Brief History of Hawaii
European Arrival
With the sighting of great white sails on the horizon, the likes of which the Hawaiians had never seen, the islands were forever changed. Captain James Cook, one of the world’s most recognized British navigators, sailed into Waimea Bay on the island of Kaua‘i first in 1778, and then onto the Big Island at Kealakekua Bay in early 1779.
At the time of Cook’s arrival on the Big Island some 10,000 or more Hawaiians were in the midst of their makahiki celebration, a celebration that honored the god Lono. Cook arriving on his ship with white sails (similar to that of the god Lono’s flag) was likely mistaken as the god Lono and treated accordingly. During his two week stay on the Big Island, he was honored in ceremony upon ceremony. Cook and the Hawaiians entertained each other mutually with their own inventions before the famous navigator set sail away from the islands. Shortly there-after, the makahiki celebration ended, and the bay was made kapu (off-limits).
Meanwhile, a storm off-shore had damaged one of Cook’s ships. Naturally he returned to the bay expecting the same hospitality he’d received before. But many of the Hawaiians had grown tired of the sailors’ presence in the bay, and despite the fraternization that took place, one of Cook’s smaller boats was stolen. It should have ended there, but Cook instead decided to go ashore and kidnap Chief Kalaniopu'u until his boat was returned. Intentional or not, Cook was stabbed in a skirmish which left him dead at the hands of Hawaiian warriors.
Today, a white monument, stands erected at the northern end of the bay where Cook met his demise, a solemn reminder of this event. This is the only piece of land in the Hawaiian chain that remains British soil. Today the area has become most popular for its snorkeling and kayaking.
Cook’s presence forever changed the islands. Chiefs were always at war with one another in Hawai'i. Never had a single ruler controlled all the islands. But a young chief by the name of Kamehameha, a native of Kohala on the Big Island, had taken note of the Westerners weapons and set out to conquer all the islands in the Hawaiian chain: to be their first king. By 1791, he had defeated his cousin and arch-rival on the Big Island, and by 1795, he had conquered Maui, Moloka'i, Lana'i, and O'ahu. In 1810, the chief that ruled Kaua'i, seeing all that had happened with Kamehameha and his warriors island by island, pledged his loyalty to Kamehameha. With that act, Kamehameha (seen here) fulfilled the prophecy that he would become the first King of Hawai'i.
Kamehameha ruled with a tight grip. He wished to prepare the islands for increasing contact with the west - sailors, whalers, and entrepreneurs. Unfortunately Kamehameha could not prepare the islands for what would affect them the most, venereal disease. Over the next century the Hawaiian population was decimated by the likes of influenza, typhoid fever, and measles. Estimates say the population decreased by as much as 80%.
It was greed that would next change the islands. Riches were to be made of the forests of Hawai'i with the sweet smelling sandalwood, a huge commodity in the orient. Guns, boats, and even canons made their way into Hawaiian life, and for the first time the concept of owning land came into existence. In 1819, when Kamehameha died, so did the remainder of Hawaiian life. A short time later Kamehameha II, at the behest of Kamehameha I’s wife, Ka'ahumanu, broke the kapu system that had ruled the islands for generations. A year later, the missionaries arrived from Boston.
Christian Missionaries
In early April of 1820, the first Christian missionaries stepped off their ship from Boston to, yet again, forever change the islands. In the wake of the kapu system being destroyed, many argue the Hawaiians were a people without a religion. Ka'ahumanu and Kamehameha II both quickly became converts of Christianity. The missionaries, recognizing what had just happened in the islands, were quick to destroy many ancient alters and heiau (temples), and quickly replace them with churches (many of which still stand). Today the largest religious groups remain Roman Catholics and Protestants.
Even Pele herself was defied when Kapiolani, high chieftess to the Big Island of Hawai'i, decreed that Jehovah was her god. When Pele remained quiet, the Hawaiian people believed, and many converted. A similar event took place in the mid-1970’s, where again Pele was denounced, and in a twist of irony the volcano erupted afterwards.
However, the missionaries brought a skill to the islands that would put Hawai'i on the map as far as the rest of the world was concerned, reading and writing. Hawai'i eventually soared to have the highest literacy rates in the United States. There had been no previous written language in Hawai'i until the missionaries' arrival. Everything was passed down by word of mouth. It was for this reason the Hawaiians could recite nearly the entire Bible from memory, an astonishing feat to the missionaries that taught them.
It was the children of the missionaries' families that would ultimately make the greatest change in Hawai'i. Ideally the families would have returned home as they were supposed to have done but instead stayed on the island and began a practice no Hawaiian had ever heard of, owning land.
Western law also made its way into Hawaiian life. The Hawaiian Constitution came into existence by 1840, along with a supreme court and a parliament.
Land issues continued to be a large focus in the coming years. By 1848, land was divided into thirds - one for the royalty, one for the government, and one for the common people. Two years later foreigners could buy land outright, and that they did.
Led by the missionaries' descendent's, a great agricultural boom occurred in Hawai'i in the early 20th century, bringing more and more immigrants from Japan, China, and the Philippines to work in the growing fields of sugarcane, pineapple, and other large crops. Hawai'i became a melting pot of world cultures, faiths, and customs, which forged a new identity that still holds true today.
Oil discovered in the heart of America lead to the end of the whaling era, though whales had been so depleted in the waters off Hawai'i that the industry barely existed. Sugar was the new king of the islands, and would continue to be well on into the twentieth century. Today the industry is all but dead in the state, and the economic impact of its absence is still felt in many areas.
With the sighting of great white sails on the horizon, the likes of which the Hawaiians had never seen, the islands were forever changed. Captain James Cook, one of the world’s most recognized British navigators, sailed into Waimea Bay on the island of Kaua‘i first in 1778, and then onto the Big Island at Kealakekua Bay in early 1779.At the time of Cook’s arrival on the Big Island some 10,000 or more Hawaiians were in the midst of their makahiki celebration, a celebration that honored the god Lono. Cook arriving on his ship with white sails (similar to that of the god Lono’s flag) was likely mistaken as the god Lono and treated accordingly. During his two week stay on the Big Island, he was honored in ceremony upon ceremony. Cook and the Hawaiians entertained each other mutually with their own inventions before the famous navigator set sail away from the islands. Shortly there-after, the makahiki celebration ended, and the bay was made kapu (off-limits).
Meanwhile, a storm off-shore had damaged one of Cook’s ships. Naturally he returned to the bay expecting the same hospitality he’d received before. But many of the Hawaiians had grown tired of the sailors’ presence in the bay, and despite the fraternization that took place, one of Cook’s smaller boats was stolen. It should have ended there, but Cook instead decided to go ashore and kidnap Chief Kalaniopu'u until his boat was returned. Intentional or not, Cook was stabbed in a skirmish which left him dead at the hands of Hawaiian warriors.
Today, a white monument, stands erected at the northern end of the bay where Cook met his demise, a solemn reminder of this event. This is the only piece of land in the Hawaiian chain that remains British soil. Today the area has become most popular for its snorkeling and kayaking.
Cook’s presence forever changed the islands. Chiefs were always at war with one another in Hawai'i. Never had a single ruler controlled all the islands. But a young chief by the name of Kamehameha, a native of Kohala on the Big Island, had taken note of the Westerners weapons and set out to conquer all the islands in the Hawaiian chain: to be their first king. By 1791, he had defeated his cousin and arch-rival on the Big Island, and by 1795, he had conquered Maui, Moloka'i, Lana'i, and O'ahu. In 1810, the chief that ruled Kaua'i, seeing all that had happened with Kamehameha and his warriors island by island, pledged his loyalty to Kamehameha. With that act, Kamehameha (seen here) fulfilled the prophecy that he would become the first King of Hawai'i.
Kamehameha ruled with a tight grip. He wished to prepare the islands for increasing contact with the west - sailors, whalers, and entrepreneurs. Unfortunately Kamehameha could not prepare the islands for what would affect them the most, venereal disease. Over the next century the Hawaiian population was decimated by the likes of influenza, typhoid fever, and measles. Estimates say the population decreased by as much as 80%.
It was greed that would next change the islands. Riches were to be made of the forests of Hawai'i with the sweet smelling sandalwood, a huge commodity in the orient. Guns, boats, and even canons made their way into Hawaiian life, and for the first time the concept of owning land came into existence. In 1819, when Kamehameha died, so did the remainder of Hawaiian life. A short time later Kamehameha II, at the behest of Kamehameha I’s wife, Ka'ahumanu, broke the kapu system that had ruled the islands for generations. A year later, the missionaries arrived from Boston.
Christian Missionaries
In early April of 1820, the first Christian missionaries stepped off their ship from Boston to, yet again, forever change the islands. In the wake of the kapu system being destroyed, many argue the Hawaiians were a people without a religion. Ka'ahumanu and Kamehameha II both quickly became converts of Christianity. The missionaries, recognizing what had just happened in the islands, were quick to destroy many ancient alters and heiau (temples), and quickly replace them with churches (many of which still stand). Today the largest religious groups remain Roman Catholics and Protestants.
Even Pele herself was defied when Kapiolani, high chieftess to the Big Island of Hawai'i, decreed that Jehovah was her god. When Pele remained quiet, the Hawaiian people believed, and many converted. A similar event took place in the mid-1970’s, where again Pele was denounced, and in a twist of irony the volcano erupted afterwards.
However, the missionaries brought a skill to the islands that would put Hawai'i on the map as far as the rest of the world was concerned, reading and writing. Hawai'i eventually soared to have the highest literacy rates in the United States. There had been no previous written language in Hawai'i until the missionaries' arrival. Everything was passed down by word of mouth. It was for this reason the Hawaiians could recite nearly the entire Bible from memory, an astonishing feat to the missionaries that taught them.
It was the children of the missionaries' families that would ultimately make the greatest change in Hawai'i. Ideally the families would have returned home as they were supposed to have done but instead stayed on the island and began a practice no Hawaiian had ever heard of, owning land.
Western law also made its way into Hawaiian life. The Hawaiian Constitution came into existence by 1840, along with a supreme court and a parliament.
Land issues continued to be a large focus in the coming years. By 1848, land was divided into thirds - one for the royalty, one for the government, and one for the common people. Two years later foreigners could buy land outright, and that they did.
Led by the missionaries' descendent's, a great agricultural boom occurred in Hawai'i in the early 20th century, bringing more and more immigrants from Japan, China, and the Philippines to work in the growing fields of sugarcane, pineapple, and other large crops. Hawai'i became a melting pot of world cultures, faiths, and customs, which forged a new identity that still holds true today.
Oil discovered in the heart of America lead to the end of the whaling era, though whales had been so depleted in the waters off Hawai'i that the industry barely existed. Sugar was the new king of the islands, and would continue to be well on into the twentieth century. Today the industry is all but dead in the state, and the economic impact of its absence is still felt in many areas.
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