Kamehameha Day

Among the most celebrated accomplishments of King Kamehameha I, whose legacy is honoured on this state holiday, is his introduction of the Rule of the Splintered Paddle. Kamehameha, who united the Hawaiian Islands in 1795 after a lengthy military campaign, once got his foot stuck in a hole in lava rock during a sortie. Unable to run away, he was beaten by local fishermen with wooden paddles. He survived, and when his attackers were later brought before him, he unexpectedly spared them, instead issuing a merciful decree calling for the protection of non-combatants during wartime. Kanawai Mamalahoe, as the Rule is called in Hawaiian, eventually became an influence on modern international law.