Kepookalani was a High Chief during the founding 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 ...

. Two of his grandchildren would marry each other, and two of his great-grandchildren would be the last two ruling monarchs of the Kingdom.

Life

Kepookalani was born around 1760. His mother was Kamakaeheikuli and father was Kameeiamoku. He was half-cousin of

Kamehameha I 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 ...

, and named after the only full brother of Kamehameha usually called Keliimaikai or Keapo o Kepookalani. His notable half-brothers (with different mothers) were Hoolulu and Ulumāheihei Hoapili who both became close advisors to Kamehameha and were trusted to aid in his burial. In the

Hawaiian language Hawaiian (', ) is a Polynesian language of the Austronesian language family that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language o ...

, ''ke po'o ka lani'' means "the royal leader". He married his cousin Chiefess Alapai Wahine and they had a son

Kamanawa II Kamanawa II known as Kamanawa Ōpio or Kamanawa Elua ( – October 20, 1840) was a Hawaiian high chief and grandfather of the last two ruling monarchs of the Kingdom of Hawaii, King David Kalākaua and Queen Lydia Makaeha Liliuokalani. His fa ...

(c. 1785–1840) and another son Kapelakapuokakae. Kamanawa was named after the

Kamanawa ''For other persons with this name, please see Kamanawa II.'' Kamanawa (died c. 1802?) was a Hawaiian high chief and early supporter of King Kamehameha I, known as one of the royal ''Nīʻaupiʻo'' twins with his brother Kameeiamoku. He later bec ...

who was a twin of Kepookalani's father. Often he is called Kamanawa Ōpio or Elua because ''ōpio'' means "junior" and ''elua'' means "second" in Hawaiian. Kamanawa was convicted of the murder of his wife in 1840 and executed. Kepookalani also married High Chiefess Keohohiwa and had son Aikanaka (c. 1790–1868), a child named Kalailua, and then married a Chiefess named Nune (spelled Nenew in some sources) and had a daughter named Piianaia. Kamanawa's son Caesar Kapaakea (1815–1866) would marry Aikanaka's daughter Analea Keohokālole. They were half-cousins, since they shared only a grandfather, with different grandmothers. Their children were called the

House of Kalākaua The House of Kalākaua, or Kalākaua Dynasty, also known as the Keawe-a-Heulu line, was the reigning family of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi between the assumption of King David Kalākaua to the throne in 1874 and the overthrow of Queen Liliʻuokala ...

, including the last two ruling monarchs of the Kingdom: King David Kalākaua (1836–1891) and

Queen Liliuokalani Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mothe ...

(1839–1893). Kepookalani was their "double great-grandfather" or "great-grandfather from both sides". This kind of family background was a desirable way to enhance the royal bloodlines at the time, but was attacked by the conservative missionaries later in the 19th century as incest. Even some of the other royals snubbed Kalākaua and did not congratulate him when he came to the throne in 1874. The Isaac Hale Beach Park on the

island of Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii ) is the largest island in the United States, located in the state of Hawaii. It is the southeasternmost of the Hawaiian Islands, a chain of volcanic islands in the North Pacific Ocean. With an area of , it has 63% of th ...

was named for a descendant who lived in the area named Isaac Kepookalani Hale.

Family tree

References

{{reflist 1760s births 19th-century deaths Royalty of the Hawaiian Kingdom