Background
She was a high chiefess as the granddaughter of Isaac Davis Aikake, the royal advisor to King Kamehameha I.
Harriet was born c. 1823 as Harriet Kaumualiʻi. Harriet"s father was George "Prince" Kaumualiʻi, eldest son of King Kaumualiʻi, the last independent ruler of the island of Kauaʻi.
Her mother was Elizabeth Peke (Betty), the youngest daughter of Isaac Davis, from Milford Haven, Wales who was an important military advisor of King Kamehameha I during his conquest of the islands.
Career
George was a veteran of the War of 1812, but would not inherit the kingdom. She probably had an older sister adopted by another chiefess and an older brother who died young in 1822. Harriet"s father started a rebellion on Kauaʻi, challenging the rule of King Kamehameha II and Queen Kaʻahumanu.
Hoapili and Kalanimoku, the Prime Minister, were the main commanders for the Kingdom.
The rebellion was routed. Harriet and her mother were soon captured by the troops of Kalanimoku.
They were treated with kindness and the Queen regent nicknamed the child ka wahine kipi ("The Rebel Woman" in the Hawaiian language), in reference to the 1824 battle, a name that stayed with her for the rest of her life. George died shortly after, never to see his homeland ever again.
Her husband remarried in 1846 to a woman named Kepoʻokalani and had another son who he named John, who would become the first native Hawaiian photographer.
Meek died the same year.
