Kamehameha II

Kamehameha II
Kamehameha II succeeded the throne of the Kingdom of Hawai‘i upon the death of his father, Kamehameha I. He and his Queen Consort died in London from the measles.
Birth name	Liholiho
Reign	1819 -1824
Successor	Kamehameha III
Predecessor	Kamehameha
Consort	Kamamalu
Born	(1797 -
Died	July 14 1824)

Kamehameha II, King of Hawaii (1797 - 1824) was the second king of the Kingdom of Hawai‘i. Born 'Iolani Liholiho in Hilo, Hawai‘i, the eldest son of Kamehameha I and his highest-ranking wife Keopuolani, he was groomed to be heir to the throne from age five. Liholiho succeeded to the throne upon Kamehameha I's death in May 1819, but among other conditions, he was forced to take on merely a ceremonial role; administrative power was to be vested in Ka‘ahumanu, his father's favorite wife, who was given the title of kuhina nui, the rough equivalent of a prime minister. Kamehameha II is best remembered for the 'Ai Noa, the breaking of the ancient kapu (taboo) system of religious laws six months into his reign. It was also during his reign that the first Christian missionaries arrived in the Hawaiian Islands. In November 1823 Kamehameha II and his queen, Kamamalu, commissioned Capt Valentine Starbuck of the British whaler Aigle, to carry them to London seeking to complete negotiations for an alliance between Hawaii and Great Britain.^[1] However, before he could meet with King George IV, he and his queen caught measles, to which they had no immunity. Kamehameha II died on July 14, 1824. The royal bodies were returned to Hawaii on a Royal Navy boat under the command Captain George Anson Byron.^[1] Kamehameha II was succeeded by his younger brother, Kauikeaouli, who became Kamehameha III.

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b} Dunmore, p 238

References

• Dunmore, John (1992); Who's Who in Pacific Navigation, Australia:Melbourne University Press, ISBN 052284488X

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