Queen Liliuokalani

Queen Liliuokalani

• 1892 she is made Queen of Hawaii

• Sister of King Kalakaua

• Also believed in restoring Hawaiian power and rights to their own kingdom

Queen Liliuokalani

• Wanted to get rid of Bayonet Constitution since it was illegal and unfair to the Hawaiian people

• Wanted a new constitution which said:– Don’t need land to vote– Must be a citizen of Hawaii to

vote– King/Queen can elect

whomever they choose for their government

– King/Queen regains power to make decisions

Committee of Public Safety formed…

• Made up of Annexation club and foreigners upset with Queen’s plans to do away with Bayonet Constitution

• Planned to get rid of Queen– Set up a provisional

(temporary) government– Push for annexation of

Hawaiian Kingdom to U.S.

Queen Liliuokalani

• Once she found out a Committee of Public Safety had formed Queen Liliuokalani decided that she would not try to get a new constitution written so no fighting occurred.

Overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom

• Committee of Public Safety felt it was too late.

• They asked the U.S. minister to Hawaii John L. Stevens for protection

Overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom

• Minister Stevens had about 160 U.S. Marines:– land in Hawaii– march up to Iolani

Palace– protect all Americans

living in Hawaii in case any war or fighting broke out.

Overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom

• Committee of Public Safety went to Iolani Palace and proclaimed the end of the Hawaiian monarchy

• Queen Liliuokalani did not want her people to get hurt and so she surrendered and went to Washington Place.

Overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom

• Queen Liliuokalani hoped the U.S. would stop the illegal overthrow and return Hawaii to her.

Provisional Government

• The Committee of Public Safety set up a provisional or temporary government to rule the Hawaiian Kingdom until annexation to the U.S.

• Sanford Dole is nominated as president of the government

Provisional Government

• The provisional government said that all people must pledge an oath of loyalty to them, but many Hawaiians refused

• The provisional government sent a request for annexation to President Harrison of the U.S.

• At the same time Queen Liliuokalani sent a request asking for her kingdom back and for U.S. to help stop this illegal overthrow

Provisional Government

• Queen’s request was blocked by the Provisional government and so President Harrison only heard their side.

• He said the overthrow was ok and that annexation of Hawaii will happen.

Annexation of Hawaii

• Before President Harrison was able to sign an annexation treaty with Hawaii he is replaced by President Grover Cleveland.

• President Cleveland conducted an investigation

– found that the overthrow was illegal

– so he chose to not allow the annexation of Hawaii

– demanded that Hawaii be returned to Queen Liliuokalani

Annexation of Hawaii

• The Provisional government was not happy with this and so they refused to listen to President Cleveland.

• Instead they planned on waiting until a president who is willing to annex Hawaii is elected.

• While they waited they used Iolani Palace as their new headquarters.

• They created the first Hawaiian fire department and National Guard

Hawaii Becomes a Republic

• Sanford Dole and Lorrin Thurston created a new constitution– All voters must be able to read

and write either in English or Hawaiian

– All voters must have:• money• land• they must promise not to help the

Queen or the Hawaiian people (oath of loyalty to the new Republic of Hawaii)

– Also no hula dancing and music must be European music

Hawaii Becomes a Republic

• 1894 this new constitution was approved by the Provisional Government and those who can vote.

• Hawaii became a republic.

• They were led by Sanford Dole.

Wilcox Attempts Another Revolt

• Robert Wilcox and the people of Hawaii were really upset at what happened with their Queen, etc…

• So Wilcox planned another revolt.

• He and his men bought guns from San Francisco and buried them by Diamond Head

• The plan was to attack the Provisional Government on January 7, 1895

Wilcox Attempts Another Revolt

• Government forces found out about the attack and ambushed Wicox and his men at Waikiki

• Fighting lasted for 2 weeks until Wilcox and his men surrendered.

Punishment for Wilcox’s Revolt

• Upset at what Wilcox did, the Provisional Government had Queen Liliuokalani, Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole, Prince David Kawananakoa, along with 200 other Hawaiians locked up and put on trial.

• Nearly all are found guilty of treason.

• Some were sentenced to death, but eventually sentences were changed to life in jail.

President McKinley and Annexation

• 1896 President McKinley became president of the U.S. and he agreed that annexation should occur because Hawaii is a perfect refueling spot for U.S. Navy in times of war.

• 1898 Spanish American War started and U.S. used Hawaii as a base to refuel their battleships as they fought Spain in the Philippines

• Afraid of losing control of Hawaii President McKinley officially annexed Hawaii in that same year.

• Hawaii was now a part of America and the Hawaiian Kingdom was officially over.

Questions (Use Reading, textbook pages 155-162, and Notes)

1. Why did the Committee of Safety overthrow the Hawaiian Kingdom?

• 2. On page 160 in your textbook, a man named James Blount played an important role in trying to restore Queen Liliuokalani to the position of leader of Hawaii.

– Who was James Blount?– What did he do? Did it work? Explain why or why not.

• 3. After the overthrow the provisional government changed Hawaii into a republic. Yet on page 162 it says that Hawaii really wasn’t a true republic. Explain why.

• 4. What changes did Sanford Dole and Lorrin Thurston add to the constitution of the Republic of Hawaii?

• 5. Explain what Robert Wilcox did to try to restore power to the Hawaiian Kingdom after the Republic of Hawaii was created?

• 6. Whether you agree with the overthrow and annexation of the Hawaiian Kingdom or not, state your opinion about the whole event.

Questions Continued

• 7. What was life like under the Republic of Hawaii for both Americans and Hawaiians? Explain.

• 8. What role did the Spanish American War play in America’s decision to annex Hawaii?

• 9. Think. There are many positives that happened for Hawaii once we became part of the U.S. Explain a few of them. What are some of the negatives?

• 10. Do you think annexation has been positive or negative for Hawaii and it’s people?