Hawaii: Today in History 12/11
12-11-1872 Kamehameha V, Hawaiian king (b. 1830)
Updated: He was born and died on same date, December 11.
Born as Lot Kapuāiwa, reigned as the fifth monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi from 1863 to 1872. His motto was “Onipaʻa”: immovable, firm, steadfast or determined; he worked diligently for his people and kingdom and was described as the last great traditional chief.[2] His full Hawaiian name prior to his succession was Lota Kapuāiwa Kalanimakua Aliʻiōlani Kalanikupuapaʻīkalaninui.
He founded the Royal Order of Kamehameha I society and the Royal Order of Kamehameha I decoration on April 11, 1865 named to honor his grandfather.[21]
The Prince Lot Hula Festival is named for him. It was held the third Saturday in July since 1977 at his former home called Moanalua Gardens.[22]
In February 1847, a female student at the Royal School Abigail Maheha was expelled and wed in a hastily arranged marriages due to a scandalous pregnancy.[23] Some speculate that the sixteen year-old Kamehameha V or his seventeen-year-old brother Moses Kekūāiwa was the father of Abigail’s daughter Keanolani, who left living descendants. Evidence to support this claim include his financial support of Abigail’s husband Keaupuni, veiled conversations the Cookes had with Abigail and Lot dated months before the pregnancy was discovered, and entries from the period which were torn out of his school journal.
