Valley of The Big Battle-The Iao Valley


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North America » United States » Hawaii » Maui » Wailuku
February 17th 2019
Published: February 19th 2019
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(Just a reminder that you can enlarge photos by clicking on them and comments at the bottom are always appreciated)

It was another gorgeous day Sunday, so we decided to drive over to the other side of the island near Wailuku to visit the Ioa Valley Monument. It's a very beautiful, lush valley surrounded by tall mountains in the rainforest part of Maui, which is the opposite side of the island from Lahaina. Inside the valley is the rock formation known as the Iao Needle. The native Hawaiians thought it was the phallic symbol of the God of the Sea, Kanaloa. This was the site of the Battle of Kepaniwai waged between the invading King Kamehameha forces from Oahu and the Maui forces of King Kehekili.



The battle was so horrible that they said the dead bodies blocked the stream. Here is the story of the battle from HawaiiHistory.org.:



Battle of Kepaniwai<br style="color: #3d3d3d; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: #ffffff; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;" />

As Kamehameha fought to control all the islands, he won a decisive battle at 'Iao Valley, Maui. Landing his war fleet at Kahului while Maui's chief Kahekili was on O'ahu, Kamehameha pursued Kahekili's son Kalanikupule and other Maui chiefs deep into 'Iao Valley. Kamehameha's warriors were aided by his Western cannon, called Lopaka, and his two foreign advisors, John Young and Isaac Davis, who operated it. Many died in the bloody battle called Kepaniwai ("the damming of the waters"), but none of Maui's major chiefs were killed. Many, including chiefess Kalola and her granddaughter Keopuolani, escaped through the mountains to Olowalu and Lahaina. After Kamehameha's victory, Kalola accepted Kamehameha's protection and promised Keopuolani to him as a future wife (she was 11 years old at the time). Despite the defeat of his forces, Kahekili refused to relinquish control of the island; Kamehameha returned later to reconquer the island in 1794.


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20th February 2019

Scenic View
One of most spectacular spots in Paradise
20th February 2019

Looks spectacular! Amazing views!

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