Kamehameha the Great's son and chosen heir, Liholiho ruled during tumultuous change in Hawaiian culture and politics. Most noted for abolishing the kapu system a year before the arrival of the missionaries, Kamehameha II also faced many other challenges from newly arriving foreign influences. Extensively researched, the historical text is richly illustrated with drawings, photographs, and archival images depicting Hawaiʻi in the early 1800s and key figures of those turbulent times.