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High Chiefess Kapiʻolani (c. 1781–1841) was an important member of the Hawaiian nobility at the time of the founding of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi and the arrival of
Christian missionaries A Christian mission is an organized effort to carry on evangelism, in the name of the Christian faith. Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries. Sometimes individuals are sent and ...
. She was one of the first Hawaiians to read and write, as well as sponsor of a church. She made a dramatic display of her new faith, which was the subject of a poem by
Alfred, Lord Tennyson Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (; 6 August 1809 – 6 October 1892) was an English poet. He was the Poet Laureate during much of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1829, Tennyson was awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge for one of ...
.


Ancestry

Every high chief in the Hawaiian Islands was related to her, including
Kamehameha I Kamehameha I (; Kalani Paiʻea Wohi o Kaleikini Kealiʻikui Kamehameha o ʻIolani i Kaiwikapu kauʻi Ka Liholiho Kūnuiākea; to May 8 or 14, 1819), also known as Kamehameha the Great, was the conqueror and first ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii ...
, who was both her second cousin and her third cousin through different relations. Her ancestors included royalty of Kauaʻi, royalty of Maui and the royalty of Hawaiʻi island. The name probably comes from ''ka pi'o lani'' meaning "heavenly arch" in the
Hawaiian language Hawaiian (', ) is a critically endangered Polynesian language of the Austronesian language family, originating in and native to the Hawaiian Islands. It is the native language of the Hawaiian people. Hawaiian, along with English, is an offi ...
. The father of Kapiʻolani was Keawemauhili, who was high chief (''Aliʻi Nui'') of the district of Hilo on the island of Hawaiʻi. She was probably born there about 1781. Keawemauhili was half-brother to Kalaniʻōpuʻu who was king of the island during the fatal visit of Captain James Cook in 1779. Her mother was his second wife Kekikipaʻa, daughter of Kameʻeiamoku, who had fled with from her first husband Kamehameha I to Hilo in order to marry Keawemauhili. She was a first cousin of Kiwalaʻo, the young king of the island who was killed when Kamehameha I first came to power at the battle of Mokuʻōhai in July 1782.


Life

After a quiet period of a few years, the civil wars continued in 1790. Her father Keawemauhili joined forces with Kamehameha, but was then killed by his nephew Keōua Kuahuʻula. The young Kapiʻolani was thrown in the bushes by her caretakers as the army fled, but was saved and sent to live with her aunt Akahi in the village of Kealia in the Kona District near the religious centers on Kealakekua Bay. She was instructed in the Hawaiian religion and its strict social rules known as '' kapu''. For example, women were not allowed to eat bananas. Once she sent a servant boy to secretly get some for her to taste. When the local priest found out, she was spared but the boy was sacrificed. She was still a young girl when the
Vancouver Expedition The Vancouver Expedition (1791–1795) was a four-and-a-half-year voyage of exploration and diplomacy, commanded by Captain George Vancouver of the Royal Navy. The British expedition circumnavigated the globe and made contact with five continen ...
arrived at Kealakekua Bay in 1793 and 1794. This time, through interpreters, Hawaiians could start to learn about other cultures. In 1805, an epidemic known as ''mai oku'u'' broke out. Much of the royalty, including Kamehameha I and Kapiʻolani got very sick. She might have briefly married High Chief Chief Kuakini, who later became the royal governor of the island. She became known as having liaisons with several members of the ruling class. The death of Kamehameha in 1819 put the kingdom into turmoil. The period known as ʻAi Noa (literally, "free eating") after one king's death was traditionally followed by the new king imposing similar Kapu rules. However, this time, powerful women such as Queen Kaʻahumanu (then Regent), Keōpūolani (mother of the new King
Kamehameha II Kamehameha II (November 1797 – July 14, 1824) was the second king of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Kingdom of Hawaii from 1819 to 1824. His birth name was Liholiho and full name was Kalaninui kua Liholiho i ke kapu ʻIolani. It was lengthened to Kala ...
), along with Kapiʻolani, were not satisfied with the old ways. Chief Keaoua Kekuaokalani attempted to gather followers of the old system at the temple near where she was living, but he was defeated at the battle of Kuamoʻo. American Christian Missionaries led by Rev. Asa Thurston arrived only a few months later, in March 1820 at Kailua-Kona about to the north. They had already embarked on the ship ''Thaddeus'' before Kamehameha's death. They describe meeting Kapiʻolani for the first time as she was sunbathing while applying coconut oil, "basking in the noonday tropical sun, like a seal". They also describe finding her "with her two husbands, all nearly nude, and in a state of beastly intoxication". She followed the missionaries to
Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...
in 1821, where a school had been set up. She quickly learned to read and write and settled into a
monogamous Monogamy ( ) is a relationship of two individuals in which they form a mutual and exclusive intimate partnership. Having only one partner at any one time, whether for life or serial monogamy, contrasts with various forms of non-monogamy (e.g. ...
relationship with her husband
Naihe Naihe (died 1831) was the chief orator and councilor during the founding of the Kingdom of Hawaii. A champion athlete in his youth, he negotiated for peace at several critical times and helped preserve the remains of several ancient leaders. Ear ...
(her stepbrother, since her father married his mother). She returned to Kealakekua Bay in the spring of 1823, but wanted to continue her education. She would send boats up to Kailua to pick up a preacher for Sunday services. In the summer of 1823 William Ellis toured the island to determine locations for mission stations, and identified Kapiʻolani and Naihe as "friends and patrons of missionary efforts". Because of this, he suggested the village of Kaʻawaloa at the north end of Kealakekua Bay as one of the first sites for a church. Later on the tour, after a long journey to the volcano
Kīlauea Kīlauea ( , ) is an active shield volcano in the Hawaiian Islands. It is located along the southeastern shore of Hawaii (island), Hawaii Island. The volcano is between 210,000 and 280,000 years old and grew above sea level about 100,000 years ...
with little food, Ellis eagerly ate the wild berries they found growing there. The berries of the ʻŌhelo ''(
Vaccinium reticulatum ''Vaccinium reticulatum'', known as in Hawaiian language, Hawaiian, is a species of flowering plant in the Erica (plant), heather family, Ericaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. It grows at altitudes of on lava flows and freshly Ruderal species ...
)'' plant were considered sacred to the goddess Pele, who lived in the volcano according to Hawaiian mythology. Traditionally prayers and offerings to Pele were always made before eating the berries. The volcano crater was an active lava lake, which the natives feared was a sign that Pele was not pleased with the violation. In February 1824 Kapiʻolani constructed a thatched house about by for use as a church, and Rev. James Ely starting using it for services in April. Although other leaders had tolerated the missionaries, this was the first time a major noble had constructed a building specifically for them.


Challenging Pele

In the fall of 1824 she decided to show her people a dramatic demonstration of her faith. Although many other temples were destroyed by this time, the native Hawaiians continued to honor the goddess Pele at Kīlauea, which was still active. Following the example of the Ellis trip, she traveled to the volcano. Because of the sharp, barren lava rock on the way, it would have been much faster to use canoes. She set out on foot, gathering a large crowd as she walked about sixty miles. Rev. Goodrich from the Hilo mission met her at the volcano near the end of December. The guardians of Pele warned that if she did not make the customary offerings, she would certainly be killed. Many remembered when their relatives were wiped out by an explosive eruption in 1790. She said a Christian prayer instead of the traditional one to Pele, and descended about 500 feet down into the main vent of
Halemaʻumaʻu Halemaumau (''six syllables: HAH-leh-MAH-oo-MAH-oo'') is a pit crater within the much larger Kīlauea Caldera at the summit of Kīlauea volcano on island of Hawaii (island), Hawaiʻi. The roughly circular crater was before collapses that ro ...
. There was a molten lava lake at the time, but no eruption and she survived intact, with only bruises on her feet from the long journey. This event has become legendary at the volcano. Whilst on the volcano, she defied Pele by breaking a taboo of eating ʻŌhelo berries without offering any to Pele, as was custom. Instead she told her onlookers that if she returned without being destroyed by Pele in the volcano, they must abandon their worship of Pele and instead worship the Christian God. In July 1825, Admiral Lord Byron (cousin of the famous poet) brought back the bodies of Kamehameha II and Queen Kamāmalu who had died in England. Naihe traveled to Honolulu and helped negotiate the peaceful transition in which the 11-year-old Prince Kauikeaouli would be named
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 was Keaweaweula Kīwalaō Kauikeaouli Kaleiopapa and then lengthened to Keaweaweula K ...
, but power would be held again by Queen Kaʻahumanu. Naihe led Byron back to Kealakekua Bay, where his crew looted many artifacts from the temples that remained in the area. In October 1825 Kapiʻolani was baptized. Commanding the respect of the people, she kept order in her districts of south Kona and Kaʻū, and often traveled to help the less fortunate. This was very different than the strict isolation of the upper classes that was the tradition in
ancient Hawaii Ancient Hawaii is the period of Hawaiian history preceding the establishment in 1795 of the Kingdom of Hawaii by Kamehameha the Great. Traditionally, researchers estimated the first settlement of the Hawaiian islands as having occurred sporad ...
. She is described as not being "hard and puritanical" but rather having a "nature-loving spirit". Rev. Samuel Ruggles became pastor of the church in 1828. He found the shoreline areas too hot, so Kapiʻolani offered some land at a higher elevation and a few miles inland to build a house. It was near the present town of
Captain Cook Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer famous for his three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 1768 and 1779. He complet ...
, an area formerly used to grow
taro Taro (; ''Colocasia esculenta'') is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, stems and Petiole (botany), petioles. Taro corms are a ...
called ''Kuapehu.'' visited Kealakekua Bay in 1829 and she hosted the officers at her home. The ship chaplain, Rev. Charles Stewart, was a former missionary to Hawaii who had met Kapiʻolani in 1823. In 1829, she was saddened to find the destruction of the temples included desecrating the bones of her ancestors at the Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau. She removed the remains of the old chiefs and hid them in the ''Pali Kapu O Keōua'' cliffs. She then ordered this last temple to be destroyed. The bones were kept hidden safely until they were moved to the Royal Mausoleum of Hawaii in 1858. Naihe died December 29, 1831, and Kapiʻolani moved uphill to live near the missionaries. She became friends with Persis Goodale Thurston Taylor (daughter of Asa and Lucy Goodale Thurston) who sketched a silhouette in 1839. She started a garden, experimenting with various plants, including guava, oranges, and coffee. This area is now known as the center for growing Kona coffee. In 1839 missionary Cochran Forbes started to build a massive stone church on more of her land. The site was ''kepulu'', just uphill from the current village of Napoʻopoʻo, since the village of Kaʻawaloa was mostly abandoned. In about 1840 she developed
breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...
. In March 1841 she traveled to Honolulu for surgery by Dr. Gerrit P. Judd (without anesthetic). She recovered, and was preparing to leave when she died on May 5, 1841. She was buried in a royal plot in Honolulu.


Legacy

The massive stone church would fall into ruin, but be rebuilt several times. Now known as Kahikolu Church, it is still in use today. The "Chiefess Kapiʻolani Elementary School" is named for her. As of 2008 enrollment was 402 students. The school is located at 966 Kilauea Avenue in
Hilo, Hawaii Hilo () is the largest settlement in and the county seat of Hawaii County, Hawaiʻi, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaiʻi, and is a census-designated place (CDP). The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. I ...
. The story of Kapiʻolani became very popular in the middle of the 19th century. The British author
Alfred, Lord Tennyson Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (; 6 August 1809 – 6 October 1892) was an English poet. He was the Poet Laureate during much of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1829, Tennyson was awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge for one of ...
(1809–1892) wrote a poem about her, published after his death by his son. Verse IV, for example reads:
Long as the lava-light
Glares from the lava-take,
Dazing the starlight;
Long as the silvery vapor in daylight,
Over the mountain
Floats, will the glory of Kapiolani be mingled with either on Hawa-i-ee.
Her nephew Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole named his daughter after her, who became known as Queen Kapiʻolani (1834–1899) when her husband became
King Kalākaua King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a constitutional monarch if his power is restrained by f ...
. This namesake would in turn lend her name to several notable institutions in Hawaii.


See also

*
List of Missionaries to Hawaii This is a list of missionaries to Hawaii. Before European exploration, the Hawaiian religion was brought from Tahiti by Paʻao according to oral tradition. Notable missionaries with written records below are generally Christians, Christian. Pr ...
* List of
Kapiʻolani Kapiʻolani (December 31, 1834 – June 24, 1899) was the queen of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi as the consort of Mōʻī (king) Kalākaua, who reigned from 1874 until his death in 1891, when she became known as the Dowager Queen Kapiʻolani. Dee ...
namesakes


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kapiolani, Chiefess 1780s births 1841 deaths Year of birth uncertain Royalty of the Hawaiian Kingdom Converts to Christianity from Hawaiian religion Hawaiian Kingdom Protestants