Read this article in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi
Kauikeaouli (Kamehameha III) was the longest reigning monarch – some 30 years. He was the first to build a western style palace for the nation. We are familiar with ʻIolani Palace but before that were the palaces that Kauikeaouli built.
Aia ka hale kupapaʻu o Pohukaina i ka ʻaoʻao komohana lalo. Aia ʻo Hale Aliʻi ma uka o Pohukaina.
The first palace that was built by Kauikeaouli was Hale Piula at Lahaina. Piula is not the name of the palace but rather the kind of material used for construction as in Hale Kauila – it was made from kauila wood taken from the refuge of Hōnaunau. Piula is a kind of metal used for the roof that was painted red so that ships visiting Lahaina, the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, could see it.
The building had two stories and the walls were made of coral blocks. Kauikeaouli did not live in the palace as it was only for government affairs. He and (Queen) Kalama lived in a pili-thatched house on Mokulua. When the seat of the Hawaiian Kingdom moved to Oʻahu in 1845, Hale Piula was abandoned and the red piula roof fell apart. A kahuna warned Kauikeaouli of the prophecy of Kaʻōpulupulu: “The chief-eating sands of Kākuhihewa.”
When they moved to Oʻahu, they used Hale Ulule for government affairs, a structure that Boki built. Hale Uluhe was a thatched house with its corner edges lined with uluhe, a sturdy fern. Hale Uluhe was near what is now St. Andrew’s Cathedral.
Just as they lived in Lahaina, Kauikeaouli and Kalama lived in a nearby compound. When entertaining honored guests, the king sat on a throne draped with a yellow-feathered cape, the cape of Kamehameha, his regal father.
The royal residence was at Pohukaina. Kauikeaouli bought the property on what is now ʻIolani Palace, near Kekauluohi, the state archives building. Kekūanāoʻa built the home for his daughter Kamāmalu (Lohelani). When the longest reigning monarch died, the house was left to the new king, Alexander Liholiho and Queen Emma. This royal palace was named ʻIolani by Kapuāiwa, Kamehameha III, for his brother Alexander.
There was another palace owned by Kauikeaouli, which was a place he lived at when Honolulu was scorching hot. This palace was Kaniakapūpū and was located far ma uka of Nuʻuanu at Luakaha. There is a picture of the house in 1844 before the seat of government moved from Lahaina, therefore Kaniakapūpū was there before the move.
Kaniakapūpū was famous for a huge feast on the fourth anniversary of Restoration Day, a 10-day celebration of the restoration of the sovereignty of Hawaiʻi by Great Britain. Nearly 16,000 people celebrated at Kaniakapūpū. Indeed, the land shells (pūpū) celebrated with their sounds (kani).
 was the longest reigning monarch – some 30 years. He was the first to build a western style palace for the nation.){kind=link}