After King Kalaniʻōpuʻu died in the spring of 1782, his family took his remains to the royal mausoleum known as Hale o Keawe at the important religious temple Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau.

While Kalaniʻōpuʻu's son Kīwalaʻō had inherited the kingdom, his nephew Kamehameha was given a religious position, as well as the district of Waipiʻo valley.

Their bodies were offered as a sacrifice to Kīwalaʻō, who accepted them, and Kamehameha felt he had to respond to the challenge to his honor.

[3] It was during this battle that the renowned red feather cloak of Kīwalaʻō (now in the Bishop Museum) was captured by Kamehameha the Great.

Keawemaʻuhili (uncle of Kīwalaʻō) was captured but escaped to Hilo, and Keōua Kūʻahuʻula fled to Kaʻū where he had relatives.