Abigail Maheha (July 10, 1832 – February 13, 1861) was a Hawaiian chiefess (
aliʻi
The aliʻi were the traditional nobility of the Hawaiian islands. They were part of a hereditary line of rulers, the ''noho aliʻi''.
The word ''aliʻi'' has a similar meaning in the Samoan language and other Polynesian languages, and in Māori ...
) of the
Kingdom of Hawaii
The Hawaiian Kingdom, or Kingdom of Hawaiʻi ( Hawaiian: ''Ko Hawaiʻi Pae ʻĀina''), was a sovereign state located in the Hawaiian Islands. The country was formed in 1795, when the warrior chief Kamehameha the Great, of the independent island ...
. At a young age, she was chosen to attend the
Chiefs' Children's School (later renamed the Royal School) taught by the American missionary
Amos Starr Cooke
Amos Starr Cooke (December 1, 1810 – March 20, 1871) was an American educator and businessman in the Kingdom of Hawaii. He was patriarch of a family that influenced Hawaii during the 20th century.
Life
Amos Starr Cooke was born in Danbury, Co ...
and his wife,
Juliette Montague Cooke
Juliette Montague Cooke (March 10, 1812 – August 11, 1896), known as "Mother Cooke", was an American teacher, a member of the Eighth Company of missionaries sent by the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) to the Hawaiian ...
, alongside her half-sister
Jane Loeau
Jane Loeau (December 5, 1828 – July 30, 1873) was a Hawaiian chiefess during the Kingdom of Hawaii who attended the Chiefs' Children's School, also known as the Royal School.
Early life and education
She was born December 5, 1828, at Waime ...
and fourteen of her royal cousins.
Early life and education
![Cooke Memorial Tablet, 1912](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/Cooke_Memorial_Tablet%2C_1912.jpg)
Maheha was the daughter of High Chief Namaile and High Chiefess
Kuini Liliha
Kuini Liliha (–1839) was a High Chiefess (aliʻi) and noblewoman who served the Kingdom of Hawaii as royal governor of Oʻahu island. She administered the island from 1829 to 1831 following the death of her husband Boki.
Early life
She was ...
. Her mother was the royal governor of
Oʻahu
Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O’ ...
during the regency of
Queen Kaʻahumanu. She was descended from
Kahekili II
Kahekili II, full name Kahekilinuiʻahumanu, (c. 1737–1794) was an ali'i (''Moʻi'') of Maui. His name was short for Kāne-Hekili after the Hawaiian god of thunder. Because Kāne-Hekili was believed to be black on one side, Kahekili tattooed o ...
,
Moi of Maui Moi or MOI may refer to:
People
* Moi (name), a list of people with the given name or surname
* Moisés Delgado (born 1994), Spanish footballer commonly known as simply Moi
* Moisés Rodríguez (born 1997), Spanish footballer commonly known a ...
, and High Chief
Hoapili
Ulumāheihei Hoapili (c. 1775 – January 3, 1840) was a member of the nobility during the formation of the Kingdom of Hawaii. He was a trusted military and political advisor to King Kamehameha I, known as "Kamehameha the Great". Although trusted w ...
.
[; ; ]
She was adopted or ''hānaied'' by her aunt, Princess
Kekauʻōnohi
Keahikuni Kekauʻōnohi (c. 1805–1851) was a Hawaiian high chiefess who was a member of the House of Kamehameha. She was granddaughter to King Kamehameha I and one of the wives of Kamehameha II. Her Christian name is disputed; it is given as Mik ...
. Her ''
hānai
''Hānai'' is a term used in the Hawaiian culture that refers to the informal adoption of one person by another. It can be used as an adjective, such as "''hānai'' child", or as a verb to ''hānai'' someone into the family.
In the Hawaiian cultu ...
'' mother was a granddaughter of
Kamehameha the Great
Kamehameha I (; Kalani Paiea Wohi o Kaleikini Kealiikui Kamehameha o Iolani i Kaiwikapu kaui Ka Liholiho Kūnuiākea; – May 8 or 14, 1819), also known as Kamehameha the Great, was the conqueror and first ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii. T ...
who united the
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, Nā Mokupuni o Hawai‘i) are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kur ...
into one kingdom and was also the youngest consort of the deceased
Kamehameha II
Kamehameha II (November 1797 – July 14, 1824) was the second king of the Kingdom of Hawaii. His birth name was Liholiho and full name was Kalaninui kua Liholiho i ke kapu ʻIolani. It was lengthened to Kalani Kaleiʻaimoku o Kaiwikapu o Laʻ ...
and served as Governor of
Kauaʻi
Kauai, () anglicized as Kauai ( ), is geologically the second-oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands (after Niʻihau). With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the List of islands of th ...
.
She was among those chosen by King
Kamehameha III
Kamehameha III (born Kauikeaouli) (March 17, 1814 – December 15, 1854) was the third king of the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1825 to 1854. His full Hawaiian name is Keaweaweula Kīwalaō Kauikeaouli Kaleiopapa and then lengthened to Keaweaweula K ...
eligible for throne of the
Kingdom of Hawaii
The Hawaiian Kingdom, or Kingdom of Hawaiʻi ( Hawaiian: ''Ko Hawaiʻi Pae ʻĀina''), was a sovereign state located in the Hawaiian Islands. The country was formed in 1795, when the warrior chief Kamehameha the Great, of the independent island ...
to attend the
Chiefs' Children's School, also known as the Royal School.
She was taught by American missionaries Amos Starr Cooke and his wife Juliette Montague Cooke. In the classroom students were divided by their age and length of time at the school. She was a member of the senior level class with her half-sister
Jane Loeau
Jane Loeau (December 5, 1828 – July 30, 1873) was a Hawaiian chiefess during the Kingdom of Hawaii who attended the Chiefs' Children's School, also known as the Royal School.
Early life and education
She was born December 5, 1828, at Waime ...
. During their Sunday procession to church it was customary for boys and girls to walk side by side; Abigail walked beside Alexander Liholiho, the future
King Kamehameha IV
Kamehameha IV (Alekanetero ʻIolani Kalanikualiholiho Maka o ʻIouli Kūnuiākea o Kūkāʻilimoku; anglicized as Alexander Liholiho) (February 9, 1834 – November 30, 1863), reigned as the fourth monarch of Hawaii under the title ''Ke Aliʻi ...
.
American merchant
Gorham D. Gilman visited the Royal School in 1848, after both Jane and Abigail had left the school. He commented on the two sisters' education, declining family rank and inability to support themselves:
Marriages
Maheha became pregnant while at Royal School. Her instructions ended on January 18, 1847, and she left the school on February 4. She was married off to commoner Keaupuni on February 3, 1847, in Honolulu.
Maheha gave birth to a daughter
Keanolani (sometimes written as Keano; 1847–1902), on
Kauaʻi
Kauai, () anglicized as Kauai ( ), is geologically the second-oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands (after Niʻihau). With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the List of islands of th ...
, five months after the marriage. The child was not Keaupuni's as it was later acknowledged by a witness named Mele during the divorce case. According to later tradition was the illegitimate daughter of Maheha with her classmate Lot Kapuāiwa, who later became King
Kamehameha V
Kamehameha V (Lota Kapuāiwa Kalanimakua Aliʻiōlani Kalanikupuapaʻīkalaninui; December 11, 1830 – December 11, 1872), reigned as the fifth monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Kingdom of Hawaiʻi from 1863 to 1872. His motto was "Onipaʻa": i ...
from 1864 to 1872.
[; ; ; ] Keanolani was raised by Princess
Ruth Keʻelikōlani, the half-sister of Kamehameha V. When she died in 1902, Keanolani's parentage was scrutinized by the English language press.
King Kamehameha V died December 11, 1872, without acknowledging Keanolani or naming an heir to the throne.
In 1855, Keaupuni was involved in the Hawaii Supreme Court case ''Keaupuni vs.
Fred. Ogden''. The plaintiff sought to recover damages from the defendant for criminal conversation with the plaintiff's wife, Abigail Maheha. The indecisive jury were discharged by the Court after an absence of four hours.
They eventually divorced.
She married Kiaʻaina Wahineaea on July 17, 1857, on Kauaʻi. Her first name was spelled "Apigaila" on the marriage record.
She died in Hale Aliʻi,
Honolulu
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...
, on February 13, 1861.
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Maheha, Abigail
1832 births
1861 deaths
Royalty of the Hawaiian Kingdom
House of Kekaulike
Hawaiian princesses
Hawaiian adoptees (hānai)
Royal School (Hawaii) alumni
People from Kauai