Kaua'i

Kauaʻi is a mountainous island in the northwestern Hawaiian chain, cut by deep valleys and bordered by reefs and beaches. Its chiefs ruled a polity that remained distinct while Kamehameha extended his power over the islands to the southeast. Waimea on its southwestern shore became the setting for an encounter that brought the archipelago to European attention.

The high ridges and valleys gave the island a landscape distinct from the younger volcanoes farther southeast. In 1778 James Cook landed at Waimea Bay. Kamehameha later conquered most of the other main islands, but attempts to bring Kauaʻi under his authority faced the difficulty of crossing the sea. In 1810 its ruler Kaumualiʻi accepted Kamehameha’s supremacy, completing the political unification of the islands without a final invasion.