Boki
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| Boki | |
| Born | unknown Hawaii |
|---|---|
| Died | December, 1829 lost at sea |
| Occupation | Royal governor |
| Spouse | Kuini Liliha |
| Parents | Kekuamanoha and Kamakahukilani |
Boki (before 1785—December 1829) was a High Chief in the ancient Hawaiian tradition and served the Kingdom of Hawaii as royal governor of Oahu.
Contents |
[edit] Early life
Boki was the son of Kekuamanoha and Kamakahukilani. His father was a chief of Maui and grandson of Kekaulike, King of Maui. He was a younger brother of William Pitt Kalanimoku, but it was rumored that he was a son of Kahekili II. His original name was Kamauleule and his nickname came from a variation of "Boss", the name of Kamehameha I's favorite dog.[1]
[edit] Royal governor
Boki was appointed governor of Oahu and chief of the Waianae District by Kamehameha I, and continued in his post under Kamehameha's son Kamehameha II. Boki also encouraged the Hawaiians to gather sandalwood for trade, ran a mercantile and shipping business, and opened a liquor store called the Blonde Hotel.
Boki and Liliha were leading members of the delegation to England during which King Kamehameha II and Queen Kamamalu contracted measles and died. Returning with Lord Byron to the Hawaiian Islands aboard the British battleship, H.M.S. Blonde, bearing the bodies of the King and Queen, he stopped at Rio de Janeiro and obtained several coffee trees that in turn were the Arabica strain originating from the plateaus of Ethiopia. Upon his return, he gave the trees to ex-West Indies settler and agriculturalist, John Wilkinson, to plant on the Chief's land in Oahu's Manoa Valley, but was never able to cultivate the trees for fruit production.[2]
[edit] Catholicism
Boki agreed to the breaking of the kapu (prohibition) in 1819 and accepted the Protestant missionaries arriving in 1820, although he had been baptized as a Catholic, along with his brother Kalanimoku, the previous year aboard the French vessel of Louis de Freycinet. Although he was one of the first chiefs to be baptized, when he married Liliha, he refused to marry her in church and, despite his conversion, was known to enjoy partaking of "sinful" and "immoral" treats, such as drinking okolehau (liquor made from ti root).
Queen regent Ka'ahumanu had become influenced by the Protestant missionaries in Honolulu and was baptized into the Congregational church. Heeding the advice of her Congregationalist ministers, Ka'ahumanu influenced Kamehameha III to ban the Roman Catholic Church from the islands. Boki and Liliha were a constant threat to Ka'ahumanu and her hold on the boy-king and when she learned that they were among the first chiefs to convert to the Hawaii Catholic Church it angered her, since she wanted all the chiefs to accept Protestantism, an example she hoped all Hawaiians would follow. Torn in conflicting directions, Kamehameha III turned to alcohol in what was portrayed as a clear rejection of the Christian standards of morality.
[edit] Sandalwood
Boki, himself, was not completely averse to change and had immersed himself in the sandalwood trading business after the kapu on the tree placed by Kamehameha I was no longer in force. He grew rich, like many other chiefs, but the chiefs' lack of understanding of financial concepts caused him to become deeply indebted by 1829. When word reached him that New Hebrides, a faraway group of South Pacific islands, was heavily forested in sandalwood, he pulled together a fleet of two ships and set sail. He was never heard from again. The sandalwood trade soon ended because the forests were totally depleted.
Before departing, Boki entrusted administration of Oahu to his wife and, subsequently, widow, Liliha who was made chieftain of Waianae and governor of Oahu, until she tried to overthrow Ka'ahumanu. Her father Hoapili talked her out of it at the last minute, but she was, nevertheless, relieved of her duties. After Ka'ahumanu died in 1832, Liliha was described as no longer observant of the missionary rules.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/hi/keepers/koc39.txt
- ^ Kona Coffee History: Hawaii's unique story of the road to coffee greatness
- ^ History of Makaha
