Origins & Early Life

Kalanikauikaʻalaneo Kai Keōpūolani-Ahu-i-Kekai-Makuahine-a-Kama-Kalani-Kau-i-Kealaneo (1778–1823) was a queen consort of Hawaiʻi and the highest ranking wife of King Kamehameha I. Keōpūolani was born around 1778 at an area known as Pahoehoe of Pāpōhaku, near present-day Wailuku, on the island of Maui. She was known as Kalanikauikaʻalaneo in her early childhood. Her name means "Gathering of the Clouds of Heaven".

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Her father was Kīwalaʻō, King of Hawaiʻi island. He was the son of King Kalaniʻōpuʻu of Hawaiʻi island who met Captain James Cook at Kealakekua Bay. Her mother was Queen Kekuʻiapoiwa Liliha, half-sister of Kamehameha I. Their father was Keōuakupuapāikalani. Kiwalaʻō and Kekuʻiapoiwa Liliha were half-siblings through their shared mother, High Chiefess Kalola-Pupuka-Honokawahilani of Maui.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

As a child, Keōpūolani lived for a while in Hāna (the eastern tip of Maui), then moved back to the Wailuku area. In 1790, while Keōpūolani was 11, Kamehameha attacked the island of Maui at the Battle of Kepaniwai while her great-uncle King Kahekili II was away on the island Oʻahu. When Maui forces under Kalanikupule lost to Kamehameha, Kalola along...

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