Towereroo was the first Hawaiian to visit Europe. He returned to the Hawaiian islands

Hawaiian Islands

The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...

 on the Vancouver Expedition

Vancouver Expedition

The Vancouver Expedition was a four-and-a-half-year voyage of exploration and diplomacy, commanded by Captain George Vancouver. The expedition circumnavigated the globe, touched five continents and changed the course of history for the indigenous nations and several European empires and their...

 in 1792. Although during his time the British spelled his name "Toweroo", it would probably be Kualelo with modern Hawaiian language

Hawaiian language

The Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...

 spelling.

Travels

An inhabitant of the island of Molokai

Molokai

Molokai or Molokai is an island in the Hawaiian archipelago. It is 38 by 10 miles in size with a land area of , making it the fifth largest of the main Hawaiian Islands and the 27th largest island in the United States. It lies east of Oahu across the 25-mile wide Kaiwi Channel and north of...

, in 1788 Towereroo went aboard the ship Princess Royal

Princess Royal (sloop)

Princess Royal was a British merchant ship that sailed on fur trading ventures in the late 1780s, and was captured at Nootka Sound by Esteban José Martínez of Spain during the Nootka Crisis of 1789...

under Captain Charles Duncan as translator and passenger. In addition to Duncan, he befriended her chief mate (and later commander) James Johnstone

James Johnstone

James Johnstone was a Scottish biologist and oceanographer. His studies focused on the food chain in marine ecosystems...

 and surgeon Archibald Menzies

Archibald Menzies

Archibald Menzies was a Scottish surgeon, botanist and naturalist.- Life and career :Menzies was born at Easter Stix in the parish of Weem, in Perthshire. While working with his elder brother William at the Royal Botanic Gardens, he drew the attention of Dr John Hope, professor of botany at...

. They voyaged to China where Towereroo was put on Prince of Wales. When they reached England, Johnstone put him in school where, according to Menzies:

"...to the art of Drawing in general he appeared most partial, & would no doubt in a short time make great proficiency with the aid of a little instruction, but in this uncultivated state of his mind he seemed fondest of those rude pictures called Caricatures & frequently amused himself in taking off even his friends in imitation of these pieces."

In 1790, Towereroo accompanied Captain Duncan in an exploration of Hudson Bay

Hudson Bay

Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...

. When they returned to England, Menzies' patron Sir Joseph Banks announced hopes that Towereroo would be helpful to British ships visiting Hawaii. In 1791 he was put aboard HMS Discovery

HMS Discovery (1789)

HMS Discovery was a Royal Navy ship launched in 1789 and best known as the lead ship in George Vancouver's exploration of the west coast of North America in his famous 1791-1795 expedition. She was converted to a bomb vessel in 1798 and participated in the Battle of Copenhagen. Thereafter she...

, along with Menzies and Johnstone. He assisted Menzies in exploring ashore and botanizing at Tenerife

Tenerife

Tenerife is the largest and most populous island of the seven Canary Islands, it is also the most populated island of Spain, with a land area of 2,034.38 km² and 906,854 inhabitants, 43% of the total population of the Canary Islands. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, the...

 and, probably, elsewhere, making him probably the first Hawaiian to visit South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 and New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

.

When the expedition reached Tahiti, Towereroo decided he preferred to stay and marry a local girl. However, the Lords of the Admiralty had directed Vancouver to return him to Hawaii, and Towereroo's wishes were not considered. The local chief, Pōmare

Pomare I

Pōmare I, King of Tahiti , fully in old orthography: Tu-nui-ea-i-te-atua-i-Tarahoi Vairaatoa Taina Pōmare I , was the unifier and first king of Tahiti and founder of the Pōmare dynasty and the Kingdom of Tahiti between 1788? and 1791.Outu is the phonetic English rendering of...

 (spelled "Pomarrey" at the time), protected Towereroo for a few days, but after "...much investigation, and some coercion..." returned the young adult to the British.

Return

In March 1792, the expedition reached Hawaii, where it was discovered that Towereroo's home island of Molokai was enduring a famine. He was therefore left at Kawaihae with Chief Kaiana and a few presents, which the chief promptly took. Later visitors, such as Frances Barkley of the Halcyon, noted his perfect English and use of the English name "Charles". According to then-Lieutenant Peter Puget

Peter Puget

Peter Puget was an officer in the Royal Navy, best known for his exploration of Puget Sound.-Mr. Midshipman Puget:Puget's ancestors had fled France for Britain during Louis XIV's persecution of the Huguenots. His father, John, was a successful merchant and banker, but died in 1767, leaving Puget's...

, English explorers found Towereroo "of infinite use in the management of the Natives."

Menzies reports that by being useful to Kamehameha I

Kamehameha I

Kamehameha I , also known as Kamehameha the Great, conquered the Hawaiian Islands and formally established the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1810. By developing alliances with the major Pacific colonial powers, Kamehameha preserved Hawaii's independence under his rule...

, Towereroo had gained a plantation and he gained another by marrying a chief's daughter; ultimately he controlled around 200 "vassals". In the rough-and-tumble of Hawaiian politics, his rapid rise and close relation with the British Empire were both assets and sources of jealousy; at least once Vancouver had to intercede for his life.

Little is recorded of this man's eventual fate, who in his time was the most far-traveled of Hawaiians.