1849.)

Kauai Chiefess Kapule was wife of Kauai’s King Kaumualiʻi. Kaumuali‘i died May 26, 1824; she then married Kaʻiu, Kaumualiʻi’s half-brother. When Humehume’s (Kaumualiʻi’s son) men arrived at the Russian Fort to try and reinstate the Kingdom of Kauaʻi, Kapule fought against them. She was the most prominent person of rank to remain on Kauai after the rebellion. (Joesting) (She died on August 26, 1853.)

Ka‘iu was a devout Christian; he joined a delegation to the Marquesas Islands to determine the possibilities for missionary expansion there. (Joesting) (Ka‘iu died on September 11, 1835.)

Keali‘iahonui was a son of Kaumuali‘i; he first married Kapule, but then Ka‘ahumanu took him as husband, but when she became a Christian, she gave up Keali‘iahonui to conform with her new religious beliefs. Keali‘iahonui later married Kekauōnohi. (He died June 23, 1849.)

“Kalākua, (was daughter of Keʻeaumoku, a chief from Hawaiʻi Island and) a widow of Kamehameha (joined Namahana in boarding the Thaddeus at Kawaihae when the missionaries first arrived.) (On board, she) asked (the missionary women) to make a gown for her in fashion like their own.” (Bingham) “(She) was told that it was the Lord’s day, and that they would make it tomorrow.” (April 2, 1820, Thaddeus Journal) (Kalākua died January 16, 1842.)

Kala‘aia‘ulu had been in American and was a student at the Foreign Mission School at Cornwall Connecticut. He came back to the Islands with the Second Company of missionaries, arriving on April 27, 1823. Back in the Islands, he served as an assistant teacher and interpreter.

The image shows a portion of the page of Hiram Bingham’s Baptismal Book (written by Bingham on December 4, 1825,) noting these names, the first members of Kawaiaha‘o Church: Kalanimōku, Ka‘ahumanu, Namahana, La‘anui, Keali‘iahonui, Kapule, Kaiu and Kala‘aia‘ulu (from Kawaiaha‘o Church)

© 2020 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Hiram Bingham Baptismal Book-Noting Dec 4, 1825
Hiram Bingham Baptismal Book-Noting Dec 4, 1825
Hiram Bingham Baptismal Book-Noting Dec 4, 1825
Hiram Bingham Baptismal Book-Noting Dec 4, 1825
Hiram Bingham Baptismal Book-Noting Dec 4, 1825
Hiram Bingham Baptismal Book-Noting Dec 4, 1825
Hiram Bingham Baptismal Book-Noting Dec 4, 1825
Hiram Bingham Baptismal Book-Noting Dec 4, 1825
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First_Christian_Church-Honolulu-(Damon)-1822
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Kawaiahao_Church_at_Honolulu_illustration-Bingham
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Kawaiahao interior
Kawaiahao interior
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kawaiahao_church_-_memorial_for_hiram_bingham
Kaahumanu Commemorative plaque
Kaahumanu Commemorative plaque

Filed Under: General Tagged With: Kawaiahao Church, Kaahumanu, Kalanimoku, Namahana, Kalakua, Gideon Laanui, Kapule, Kealiiahonui, Hawaii, Kaiu, Kapiolani, Kalaaiaulu, Missionaries

March 11, 2018 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Alii Letters – Nāmāhāna to Evarts (1828)

Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site and Archives (Mission Houses) collaborated with Awaiaulu Foundation to digitize, transcribe, translate and annotate over 200-letters written by 33-Chiefs.

The letters, written between 1823 and 1887, are assembled from three different collections: the ABCFM Collection held by Harvard’s Houghton Library, the HEA Collection of the Hawaii Conference-United Church of Christ and the Hawaiian Mission Children’s Society.

These letters provide insight into what the Ali‘i (Chiefs) were doing and thinking at the time, as well as demonstrate the close working relationship and collaboration between the aliʻi and the missionaries.

In this letter, Lydia Nāmāhāna writes to Jeremiah Evarts testifying to her strong Christian faith and practice.

Lydia Nāmāhāna Piʻia, a high ranking chiefess, was a wife of Kamehameha I and daughter of Keʻeaumoku Pāpaʻiahiahi, also being Kaʻahumanu’s sister. Nāmāhana was an early convert to Christianity and wife of Gideon Laʻanui, another early supporter of the missionizing effort.

Jeremiah F. Evarts was an early leader of the American Board of Commissioners of Foreign Missions (ABCFM). He was a reformer who advocated for the rights of Native Americans and wrote under the pseudonym William Penn.

“Oahu, March 12, 1828”

“Mr. Evarts,”

“May you live well into your old age. I send great affection to you and all the brethren.”

“Here is my message to you, I am informing you that the holy word of Christ, his laws and all his good practices are being taught.”

“We have obtained some small portions, but have gained no more.”

“The desire of my heart moves day and night to ask him that my spirit attain eternal life in heaven.”

“My wishes, my affection, my heart, and my intention, I have bundled them securely and submitted them to him; his words and his laws are what I follow in my heart …”

“… that my house be populated with his powerful spirit, his eternal love, his true goodness and his patience that all of us from where the sun rises to where it sets be saved by him.”

“The heart fears God because of the extent of physical wrongs, existing in a house of earthly pleasures, nearly killing the body and spirit in a house of earthly delights.”

“Thus my fear of God that makes my heart repent every night and day of my life, yet the heart does not say that it needs to pray to God or repent wrongdoing, no.”

“Goodness is up to God, as is wrongdoing.”

“And what I do is repent of my wrongs and place them upon him, with the confidence of my heart, spirit and my will being with him, so that I may be eternally saved through Jesus Christ. This concludes my message.”

“By Lidia Namahana”

Here’s a link to the original letter, its transcription, translation and annotation:

Click to access b3b4f77b0675ecac208bac25a2e67171.pdf

On October 23, 1819, the Pioneer Company of American Protestant missionaries from the northeast US, led by Hiram Bingham, set sail on the Thaddeus for the Sandwich Islands (now known as Hawai‘i.) They arrived in the Islands and anchored at Kailua-Kona on April 4, 1820.

Over the course of a little over 40-years (1820-1863 – the “Missionary Period”,) about 180-men and women in twelve Companies served in Hawaiʻi to carry out the mission of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) in the Hawaiian Islands.

One of the earliest efforts of the missionaries, who arrived in 1820, was the identification and selection of important communities (generally near ports and aliʻi residences) as “stations” for the regional church and school centers across the Hawaiian Islands.

Hawaiian Mission Houses’ Strategic Plan themes note that the collaboration between Native Hawaiians and American Protestant missionaries resulted in the
• The introduction of Christianity;
• The development of a written Hawaiian language and establishment of schools that resulted in widespread literacy;
• The promulgation of the concept of constitutional government;
• The combination of Hawaiian with Western medicine, and
• The evolution of a new and distinctive musical tradition (with harmony and choral singing).

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Namahana - Evarts Mar 12, 1828-1.
Namahana – Evarts Mar 12, 1828-1.
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Namahana – Evarts Mar 12, 1828-3
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Namahana – Evarts Mar 12, 1828-4

Filed Under: Missionaries / Churches / Religious Buildings, Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance Tagged With: Hawaii, Namahana, Chiefs Letters, Jeremiah Evarts

March 31, 2017 by Peter T Young 2 Comments

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 dispose of their little articles of barter, and to look at the strangers. Their maneuvres in their canoes, some being propelled by short paddles, and some by small sails, attracted the attention of our little group, and for a moment, gratified curiosity …”

“On the 1st of April, as we were abreast of Kawaihae, Kalanimōku and his wives, and Kalākua (subsequently Hoapiliwahine) and her sister Nāmāhāna (sometimes Opi‘ia), two of the widows of the late king, came oft to us with their loquacious attendants, in their double canoe. It was propelled with spirit, by eighteen or twenty athletic men.”

“Having over their heads a huge Chinese umbrella, and the nodding kahilis or plumed rods of the nobility, they made a novel and imposing appearance as they drew near our becalmed Mission Barque, while we fixed on them, and their movements, our scrutinizing gaze.”

“As they were welcomed on board, the felicitous native compliment, aloha (good-will, peace, affection), with shaking hands, passed between them, and each member of the mission family, Captain Blanchard and others.”

“Their tall, portly, ponderous appearance seemed to indicate a different race from those who had visited the vessel before, or a decided superiority of the nobility over the peasantry.”

“Kalanimōku was distinguished from almost the whole nation, by being decently clad. His dress, put on for the occasion, consisted of a white dimity roundabout, a black silk vest, yellow Nankeen pants, shoes, and white cotton hose, plaid cravat, and fur hat. … Kalanimōku was much attracted by the kamali‘i keokeo (white children], and all were struck with the first appearance of CIvilized women.”

“Happy in so early and pleasant an introduction to personages of so much influence, we were assiduous in our efforts to impress them favorably, making them acquainted with our business, and our wish to reside in the country. But, notwithstanding our solicitude to obtain Kalanimōku’s assent at once, he referred us to the king.”

“As a token of friendship and confidence, he presented us a curiously wrought spear, a signal, we hoped, that their weapons of war were soon to be converted into implements of husbandry, and their warriors enlisted as soldiers of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

“Near sunset, our distinguished guests took leave and returned to the shore on their state vehicle-their double canoe, seated on a light narrow scaffolding which rested on the semi-elliptical timbers by which two large parallel canoes, each neatly carved from a tree, are yoked together, five or six feet apart.”

“Their large canoes are two to three feet in depth, and thirty to fifty in length. The thin sides are raised by the addition of a nicely fitted waist-board. Additional pieces of thin wood, ingeniously carved, are attached at the ends, covering a few feet as a deck turning up some fifteen inches at the extremity, and giving the appearance of greater finish, beauty and utility.”

“The favored passengers on a Hawaiian double canoe sit three or four feet above the surface of the water, while the rowers sit on thwarts in the canoe with their feet below the surface and their faces forward. The steersmen sit in the stern. Their paddles have a round handle from three to four feet long, and a thin blade from twelve to eighteen inches long and eight to twelve wide, and are grasped by one hand at the extreme end, and by the other, near the blade, and are used by main strength.”

“The chiefs, on this occasion, were rowed off with spirit by nine or ten athletic men in each of the coupled canoes, making regular, rapid and effective strokes, all on one side for a while, then, changing at a signal in exact time, all on the other.”

“Each raising his head erect, and lifting one hand high to throw the paddle blade forward beside the canoe, the rowers, dipping their blades, and bowing simultaneously and earnestly, swept their paddles back with naked muscular arms, making the brine boil, and giving great speed to their novel and serviceable sea-craft.”

“Then, ere the excitement of the chiefs’ visit was over, Mr. Thurston and his yoke-fellow ascended the shrouds, and, standing upon the main-top (the mission family, captain and crew being on deck), as we gently floated along on the smooth silent sea, under the lee of Hawaii’s dark shores, sang a favorite song of Zion (Melton Mowbray), which they had sung at their ordination at Goshen, and with the Park Church choir, at Boston, on the day of embarkation.”

“The next morning, our brig being in Kawaihae bay, I made my first visit on shore, landed on the beach near where Keoua and his companions had been murdered, and called on Kalanimoku at his thatched hut or cottage in that small uninviting village.”

“With him, I visited Puukohola, the large heathen temple at that place, a monument of folly, superstition and madness, which the Idolatrous conqueror and his murderous priests had consecrated with human blood to the senseless deities of Pagan Hawaii.”

“Built on a rough hill, a little way from the shore of the bay, it occupied an area about 240 feet in length, and 120 in breadth, and appeared as much like a fort as a church. On the ends and inland side of the parallelogram, the walls, of loose black stone or fragments of lava, were 15 feet high, 10 feet thick at the bottom, and 5 at the top.”

“This monument of idolatry, I surveyed with mingled emotions of grief, horror, pity, regret, gratitude, and hope; of grief and horror at the enormities which men and devils had perpetrated there before high heaven …”

“…of pity and regret that the victims and many of the builders and worshippers, had gone to their account without the knowledge of the Gospel, which ought to have been conveyed to them; of gratitude, that this strong-hold of Satan had been demolished and the spell around it broken …”

“… and of hope, that soon temples to the living God would take the place of these altars of heathen abomination.”

“After this brief survey of this part of the field, 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, we engaged In public worship, and dwelt with pleasure on the glorious theme …”

“… the design of the Messiah to establish his universal reign, and to bring the isles to submit to him, and rejoice in his grace, as indicated by the language of the Prophet Isaiah, ‘He shall not fail nor be discouraged till he have set judgment in the earth, and the isles shall wait for his law.’”

“Kalākua, a widow of Kamehameha, having little sympathy with the Evangelical prophet, and shrewdly aiming to see what the white women could do for her temporal benefit, asked them to make a gown for her in fashion like their own.”

“Putting her off till the Sabbath was over, apprising her that unnecessary labor was on that day prohibited to all by the great Jehovah whom we worshipped, they cheerfully plied scissors and needle the next day, and soon fitted out the rude giantess with a white cambric dress.”

“Thus, feeble, voyage-worn, having been long without fresh provisions, and withering under a tropical sun as they crossed the equatorial regions the second time, they began before we cast anchor, to secure favor by kindness and demonstration of their ability and readiness to make themselves useful.”

“As we coasted slowly along southward, we had a grand view of Hualalai, the volcanic mountain that rises some eight or nine thousand feet, near the western side of Hawaii, with Its terminal crater, its forests, and apparently recent streams of lava. “

“Becalmed in sight of the king’s residence, we were once more allowed on the morrow to unite with thousands of our friends whose sympathies and supplications had followed us, in observing the monthly concert of prayer for the conversion of the world …”

“… mingling thanksgiving for our safe and opportune arrival, with petItions that an abundant entrance among these Gentiles might be ministered to us, and that our service for them might be soon and joyfully accepted.”

“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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Kawaihae_Bay_in_1822
Kawaihae_Bay_in_1822

Filed Under: Missionaries / Churches / Religious Buildings, Hawaiian Traditions, Place Names, Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance Tagged With: Hawaii, Missionaries, Kalanimoku, Kawaihae, Namahana, Kalakua, Hiram Bingham

January 15, 2017 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kalākua

“Kalākua, a widow of Kamehameha … asked (the missionary women) to make a gown for her in fashion like their own.” (Bingham) “(She) was told that it was the Lord’s day, and that they would make it tomorrow.” (April 2, 1820, Thaddeus Journal)

The next day, the first Hawaiian sewing circle was held on the decks of the Thaddeus, “Kalākua brought a web of white cambric to have a dress made for herself in the fashion of our ladies, and was very particular in her wish to have it finished while sailing along the western side of the island, before reaching the king.”

“Monday morning April 3d (1820,) the first sewing circle was formed that the sun ever looked down upon in the Hawaiian realm. Kalākua was directress. She requested all the seven white ladies to take seats with them on mats, on the deck of the Thaddeus.”

“The dress was made in the fashion of 1819. The length of the skirt accorded with Brigham Young’s rule to his Mormon damsels, – have it come down to the tops of the shoes. But in the queen’s case, where the shoes were wanting, the bare feet cropped out very prominently.” (Lucy Thurston, part of the Pioneer Company)

Kalākua (also Kaheiheimālie) (c. 1778–1842) was daughter of Keʻeaumoku, a chief from Hawaiʻi Island and Namahana, from the royal family on Maui. She was described as physically being ‘tall and gigantic,’ like her siblings. (Bingham)

“(Kalākua) was never a woman to indulge in flirtations, and her name was never coupled with gossip. She may have had her longings, but she remained true to her husband; and her children were never rumored to have been born of a double paternity like so many of the chiefs.”

“Double paternity was considered an honor because it gave a double or triple line of chiefly descent, thick and intermingled, and formed an honorable ancestry doubly blessed in such riches and knowledge as chiefs desire.”

“Not so (Kalākua,) who considered herself sufficiently honored with the root already established. Kamehameha was her uncle, and both he and Keʻeaumoku were directly descended from Haʻae.” (Kamakau)

Kalākua’s siblings included Queen Kaʻahumanu, Hawaiʻi Island Governor John Adams Kuakini, Maui Governor George Cox Kahekili Keʻeaumoku II and Lydia Namahana Piʻia. She first married Kalaʻimamahu, the younger brother of Kamehameha I.

They had a daughter, Kekāuluohi; Kekāuluohi became Kamehameha’s youngest wife. Liholiho (Kamehameha II) later took her as one of his wives and around 1821 Kamehameha II gave Kekāuluohi to his friend Charles Kanaʻina. By Kanaʻina, Kekāuluohi had a son William Charles Lunalilo (future king of the Islands.)

Kekāuluohi succeeded her half-sister Kīnaʻu as Kuhina Nui. Initially, she was considered something of a “place-holder” for Kīnaʻu’s infant daughter Victoria Kamāmalu, who would later assume the office. (Archives)

With Kamehameha I, Kalākua had four children: their two sons died as infants; the oldest daughter, Kamāmalu, became wife of Liholiho (Kamehameha II,) and the youngest daughter, Kīnaʻu, later became Kuhina Nui.

Kīnaʻu later married Mataio Kekūanāoʻa; they had several children, including Lot Kapuāiwa (afterwards Kamehameha V,) Alexander Liholiho (afterwards Kamehameha IV) and Victoria. (Liliʻuokalani) That made Kalākua mother of another Queen consort, and grandmother of three future Kings.

“The death of Kamehameha made the first separation from the man she had lived with for twenty years. There was no woman of his household whom Kamehameha loved so much as (Kalākua.)”

“Kamehameha is never known to have deserted (Kalākua,) but it has often been said that she did not love him so much as her first husband Kalaʻimamahu from whom Kamehameha took her away.” (Kamakau)

“In September, 1823, she heard in Hawaii of Keōpūolani’s death and sailed at once for Lāhainā to attend the burial ceremonies. The chiefs had all assembled at Lāhainā, the body of the chiefess had been concealed, and (Hoapili) was in mourning.”

“After the days of mourning were ended (Kalākua) became the wife of (Hoapili) (October 19, 1823,) they became converted, were married under Christian vows, and took the names of Hoapili-kāne and Mary Hoapili-wahine [the Hawaiian form of Mr. and Mrs.]”

“At this time she had not thought much about religion. The chiefs took to drinking and sensual indulgence after the death of the chiefess [Keōpūolani], but (Kalākua) listened to the word of God as taught by the missionaries although in her heart she still enjoyed life and fun.”

“Hoapili had accepted the word of God because of Keōpūolani. (Kalākua) turned to Christianity first, and Kaʻahumanu followed.” (Kamakau)

In 1823, Kalākua (Kaheiheimālie and Hoapili-wahine) offered the American missionaries a tract of land on the slopes surrounding Puʻu Paʻupaʻu for the creation of a school.

Betsey Stockton founded a school for makaʻāinana (common people) including the women and children. The site of the school is now Lahainaluna School.

A good work for which Hoapili-kāne is celebrated was the building of the church at Waineʻe; the cornerstone was laid on September 14, 1828, for this ‘first stone meeting-house built at the Islands.’

It was dedicated on March 4, 1832 and served as the church for Hawaiian royalty during the time when Lāhainā was effectively the Kingdom’s capital, from the 1820s through the mid-1840s (it was destroyed by fire in 1894.) In addition, he erected the Lāhainā fort to guard the village against rioting from the whalers off foreign ships and from law breakers. (Kamakau)

When Lot Kapuāiwa was born to Mataio Kekūanāoʻa and Kīnaʻu, he was hānai by his grandmother Kalākua (Kaheiheimālie and Hoapili-wahine) and step-grandfather Hoapili-kāne. (Lot Kapuāiwa later became King Kamehameha V.) Kalākua died January 16, 1842 and is buried at Waine‘e (now Waiola) Cemetery.

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Hoapiliwahine_by_C._C._Armstrong
Hoapiliwahine_by_C._C._Armstrong

Filed Under: Prominent People, Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance Tagged With: Kamehameha II, Hoapili, Hawaii, Kamamalu, Kuakini, Keeaumoku, Lunalilo, Namahana, Lot Kapuaiwa, Kinau, Kamehameha V, Kekauluohi, Kamehameha IV, Kalakua, Alexander Liholiho, Piia, Kamehameha, Kanaina, Kaahumanu

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