Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 7, Number 6, 1 June 1990 — Hawaiʻi honors "The Lonely One" June 11 [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Hawaiʻi honors "The Lonely One" June 11

By Farden Keaumiki Akui . /n tribute to the Royal Order of Kamehameha I 125th Commemorate Kamehameha, the "Lonely One," was born on a stormy night in Kohala, Hawai'i. The exact year no one may ever know, but 1758 is the probable date. Through the birth of this warrior king, the foundation of the Kingdom of Hawai'i was laid. The Hawaiian Is!ands at that time were divided into four kingdoms, eaeh ruled by an ali'i aimoku and the islands were wracked by civil war. Kamehameha was not in direct line of royal succession, although his parents were of high rank. He grew up in the court of his unele Kalaniopu'u, ruler of the island of Hawai'i. Trained in warfare by his unele, a great warrior, the "Lonely One" onee saved the life of his mentor in a fierce battle against the forces of Maui's king Kahekili in 1775. Thus he earned the respect of all in the royal court. The young Kamehameha saw the arrival of Capt. James Cook at Kealakekua Bay in 1778 and spent long hours on board the white man's ships. He wasdescribed by one of Cook's lieutenants as having "the most savage face" he had ever beheld. Before his death in 1782, Kalaniopu'u proclaimed his eldest son, Kiwala'o as his successor and his nephew, Kamehameha, as the guardian of the war god Kukailimoku. The anger of Kiwala'o was aroused when Kamehameha sacrificed an enemy chief even as Kiwala'o was preparing to do so himself. To avoid a confrontation with his cousin, Kamehameha retired to his lands in Kohala, but not for long. Five chiefs from the Kona district, fearing unfair treatment from Kiwala'o formed an allianee, with Kamehameha as their leader. In the decisive battle of Moku'ohai, the forces of Kamehameha emerged victorious. With thedeath of Kiwala'o, the island of Hawai'i was divided into three regions with Kona, Kohala and Hamakua under the rule of Kamehameha. Ten years of civil war followed. Kamehameha's quest for complete control of Hawai'i was hampered by Keawemauhili of Puna, Keoua of Ka'u and the powerful Kahekili of Maui. During a raid of Keawemauhili in Puna,

Kamehameha attacked some innocent fishermen on the beach. While pursuingthem, Kamehameha slipped and caught his foot in a crevice. A brave fisherman struck the mighty warrior on the head with a paddle, whieh broke in pieces. The fisherman fled! He was later caught and brought before Kamehameha for judgement but the "Lonely One" admitted he was wrong to have attacked the innocent. He issued a decree stating: "Let the aged men and women and little children lie down in safety in the road," and named it Mamalahoe Kanawai — "The law of the splintered padd!e." With the Big Island districts of Ka'u and Puna and the neighbor islands to conquer, Kamehameha felt he was in need of more than mortal man could deliver to insure victory. He needed mana. Kamehameha received the gods' favor in 1790 as he pursued Keoua's army back to their lands in Ka'u. Keoua had just slain Puna's Keawemauhili and now controlled half of the island. As he wasfleeing the onslaught of Kamehameha, Kilauea erupted and buried a third of Keoua's warriors with their wives and children in burning ashes and fumes. This was taken as a sign that the goddess Pele was on the side of Kamehameha. This omen helped convince Keoua to accept Kamehameha's offer of reconciliation; but as Keoua stepped ashore at Kawaihae he was immediately killed by the spear of Ke'eaumoku, a chief of Kamehameha. The Big Island was now under one ruler, who then continued his quest for complete domination of all the Hawaiian Islands. One man stood in the way of Kamehameha — Maui's king, Kahekili, who also ruled Moloka'i, O'ahu and Kaua'i. The aging Kahekili divided his kingdom between his brother, Kaeo, and his son, Kalanikupule, who eventually overcame his unele and killed him on O'ahu. Grasping this opportunity of a kingdom divided, Kamehameha launched an immense fleet of war canoes and soon captured, first, Maui then Moloka'i. Finally, with half of his fleet landing in Wai'alae and half in Waikiki, Kamehameha's army drove Kalanikupule's defenders deep into

Nu'uanu Valley and up the steep Nu'uanu Pali, where they were trapped. In their final stand many were driven over the precipice to the rocks below. Kalanikupule was captured 13 months later and became, at the hands of Kamehameha, the last human sacrifice in Hawai'i at Papaenaena heiau on the slopes of Diamond Head. The conquest of O'ahu marked the end of wars for Kamehameha the Great. Soon, Kaua'i and Ni'ihau were ceded to him without a fight. It was 1796, and Kamehameha, the "Lonely One," stood master and undisputed king of the new, unified Hawaiian islands. He proved an equally able statesman, even in the face of disruptive elements, both foreign and domestic. He delivered Hawai'i into the modern world and restored prosperity to his people. From a divided group of warring islands and ali'i, Kamehameha built a nation. Under his reign, the Hawaiian kingdom experienced long years of peaee and stability. On May 8, 1819 the warrior king, Kamehameha, died at his home in Kailua on the island of Hawai'i. A heiau was built just before his death, but he refused a human sacrifice in his honor, saying: "The men are kapu for the new king" his son, Liholiho. The remains of the "Lonely One" were concealed in a secret cave, and it wassaid then, as it is to this day, that "Only the stars of the heavens know the resting plaee of Kamehameha." Kamehameha, the conqueror of the nation, Kamehameha ka na'i aupuni.