Kaumualiʻi (c. 1778–May 26, 1824) was the last independent aliʻi nui of Kauaʻi and Niʻihau before becoming the vassal of Kamehameha I within the unified Hawaiian Kingdom in 1810. He was the 23rd high chief of Kauaʻi and reigned from 1794 to 1810.
Although he was sometimes known as George Kaumualiʻi, he should not be confused with his son, who is more commonly known by that name.
In Hanamāʻulu, Hawaii, King Kaumuali'i Elementary School is named after him.
Family
Kaumualiʻi was the only son of the queen regnant (aliʻi nui or aliʻi aimoku) of Kauaʻi and Niʻihau, Kamakahelei, and her husband, Aliʻi Kāʻeokūlani (c. 1754–1794), regent of Maui and Molokaʻi. Kāʻeokūlani was the younger son of Kekaulike, the 23rd aliʻi aimoku and mōʻī of Maui. He became the co-king and effective ruler of Kauaʻi by his marriage.
When Kamakahelei died in 1794, she passed their titles and positions to the 16-year-old Kaumualiʻi, who reigned under the regency of Chief Inamoʻo until he came of age. His first wife and consort was his half-sister Kawalu of Oʻahu. His second wife was his half-sister Kaʻapuwai Kapuaʻamohu of Kōloa; his third and final wife was the queen regent Kaʻahumanu (1768–1832), Kamehameha's widow.
Unification
120px|thumb|left|[[Mahiole of Kaumualiʻi, currently at the Bishop Museum.]]
Kauaʻi and Niʻihau had eluded Kamehameha's control since he first tried to add them to his kingdom in 1796, a year after Kaumualiʻi became king. At that time, the governor of the Island of Hawai'i led a rebellion against Kamehameha, forcing him to return home. Kamehameha tried again in 1803, but disease ravaged his armies, and he called a retreat to heal his men and work on his strategy. Over the next years, Kamehameha amassed the largest armada Hawaiʻi had ever seen: foreign-built schooners and massive war canoes armed with cannons to carry his vast army. Kaumualiʻi decided to negotiate a peaceful resolution rather than resort to bloodshed. The move was supported by Kamehameha as well as the people of Kauaʻi and the foreign sandalwood merchants on the island, whose trade was hurt by the constant feuding. In 1810, Kaumualiʻi met face to face with Kamehameha in Honolulu and negotiated a peaceful surrender, acknowledging Kamehameha as supreme ruler, Kauaʻi as a tributary domain under Kingdom of Hawaiʻi and was able to remain in power to govern the island. He agreed that Kamehameha's heir would rule Kauaʻi after his own death.
In 1815, a ship from the Russian-American Company, the Bering, was wrecked on Kaua'i. RAC Governor Alexander Andreyevich Baranov dispatched another ship, the Isabella, to retrieve the cargo from the Bering. In 1816, Kaumualiʻi signed an agreement to let Georg Anton Schäffer and his Russian crew build the forts Alexander and Barclay-de-Tolly. The Hawaiian fort, Paʻulaʻula o Hipo, was renamed Fort Elizabeth in later decades and attributed to the Russians. Construction began in 1817 but, by fall of that year, the Russians were expelled.
In 1817, Kaumuali'i married Kekaihaʻakūlou, who became known as Deborah Kapule. at the tomb of Halekamani in Lahaina. Their remains were transferred to a tomb on the island of Mokuʻula sometime in 1837 and to the cemetery of Waiola Church in 1884.
Kaumualiʻi was popular among both his people and foreigners who visited and worked on his islands. Captain George Vancouver, who gave the young king a flock of sheep as a gift in 1792, was thanked with a lavish banquet and described his host glowingly. Kaumualiʻi was described as handsome, likeable, and courteous, as well as a capable leader. Upon his death, the people of Kauaʻi sincerely mourned him.