On 14 February 1779 British explorer CaptainJames Cook was killed as he attempted to kidnapKalaniʻōpuʻu, theruling chief (aliʻi nui) of the island ofHawaii, and hold him hostage for the return of acutter which Hawaiians had stolen. As Cook and his men attempted to take the chief to his ship, they were confronted by a crowd of Hawaiians atKealakekua Bay seeking to prevent Kalaniʻōpuʻu leaving. In the ensuing confrontation, Cook, four Britishmarines and 17 Hawaiians were killed.
In January 1778, during histhird Pacific voyage, Cook had become the first known European to visit theHawaiian Islands. His expedition returned to the islands in January 1779 and anchored in Kealakekua Bay. Relations between the British and Hawaiians were initially good, as Cook's expedition had arrived during theMakahiki season, a celebration of fertility and the godLono. Although the Hawaiians called Cook "Lono" and treated him with reverence, scholars are divided on whether they considered him a deity.
Cook's expedition left the bay on 4 February but were forced to return a week later after one of its ships was damaged in a gale. However, the Makahiki season had ended and tensions between the British and Hawaiians increased. A series of thefts by Hawaiians and violent reprisals by the British culminated in the theft of the cutter and Cook's attempt to take Kalaniʻōpuʻu hostage for its return. After Cook was stabbed and beaten to death in the following affray, his body was dismembered by the Hawaiians and distributed to their chiefs – a mark of respect for a high-ranking adversary. Following reprisals by the British in which several more Hawaiians were killed, Cook's remains were returned to the British and wereburied at sea withfull military honours.
Following Cook's death, he was widely celebrated in Europe as a heroic explorer and humanitarian. However, some crew member accounts of his final voyage depicted him as hot-tempered and responsible for the mistreatment of indigenous people. For some decades after his death, many Hawaiians venerated him as an ancestral being, but as Christianity spread in Hawaii, his death was increasingly viewed as divine punishment.
The British naval officer,James Cook, led three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 1768 and 1779. During histhird and final voyage, Cook commanded an expedition consisting ofHMSResolution,HMSDiscovery and their crew.[1] He and his crew became the first known Europeans to encounter theHawaiian Islands when they sighted the island ofOahu on 18 January 1778.[2][3] In the following days Cook landed onKauai thenNiʻihau.[4]
On 2 February Cook continued on to the coast of North America and Alaska, mapping and searching for aNorthwest Passage to the Atlantic Ocean for approximately nine months. In November he returned to the island chain to resupply, initially exploring the coasts ofMaui andHawaii and trading with locals, then making anchor inKealakekua Bay, Hawaii, on 17 January 1779.[5][a]
News of the strange visitors had spread throughout the islands, and Cook and his crew were initially welcomed with great excitement, a crowd of about 10,000 gathering on the shore or rowing to the ships in canoes. The arrival of the British coincided with theMakahiki season, a New Year festival in honour of the godLono of theHawaiian religion, and a celebration of fertility and the yearly harvest.[8][9][10] Cook was led ashore by a Hawaiian chief and a priest who conducted him to the Lono shrine (heiau) of Hikeau, at the southern end of the bay, where the priests had their main settlement. A crowd repeatedly shouted "Lono" and prostrated themselves as the procession passed. Priests led Cook through an elaborate ceremony at the shrine before he was conducted back to his ship.[11][12]
On 25 January the high chief (aliʻi nui[13]) of the island, Kalaniʻōpuʻu, met Cook near the shrine where they conducted a ceremonial exchange of names and the symbols of their authority. Both Cook and Kalaniʻōpuʻu were referred to as Lono, and Hawaiians prostrated themselves when they passed.[14][b] The anthropologistsGananath Obeyesekere[16] andMarshall Sahlins[17] havedebated whether Hawaiians considered Cook to be the god Lono. AnthropologistAnne Salmond has argued that high chiefs were considered to beakua, descended from divine beings, and that both Cook and Kalaniʻōpuʻu were considered descendants of Lono.[18][c]
While Cook and many of his crew had some knowledge of Polynesian languages and cultures, they were unaware of the significance of these ceremonies and rituals.[20][21] Nevertheless, relations between the British and Hawaiians were initially good. The priests based in the settlement of Hikiau permitted the British to set up an observatory and camp near the shrine. Trade with the ships flourished, the Hawaiians particularly valuing iron goods. The British reported fewer thefts and tensions than had been the case in the other Pacific islands.[22]
Tensions increased, however, when the Makahiki season ended and the season of the war-godKū began. A Hawaiian was flogged for theft and some of the British beat Hawaiians for trivial reasons. When the British needed firewood, the priests allowed them to buy the wooden fence surrounding the shrine. Some sailors also took carved images from the shrine and the priests asked for the return of the main image. Sources are divided on the extent to which the incident offended the Hawaiians.[23] Soon after, the priests allowed the British to bury a recently deceased sailor on the grounds of the shrine.[24][25]
In early February Kalaniʻōpuʻu and the priests anxiously asked Cook when he was going to leave. After a final round of ceremonial exchanges of gifts, and celebrations involving boxing, wrestling and a fireworks display, Cook's expedition sailed out of Kealakekua Bay on 4 February.[26]
The expedition soon encountered a hard gale which wrenched the mainmast of theResolution. On 11 February they returned to Kealakekua Bay to make repairs.[27] Marine Corporal John Ledyard later wrote:
Our return to this bay was as disagreeable to us as it was to the inhabitants, for we were reciprocally tired of each other. They had been oppressed and were weary of our prostituted alliance...It was also equally evident from the looks of the natives as well as every other appearance that our friendship was now at an end, and that we had nothing to do but to hasten our departure to some different island where our vices were not known, and where our intrinsic virtues might gain us another short space of being wondered at.[28]
The return of Cook (representing Lono) during the season of Kū was contrary to Hawaiian beliefs and caused tension between the priests of Lono and the chiefs who were associated with Kū.[29][30] This time there were no welcoming crowds as the priests had placed a taboo (kapu) on the bay. The priests, however, gave the British permission to again set up a camp near the shrine so theResolution's mast could be repaired. Kalaniʻōpuʻu questioned Cook about his return and was displeased with his answers. He was also displeased with the priests for allowing the British to set up a camp on the shore. Nevertheless, he lifted thekapu on the bay, and trade with the ships resumed.[31][32]
The British soon noticed an increase in thefts and a more defiant attitude from the Hawaiians. A Hawaiian chief took the armourer's tongs from theDiscovery and was punished with 40 lashes. The tongs were taken again but were returned the same day. When a British landing party tried to take a Hawaiian canoe in retaliation, a dispute followed in which a prominent chief named Palea was hit with an oar, and an angry crowd of about 300 Hawaiians responded by hurling stones and beating the landing party. On the same day a party gathering water for the ships was dispersed by Hawaiians, and a marine was pelted with stones. Following these disturbances Cook ordered his marines to load theirmuskets with ball rather than small shot, and ordered all Hawaiians off the ships.[33][34][d]
On the morning of 14 February Cook heard that theDiscovery's largecutter had been stolen. He ordered boats to be stationed at both ends of the bay to capture any canoes attempting to leave. He then set off in theResolution'spinnace to the chiefs' settlement of Kaʻawaloa, at the northern end of the bay, where he intended to take Kalaniʻōpuʻu hostage until the cutter was returned.[37] Cook had previously held Tongan and Tahitian high chiefs hostage for the return of stolen items and this had almost led to violence because Polynesians considered their high chiefs sacred.[38]
Cook landed at the beach near Kaʻawaloa, accompanied by 10 marines. TheResolution'slaunch and cutter remained just offshore to enforce the blockade.[37] Two young sons of Kalaniʻōpuʻu led Cook's party to their father who had been sleeping. Cook spoke to Kalaniʻōpuʻu and was convinced that he knew nothing about the theft of the cutter. When Cook asked him to go with him to theResolution he agreed, and his two young sons ran ahead to the boat.[39][40] However, as Cook and Kalaniʻōpuʻu were walking hand in hand to the boat, one of Kalaniʻōpuʻu 's wives,Kānekapōlei, pleaded with him not to go.[41][42] She was joined by two chiefs who sat Kalaniʻōpuʻu down. A man began chanting and made an offering of a coconut to Cook and Kalaniʻōpuʻu. A crowd of 2,000 to 3,000 Hawaiians had gathered and some began to don their protective war mats and to arm themselves with spears, daggers and stones.[42][39][43] Cook ordered the marines to form a line along the rocks near the shore and told the Lieutenant of Marines, Molesworth Phillips, "We can never think of compelling him [Kalaniʻōpuʻu] to go on board without killing a number of people."[40]
Accounts differ over the confused events that followed,[44][e] but at some point the Hawaiians learned that a chief named Kalimu had been shot on the other side of the bay, which further angered the crowd.[46] When a warrior threatened Cook with a dagger and a stone, Cook fired small shot at him, but it had little effect because the warrior was wearing his war mat.[47][f] The crowd began throwing stones, knocking down a marine. Phillips was attacked with a dagger, but fended off his assailant with the butt of his musket, after which Cook fired ball at a Hawaiian, killing him. One of Kalaniʻōpuʻu's sons was already in the pinnace, but returned to shore when the firing started. The Hawaiians launched a general attack, and the marines and boat crews opened fire.[47][g]
The marines fired one round, but did not have time to reload before the warriors overwhelmed them. Cook ordered the marines to take to the boats then turned to signal the boats to move closer to shore. It is unclear, however, whether he was also ordering them to cease fire.[50][h] During the evacuation to the boats, Cook was clubbed on the back of the head and stabbed. He was then surrounded by Hawaiians who beat and stabbed him to death.[54][55][56][i][j]
Phillips and four other marines made it to the pinnace and the cutter, which pulled away. The launch had already pulled away after the firing had started, its commander, Lieutenant John Williamson, misinterpreting Cook's signal.[62] TheResolution opened fire with cannon, and most of the Hawaiians retreated. Four marines were also killed in the affray, and the British left the five bodies onshore.[56][55][k] Seventeen Hawaiians were killed at Kaʻawaloa, and another eight were killed elsewhere around the bay on the same day.[64]
When news of Cook's death reached the ships, crew members reacted with shock and a desire for revenge. However,Captain Charles Clerke, now the senior officer, persuaded the crew that the priorities were to secure the return of the mast that was undergoing repairs onshore and the bodies of Cook and the dead marines. Following skirmishes with Hawaiians around the British camp, a truce was reached and the British brought theResolution's foremast back to the ship.[65]
Recriminations over Cook's death followed. Phillips and some of the crew of the boats accused Williamson of abandoning Cook, andWilliam Bligh accused the marines of ill-discipline.[66] Several crew members believed Cook provoked the conflict by his decision to kidnap Kalaniʻōpuʻu and by opening fire on the Hawaiians rather than retreating to the boats when he had the opportunity. Others considered that Cook should have fired ball, rather than small shot, at the first sign of violent resistance from the Hawaiians.[67][68] Several suggested that the news of the shooting of a chief on the other side of the bay sparked the violence.[69] Clerke assumed leadership of the expedition[70] and launched an inquiry into Williamson's conduct, after which he promoted him to Second Lieutenant.[71][72]
The bodies of Cook and the marines were taken by the Hawaiians to their chiefs.[73] Cook's body was dismembered, partly burnt, and distributed to the chiefs, which was an honour given to enemies of high rank.[64]Lieutenant James King took a boat to the opposite side of the bay, and was approached by a priest who offered to intercede and ask for Cook's remains to be returned. King consented.[74] The following evening two priests secretly returned a part of Cook's thigh to the British. Some crewmen returned to the shore two days later to collect water, and skirmishes broke out. The British then burned down the priests' settlement at Hikiau and killed five or six Hawaiians.[75][76] Three days later more of Cook's remains were returned to theResolution, including his legs, arms, skull, some charred flesh, and the hands with the skin still attached.[77][78][79] The crewburied his remains at sea.[77]
The British officers were puzzled by the reaction of the Hawaiians to Cook's death. Some lamented Cook and had sworn to recover his remains, while others taunted the British. Hawaiians repeatedly asked the officers when Lono would return and whether he would punish them. Although King was told that Kalaniʻōpuʻu had retired to a secluded cave, it is unclear whether he was mourning the loss of Cook, with whom he had exchanged names, or the dead Hawaiians.[80][65]
The ships left the bay on 23 February 1779, and spent five weeks charting the coasts of the islands – in accordance with a plan set out by Cook before his death. They travelled through the archipelago, stopping atLanai,Molokai,Oahu and Kauai.[77] They then sailed north to again try to locate theNorthwest Passage. Clerke stopped inKamchatka and entrusted Cook's journal and a covering letter describing Cook's death to the local military commander,Magnus von Behm. Behm had the package delivered, overland, from Siberia to England.[81][82] The Admiralty, and all of England, learned of Cook's death when the package arrived in London – eleven months after he died. The package had arrived in England before the surviving crew.[83]
When news of Cook's death reached Britain and continental Europe, obituaries, poems and tributes emphasised his humble birth, technical skills, leadership qualities, contributions to science and trade, and his concern for the well-being of his crew and indigenous people.[84]King George III reportedly wept at the news and awarded Cook's widow,Elizabeth, a pension of £200 a year.[85]
There were many artisticrepresentations of Cook's death.[86]John Webber's influential painting,The Death of Captain Cook (1781–1783), depicted a heroic Cook ordering the boats to stop firing on the Hawaiians. Reproductions of the painting labelled Cook "a victim of his own humanity."[84][87]
The description of Cook's death in the official account of the expedition, published in 1784, suggested that he might not have ordered the marines and boats to fire on the Hawaiians, and might have been stabbed in the back while gesturing to the boats to stop firing. The view that Cook was the victim of his own humanity became the official interpretation of his death.[88][87] The 1785 English pantomimeOmai, or A Trip Around the World, which featured an elaborate staging of Cook's death as a heroicapotheosis, was seen by tens of thousands of people. Other theatrical performances of Cook's death were staged in France and England in 1788 and 1789.[89]
Some unofficial accounts of Cook's death by crewmen challenged the heroic interpretation. In May 1781, aJournal of Captain Cook's Last Voyage, probably by Lieutenant John Rickman, depicted Cook as inflicting violent and excessive punishments on crew and indigenous people.Heinrich Zimmermann's account of the same year portrayed Cook as hot tempered.[90] Ledyard'sA Journal Of Captain Cook's Last Voyage (1783) also depicted Cook as subject to rages and as an exploiter of the Hawaiians.[91] Along with the official account, these narratives suggested that the Hawaiians treated Cook like a god. The poetsWilliam Cowper andJohann Wolfgang von Goethe, after reading some of these accounts, suggested that in allowing himself to be worshipped as a god, Cook had incurred divine punishment.[92][93]
British visitors to Hawaii from the 1780s reported that Hawaiians regretted killing Cook and that he was regarded as aLono-nui, or ancestral being, who would come again and forgive them. In 1823 the missionary William Ellis reported that Cook's bones were still held in a shrine and used in ceremonies. However, by the 1830s, the influence ofProtestantmissionaries had led to a view, particularly among young Hawaiians, that God had killed Cook because he had spreadvenereal disease and allowed himself to be worshipped.[94][95][l]
In 1825 the crew of a visiting British ship set up a memorial to Cook at the site of his death. In 1877 a memorialobelisk was erected at Kealakekua Bay.[97]