Princess Kalani Ahumanu i Kaliko o Iwi Kauhipua o Kīnaʻu (later known as Elizabeth Kīnaʻu), was born in about 1805 in Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi, to Kalākua Kaheiheimālie and King Kamehameha I. The exact year of her birth is not known. She was one of the earliest students of the missionaries, spoke English from a young age, and became a devout Christian. By the time she was 30 years old, she had been married three times, was a queen, Dowager Queen, and served in the office of Kuhina Nui – all at a time when women across the globe were unable to do anything without the approval of their fathers or husbands. The Kingdom of Hawaiʻi established the role of Kuhina Nui, a unique position in the administration of Hawaiian government, from 1819 to 1864 with no equivalent in western governments of the day. The Kuhina Nui held equal authority to the king in all matters of government, including the distribution of land, negotiating treaties and other agreements, and dispensing justice.
Kīnaʻu became Kuhina Nui and regent by succession in 1832 when Kaʻahumanu died. Under specific arrangement all decisions made by Kamehameha III, who was merely 19, were subject to Kīnaʻuʻs approval. This initially caused much strife between Kīnaʻu and the young king. In1835 her fourth son, Alexander Liholiho, was named heir to the throne. A large portion of the governing powers were turned over to Kīnaʻu and her husband, Mataio Kekūanāoʻa, was appointed governor of Oʻahu. During Kīnaʻuʻs time as Kuhina nui, she undertook a series of programs of reform, including frequent prayer meetings and an attempt to abolish alcohol from the islands. She was responsible for enforcing Hawai‘i’s first penal code, proclaimed by the King in 1835. She died in April 1839 after complications from contracting mumps at age 33 or 34.
Sources:
“Kinau (c. 1805–1839) .” Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia . . Encyclopedia.com. (June 25, 2020).
https://www.encyclopedia.com/women/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/kinau-c-1805-1839
Kuykendall, Ralph S. The Hawaiian Kingdom: Volume 1. University of Hawaiʻi Press, 1953.
Sai, David Keanu. Ua Mau Ke Ea Sovereignty Endures: An Overview of the Political and Legal History of the Hawaiian Islands. Pūʻā Foundation, 2011.
