Very soon after her marriage Kaahumanu was detected in flagrant
flirtations with certain chiefs whose business brought them to
the court of her husband, and Kamehameha set a close watch upon
her actions. This led to bitter words between them, and in time it
became a matter of gossip that Kamehameha was jealous of his young
wife. The arrival of Kaiana added another to the list of Kaahumanu's
admirers, and in time another wrinkle to the stern face of her
warrior-husband. Kaiana was one of the handsomest chiefs of his
day, and Kaahumanu could not disguise her infatuation for him. But,
whatever may have been the temptation, he was too discreet to awaken
the jealousy of Kamehameha, and was not displeased when he was
despatched with an army against Keoua in the distant district of Kau.
After the death of Kalaniopuu, in 1782, and the defeat and death of
Kiwalao, the widow of the former, whose name was Kalola, left for Maui,
taking with her the widow and infant daughter of Kiwalao. Kahekili,
brother of Kalola, provided for the family and gave them his
protection. After the conquest of Oahu by Kahekili he removed his
court to that island, taking with him his sister and her family. In
1785 they returned to Maui with Kalanikupule, the son of Kahekili,
who had been appointed viceroy of the island, and there remained,
principally at Olowalu, until 1790, when Kalanikupule was driven from
Maui by Kamehameha, and they sought refuge at Kalamaula, on the island
of Molokai.
Seeing his way clear to the conquest of the group, and anxious to
ally himself to the superior blood which came through Kalola and
Kiwalao, Kamehameha despatched a messenger to Molokai, requesting
Kalola not to return to Oahu, but to place herself and family under
his protection. Following the messenger to Molokai, and learning that
Kalola was ill and not expected to recover, Kamehameha paid her a
visit in person, and received the assurance of the dying dowager that,
when she passed away, her daughter and granddaughter should be his.
The granddaughter was Keopuolani, then a girl of fourteen. She
subsequently became the wife of Kamehameha and the mother of the
ruling princes of his dynasty. In recognition of her superior rank
Kamehameha always approached her on his knees, even after she had
become his wife and he the undisputed sovereign of the group. Such
was the deference invariably paid to rank at that time and earlier.
Kalola did not live but a few days after her meeting with
Kamehameha. At her death he manifested his sorrow by knocking out two
of his front teeth, and then formally took charge of and removed to
Hawaii her daughter and granddaughter, not only as a sacred legacy
from Kalola, but as a token of reconciliation and alliance between
himself and the elder branch of the Keawe dynasty.
Kaahumanu well understood the meaning of this reconciliation, and it
was with little pleasure that she welcomed Liliha and her daughter to
Hawaii. She knew it was the purpose of Kamehameha to marry Keopuolani
as soon as she reached a proper age; but she was childless and could
urge no valid objection to the union. The thought of it, however,
did not sweeten her temper or quicken her sense of propriety. She
became more reckless, and her husband more and more suspicious,
until they finally separated, when Kaahumanu returned to her father,
where she remained for more than a year, and where, it is said,
Kaiana frequently visited her.
Of these visits Kamehameha was apprised by Kepupuohi, the wife of
Kaiana, of whom tradition makes but spare mention. She was jealous
of her husband's attentions to Kaahumanu, and it was through her
that Kamehameha became aware of their secret meetings. His spies had
overlooked what the jealous eyes of the wife had discovered, and it is
intimated that they retaliated in kind upon the recreant couple. Be
that as it may, Kamehameha sent for Kaahumanu, and through the
offices of Captain Vancouver, whose vessel was at that time anchored
in Kealakeakua Bay, a reconciliation was effected between them.
But Kamehameha did not forgive Kaiana. His thoughts were bent upon
the conquest of Oahu, and he needed his assistance in that important
enterprise; but he determined to crush him whenever he could do so
without injury to himself. Kaiana felt the coldness of his chief, and
had observed unmistakable evidences of his hatred; but he neglected
no duty, and resolved that, if an open rupture could not be avoided,
Kamehameha should not be in a position to urge a reason for it that
would command the respect and approval of his supporting chiefs.
Summoning his district chiefs to muster their quotas of canoes and
armed men, Kamehameha prepared for the conquest of Oahu and a final
struggle for the mastery of the group. It is said that his army
numbered sixteen thousand warriors, some of them armed with muskets,
and that so great was the number of his canoes that they almost
blackened the channels through which they passed.
The army embarked from Hawaii early in 1795, and, after touching at
Lahaina for refreshments, landed for final preparation on Molokai, the
fleet of canoes being distributed for miles along the coast. Kaiana
had promptly responded to the call of his chief, and was there with
a heavy quota of warriors and canoes.
A council of war was called at Kaunakakai to discuss the plans
of the campaign, but Kaiana was not invited to participate in its
proceedings. His exclusion from the council alarmed Kaiana, and he
suspected that he was the principal subject of discussion. He left
his quarters, and calling at the house of Namahana, the mother of
Kaahumanu, learned from her that the council was discussing some
private matter, the nature of which she did not know. He next visited
Kalaimoku, after the adjournment of the council, and endeavored
to ascertain what had been done, but the answers of the chief
were evasive and unsatisfactory. He did not dare to tell Kaiana,
who was allied to him in blood, that Kamehameha had charged Kaiana
before the council with meditated treason, which implied his death,
and that his advisers had prevailed upon him to allow the matter to
rest until after the conquest of Oahu.
On his way back to Hamiloloa, where his warriors were encamped,
Kaiana again passed the house of Namahana. It was past sunset, and
he was striding through the dying twilight, his thoughts a tumult of
doubt and indignation, when from behind a clump of bushes he heard
his name pronounced in a low tone. He stopped and listened, and
"Kaiana!" again came to him in a soft voice.
Fearful of treachery, he hesitated for a moment, then drew a knife
from a scabbard hanging from his neck, and cautiously walked around
the screening undergrowth.
"Who calls?" inquired Kaiana, observing a crouching figure among
the bushes.
"Your friend," was the answer; and Kaahumanu rose and stood before him.
What passed between them can only be conjectured; but Kaahumanu must
have satisfied Kaiana of Kamehameha's hostile purposes concerning him,
for when he reached his quarters he promptly informed his brother
Nahiolea of the danger awaiting both of them, and apprised him of his
resolution to abandon Kamehameha on the passage to Oahu and join forces
with Kalanikupule. "The movement is hazardous," explained Kaiana,
"but it will enable us, at least, to die like chiefs, with arms in
our hands, instead of being slain like dogs."
As the several divisions were preparing to embark for Oahu the
next morning, Kaiana visited the squadron of canoes set apart for
the accommodation of the wives and daughters of Kamehameha and his
principal chiefs, and secretly informed his wife of his purpose
to join Kalanikupule. She expressed surprise at the announcement,
but declined to follow him, declaring that she preferred to cast her
fortunes with Kamehameha. "But," she continued, bitterly, "perhaps
Kaahumanu would follow you, if asked to do so!" Kaiana made no reply
to this cutting suggestion, but waved his wife a hasty farewell,
and joined his embarking warriors.
The other divisions of the invading army were well out to sea
before Kaiana's sails were set, and he found no difficulty in making
his way unobserved to Kailua, on the northern side of the island,
while Kamehameha landed with the main body of his forces in the
neighborhood of Honolulu, his canoes extending along the beach from
Waialae to Waikiki.
Disembarking his warriors at Kailua, to the number of perhaps fifteen
hundred, Kaiana offered his services to Kalanikupule, whose army was
rapidly occupying positions in the valleys back of Honolulu. The moi
received him with open arms, promising him the sovereignty of Maui
should they succeed in destroying Kamehameha; and the united armies,
climbing over the Nuuanu and Kalihi passes, confronted the advancing
lines of Kamehameha.
Learning of the desertion of Kaiana and the warriors under his command,
Kamehameha exhibited but little surprise. He did not doubt his ability
to defeat the combined armies of his opponents, for the auguries had
been favorable and he had faith in his gods; nor did he regret that
through his defection Kaiana had at last placed himself in a position
to be dealt with as an open enemy.
With his war-god Kaili in the van, Kamehameha, at the head of a
mighty force, marched up Nuuanu Valley, where, three miles back of
Honolulu, behind a stone wall stretching from one hill to the other
of the narrowing gorge, was entrenched the main body of the allied
armies. And behind the wall stood Kaiana, grim, silent and desperate,
with a musket in his hand, awaiting the approach of Kamehameha.
Nearer and nearer advanced the attacking column, with shouts that were
repaid by yells of defiance from behind the defences. A few volleys
of musketry were exchanged by the hundred or more of warriors in
possession of fire-arms on each side, but Kaiana took no part in the
noisy conflict. He was watching for the approach of one whose life
he longed for more than all the rest, and for which he was willing
to exchange his own.
But he watched in vain. A field-piece, under the direction of John
Young, was brought to bear upon the wall, and Kaiana fell with the
first shot, mortally wounded. After a few more shots the Hawaiians
charged up the hill, their shouts drowning the roar of the breakers
against the reef below. Kaiana drew himself up against the wall. His
heart had been laid almost bare, and his eyes were growing dim. With
an effort he raised his musket, fired it at random in the direction
of the storming column, hoping the bullet might by chance find the
heart of Kamehameha, and then fell dead.
The rout of the Oahuans and their allies was complete. They broke and
fled in all directions. Some were driven over the pali, a precipice
six or seven hundred feet in height at the head of the valley, and
others escaped over the hills. Kalanikupule found refuge for a time
in the mountains, but he was finally captured, slain and offered as
a sacrifice to Kamehameha's war-god at Waikiki.
This was the last battle of the conquest, and the victory gave to
Kamehameha the sovereignty of the group, for the king of Kauai,
recognizing his power, soon after yielded to him his peaceful
allegiance. But it brought to a close the career of one of the most
noted of modern Hawaiian chiefs--Kaiana-a-Ahaula--over whose death
Kamehameha rejoiced, and Kaahumanu mourned in silence. Her love proved
fatal to more than one, but he was the grandest and brightest of all
who perished by the sweet poison of her smiles.