Kamehameha the Great

Kamehameha is best known for uniting all the islands of Hawaii together into one kingdom, and also arguably the best Hawaiian warrior, as well as a just leader. With his strong physical and mental character he excelled in leadership which made him a well liked ruler. It was his combined qualities which made him the most beloved figure in Hawaiian history.

As most people know, the most memorable thing about Kamehameha was his unification of Hawaii. Even before Kamehameha was born, kahuna (Hawaiian priest) told stories about how a powerful ruler would be born and unite the Islands of Hawaii. The kahuna said his birth would be marked by a comet. Pai’ea was the chosen one the kahuna were referring to, Pai’ea was born in 1758 the year Halley’s comet flew over Hawaii. Pai’ea was Kamehameha’s birth name and the great grandson of Keaweikehahiali’iokanoku who once ruled a large portion of the Island of Hawaiian.

Soon after Pei’ea was born on North Kohala he was raced over to the Awini Valley because the ali’i (Hawaiian ruler for a particular area) of Kohala, who happened to be Kamehameha’s great uncle, feared Kamehameha would overturn him, so the ali’i wished to kill him. Kamehameha was raised in Awini Valley for the first five years of his life, but later returned to Kohala because the ali’i of Kohala no longer saw Kamehameha as a threat.

There Kamehameha was taught about war and court diplomacy by a faithful teacher, Kekuhaupi’p. Kekuhaupi’p is where Pai’ea got the nickname Kamehameha. As time went on Kamehameha grew a strong relation with his great uncle, the ali’i of Kohala. When his uncle died, the uncle’s land was given to his son. Kamehameha killed his own cousin to become ruler of Kohala. Soon after, Kamehameha was offered king of the Kona district and gladly accepted. Now Kamehameha was ruler of two of the seven districts of Hawaii. Through little battles Kamehameha became king of the Island of Hawaii.

Kamehameha had dreams to capture the other seven Islands and unite them. With some influence from his favorite wife Ka’ahumanu and help from British/American traders, he built some 1,200 war canoes and a force of 10,000 men to conquer the Islands of Maui, Kaho olawe, Lana i, Moloka i, the Northwestern Hawai ian Islands, and O’ahu. The battle with the O’ahu took place on Pali’s cliff, Kamehameha’s force defeated the O’ahu’s forces, and while doing so drove many of O’ahu’s forces off the Pali cliff (Kristin Kimball, 113) to their death 1,000 feet below. At this point Kamehameha controlled all the islands, except Kaua’i and Ni’ihau. Both the ali’i of Kaua’i and Ni’ihau knew their chances of pulling off a victory against Kamehameha were slim, moreover foreign merchants influenced the ali’ies to negotiate, because battles between the islands would make it hard for merchant ships to travel.