King Kamehameha Day Festival

Born in north Kohala, Hawaii and being a child of tribal leaders he was raised in the ways of both war and diplomacy. Kamehameha created laws to protect the innocent and non-combatants during war time, but more importantly he brought peace to the islands after decades of warfare.

The Comet

The sign of the comet portends the coming of the King among these independent and warring tribes. That was the legend of the inhabitants of Hawaii concerning a leader that would unify the islands. The birth of King Kamehameha may have corresponded with the appearance of Halley's Comet in 1758 or may have occurred twenty years earlier but unify the Hawaiians he did.

Kealakekua Bay

After a tumultuous youth Kamehameha fought in support of his uncle's bid for tribal leadership in a battle at Kealakekua Bay on the big island of Hawaii. In 1779, among other Hawaiian leaders, he met with the British Captain Cook at the same location.

This bay was also the scene where Captain Cook was killed by the Hawaiians, after they foiled his attempt to take their king hostage, on a return trip.

Consolidating Power

By the early 1780's the Kona area tribal leaders recognized his abilities and offered the kingship to Kamehameha who then incorporated Kohala and Hamekua into his domain. Even the island contributed to his success in 1790 when the volcano erupted and poisoned a third of a rebel army with its deadly fumes.

Five years passed and, with the help of guns and ammunition from American and British traders, Kamehameha the Great invaded nearby Maui and Molokai. His armada of twelve hundred war canoes and ten thousand warriors then moved on to the island of Oahu where they were victorious after a fierce and bloody battle with no prisoners taken.

Kamehameha tried to conquer the two remaining islands in 1803 but was interrupted by disease amongst his troops and his own ill health. The years passed and Kamehameha amassed a huge navy of vessels ranging from foreign built ships to war canoes large enough to hold small canon. By 1810 his neighbors saw which way the trade winds blew and decided to negotiate an arrangement that made King Kamehameha ruler of all the Hawaiian Islands.

Law of the Splintered Paddle

While pursuing his early career as a warrior Kamehameha caught his foot in a rocky crevice and two local fishermen, who feared for their lives and the lives of the innocent family members that were routinely slaughtered during raids, hit him with a paddle. They hit him so hard that the tough paddle wood splintered, Kamehameha was knocked unconscious and the fishermen escaped.

Years later they were brought before King Kamehameha for their just punishment. The King awarded the two innocents with land and a pardon then gave them freedom. He also gave them credit for having taught the young warrior the lesson that inspired the King to declare what became the first written law for the Kingdom of Hawaii,

"Let the elderly, the woman and the child lie by the roadside in safety.",

and this law, that saved thousands of lives during the unification, is still proclaimed in the constitution of the State of Hawaii.

The Mystery

King Kamehameha the Great died on the 8th of May, 1819 and to protect the power of his sacred 'mana' the body was spirited away by his closest friend and buried in a hidden spot. The burial site of the King from Kohala remains a mystery and the power of his 'mana' is undisturbed.

Kamehameha Day Festivities

Flowers are the uniting element in the celebration of any holiday on the big island of Hawaii and the Kamehameha Day Festival is true to form. Starting in the morning of the 11th of June the nine foot tall, richly painted bronze statue of King Kamehameha, rescued from the bottom of the ocean near the Falkland Islands, is almost smothered in twenty two foot long colorful flower lei and this ceremony is then followed by a day of floral parades, music, hula and luau.

Along with flower decorated floats, a women's equestrian unit, the "pa'u riders", travel the parade route. Each woman is gracefully draped in twelve yards of colorful material and horse and rider are then decked-out with flowers to join the marchers and floats all decorated with the vibrant colors and fragrances of exotic flowers.

The evening is filled with hula dancers, weaving stories with their hands while swaying to the island music, wafting along on balmy breezes, beneath the palm trees towering over feasts of fish, fresh fruits, umbrella drinks and poi.

Reference:
www.kamehamehadaycelebration.org
http://en.wikipedia.org
www.nowpublic.com
www.hawaiiforvisitors.com