Great Mahele

The Great Mahele (lit., "division") or just the Mahele was the Hawaiian land redistribution act proposed by King Kamehameha III in the 1830s and enacted in 1848.

Overview

This was part of a sweeping set of modernizing social changes following the death of Kamehameha the Great, including the drafting of a constitution and a bill of rights. Although not directly redistributing land, it allowed chiefs and commoners to claim private title to land and called for the establishment of an arbitration committee to iron out disputes.

Hawaiian Bill of Rights 1839

The 1839 Hawaiian Bill of Rights, also known as the 1839 Constitution of Hawaii, was an attempt by Kamehameha III and his chiefs to guarantee that the Hawaiian people would not lose their tenured land, and provided the groundwork for a free enterprise system.^[1][2] The document, which had an attached code of laws, was drafted by Lahainaluna missionary school alumni Boaz Mahune, revised by the Council of Chiefs, and signed by Kamehameha III in June 1839.^[3]

1840 Constitution of the Kingdom Hawaii

The 1840 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii set up a structure for democracy in Hawaii, and stated that the lands of Hawaii belonged to its people and were to be managed by the king.^[4] It established the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government. The document established property rights of the individual, and provided for removal of any chief who did not act in accordance with the constitution.^[5]

Land division (mahele) of 1848

Hoping to keep ownership of the land out of the hands of foreigners in the event of a political coup d'état, Kamehameha III and 245 chiefs met to divide the Hawaii lands among themselves.^[3] The Mahele abolished the previous semi-feudal system. Under this, rule over an ahupuaʻa was given by the king to a chief, who received taxes and tribute from the people who worked the land collectively. Private land ownership did not exist, as a commoner could be expelled from his land by the chief, or the chief removed by the king.^[6]

60% of the land was allocated to the crown as the Hawaiian crown lands. 39% was allocated to the chiefs. The remaining 1% was to go to the common people.^[7]

Eventually most of this land was sold or leased to foreigners.^[8] The large amount of land that went to the government resulted in Hawaiʻi having a very high proportion of state-owned land: about 32% is owned by the state, while another 4.8% is Hawaiian Homelands.^[9]

Acts of 1850

Alien Land Ownership Act-July 10, 1850

During a one-year foreign travel absence by opposition voices Kamehameha IV, Kamehameha V and missionary physician Gerrit Judd, the legislature on July 10, 1850 passed the Alien Land Ownership Act, which had been written by Chief Justice William Little Lee. The justification was the promise of prosperity resulting from an influx of much needed foreign capital and labor.^[10][11]

Kuleana Act-August 6, 1850

One of the notable provisions of the Great Mahele was the Kuleana Act (1850).^[12]

Under this provision, commoners were allowed to petition for title to land that they cultivated and lived on (kuleana), equivalent to a homestead. However, it also abolished the right of cultivation and pasturage on the larger, common lands of the ahupuaʻa, title of which went to the chief, the crown, or the government.

Ownership of land was a previously unknown concept for the commoners, and many did not understand the need to make a claim for land on which they already worked. Communication about the Kuleana act depended upon word-of-mouth or the ability to read the written word. Making a claim also required money for a pre-claim land survey It was required that two witnesses state the claimant had worked the land.^[13] Lack of knowledge about the provisions led to relatively few kuleana being claimed.^[7][14] As a result, common native Hawaiians were often restricted to small pieces of land, while members of higher classes and ʻaliʻi obtained title to most of the land.^[7][14]

References

1. ^ "Kingdom of Hawaii Constitution of 1839". The Morgan Report. http://morganreport.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=Kingdom_of_Hawaii_Constitution_of_1839. Retrieved 3 December 2010. 
2. ^ "1839 Hawaiian Bill of Rights". Free Hawaii. http://www.freehawaii.org/1839.html. Retrieved 3 December 2010. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Hitch, Thomas Kemper; Kamins, Robert M (1993). Islands in Transition: The Past, Present, and Future of Hawaii's Economy. University of Hawaii Press. pp. 28–30. ISBN 978-0824814984. 
4. ^ McGregor, Davianna Pomaikai (2007). Na Kua'aina: Living Hawaiian Culture. University of Hawaii Press. pp. 32–33. ISBN 978-0824829469. 
5. ^ Richard H. Kosaki (1978). "Constitutions and Constitutional Conventions of Hawaii". Hawaiian Journal of History (Hawaii Historical Society) 12: pp. 120–138. hdl:10524/196. 
6. ^ Linnekin, Jocelyn (1990). Sacred Queens and Women of Consequence: Rank, Gender, and Colonialism in the Hawaiian Islands. University of Michigan Press. pp. 7–8. ISBN 978-0472064236. 
7. ^ ^{a b c} Kent, N J (1993). Hawaii Islands Under the Influence. University of Hawaii Press. pp. 31–33. ISBN 978-0824815523. 
8. ^ Native Hawaiians Study Commission Report - 1983, p. 334
9. ^ Hawaii Statewide GIS Program
10. ^ Merry, Sally Engle (1999). Colonizing Hawai'i. Princeton University Press. pp. 93–95. ISBN 978-0691009322. 
11. ^ Van Dyke, Jon M (2007). Who Owns the Crown Lands of Hawai'i?. University of Hawaii Press. pp. 60–61. ISBN 978-0824832117. 
12. ^ Rhodes, Diane Lee. "A Cultural History of Three Traditional Hawaiian Sites on the West Coast of Hawai'i Island". Changes After the Death of Kamehameha. United States Department of the Interior. http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/kona/history5g.htm. Retrieved 3 December 2010. 
13. ^ Wong, Helen; Rayson, Ann (1997). Hawaii's Royal History. Bess Press. pp. 98–99. ISBN 978-0935848489. 
14. ^ ^{a b} Norgren, Jill (2006). American Cultural Pluralism and Law. Praeger. p. 25. ISBN 978-0275986995.