On 14 February 1779, British invader Captain James Cook was killed at Kealakekua Bay, Hawaiʻi, during a violent confrontation with Native Hawaiians.
Cook had initially been welcomed, but relations deteriorated when he returned unexpectedly after his ships were damaged in a storm.
Cook attempted to take the ruling chief, Kalaniʻōpuʻu, hostage to force return of a boat he said was stolen — a coercive tactic he had used elsewhere.
This time, the plan failed.
Hawaiians drew their Weapons.
A confrontation broke out on the shoreline, and Hawaiian warriors killed Cook.
That day, British invader learnt a lesson written in blood.
History often glorifies European explorers while overlooking the sovereignty of the Indigenous peoples they encountered.
Hawaiʻi was not an empty land waiting to be "discovered".
It was home to a people with their own culture, leadership and traditions long before Cook arrived.
That day, the people of Hawaiʻi resisted — and Cook never left the island alive.