JUNE 23, 1849

CHIEF AND LEGISLATOR AARON KEALI’IAHONUI DIED

Born August 17, 1800, to the last king of Kaua’i and a mother of royal line, “Keali’iahonui” means the “King whose strength is attained through patience.” Kamehameha I had made his father his vassal in 1810. In 1821, his father was forced to symbolically marry Queen Regent Kaʻahumanu. After his father died in 1824, and his half-brother Humehume led a failed rebellion, Kealiʻiahonui also was forced to marry her. At 6 feet 6 inches, he was athletic and considered the handsomest chief in the Islands. Baptized in 1825, he took the name “Aaron.” After Kaʻahumanu died in 1832, he married Kekauōnohi, a granddaughter of Kamehameha I and, as Queen Consort, she became Royal Governor of Kauaʻi in 1840. The 1840 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii names Kealiʻiahonui as a founder of the upper house of the legislature, the House of Nobles. He served in the legislature (1842-48), as royal chamberlain (1845), and in King Kamehameha III’s Privy Council (1845-47). Kealiʻiahonui died in Honolulu.

Sources:

“The Passing of Keali‘iahonui: Burial and Land Case, 1849,” Hoakalei Cultural Foundation.  Retrieved 3/15/2023, The Passing of Keali‘iahonui: Burial and Land Case, 1849 | Hoakalei Cultural Foundation (hoakaleifoundation.org)

Wikipedia

Photo:  Author unknown, pre-1849.  Public Domain. Source: Kameʻeleihiwa, Lilikalā (1992) Native Land and Foreign Desires, Honolulu: Bishop Museum Press, p. 275 ISBN: 0-930897-59-5.