Hello! Hello! Hello! Welcome to episode XX of We Don’t Talk About P-word! Today, we will continue our commemoration of our 50th state's path to statehood. 

Hawaii had great potential for wealth. By now, most of the world knew it and everyone wanted a piece. The incredible speed at which the Kingdom of Hawaii entered the global stage was unheard of. It would not have been possible without the guidance of Western advisors. These advisors came from the United States and other European nations. They helped streamline the process of democracy and government. More importantly, they laid the foundation for corporate success. 

The reliance on foreign advisors would prove problematic for the Kingdom of Hawaii. When your foreign advisors understand your government better than you do... Well, let's just say you set yourself up for failure. Many of the advisors had ulterior motives, maintaining loyalty to their birth nations.

After Kamehameha III died, his nephew assumed the throne at the age of twenty. Alekaneteri ‘Iolani Kalanikualihliho (or Alexander Liholiho) took the name Kamehameha IV. His mother was Kina’u, who served as Kamehameha III’s second Kuhina Nui as Ka’ahumanu II.

Kamehameha III had adopted Alexander at a young age to be his heir. As a result, he grew up at the Royal School, which was a boarding school for educating royal children. In the end, five Hawaiian rulers would attend the school run by Amos and Juliette Cooke. They did so on behalf of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM). By all accounts, this school provided an excellent education but a joyless existence. It was no place for a child to grow up. Alexander left the Royal School at fourteen to study law.

Many believe his time here was one reason he held a negative view of the United States and its missionaries. The second came while he was traveling as a youth. After the Tromelin attack in 1849, a diplomatic mission to France was planned. Foreign Minister Gerrit Judd brought Alexander and his brother Lot Kapuaiwa with him. They began with a tour of California and then made their way to Panama and Jamaica. From there, they visited New York City and Washington D.C. before heading to Europe. 

Alexander was fluent in both English and French. This resulted in warm welcomes while in Europe. He met with both Napolean III and Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s husband, while there. The mission failed to achieve a treaty with the French, and they returned to the United States for a longer stay. While in Washington D.C., they met with President Zachary Taylor. They also met with his Vice President, Millard Fillmore. 

In the latter part of his journey, Alexander’s distaste for the United States deepened. While in the United States, they witnessed the enslavement of Africans. The princes, dark-skinned themselves, felt the disdain many Americans had for them. Two incidents stood out to Alexander. 

While preparing to leave Washington D.C., the prince went to the train before Judd and his brother. He entered the compartment reserved for their journey to New York and made himself at home. The conductor came by and questioned his presence, mistaking him for a servant. 

Alexander kept a journal during his diplomatic trip. He wrote an entry after the experience with the conductor:

“…he was the conductor, and took me for somebody’s servant just because I had a darker skin than he had. …the first time that I have ever received such treatment, not in England or France or anywhere else… The Americans talk and think a great deal about their liberty, and strangers often find that too many liberties are taken of their comfort just because his hosts are a free people.”

In New York at a dinner party, the butler didn’t want to serve Alexander because of the color of his skin. He played a trick on the princes.

The final wedge for Alexander came upon his return home. Before he came to power in 1855, the cabinet of the ruler had been dominated by Americans. There were four cabinet positions, that a total of seven men had filled to date. Gerrit Judd had served in three of the four positions, one overlapping and another a second time. Of the other six men, four were American. Only one was a native Hawaiian, and even Keoni Ana was born to an English sailor and his Hawaiian wife. Even with their loyalty oaths to the king, Alexander feared their motives.

While Alexander, Lot, and Judd were away, the legislature passed a controversial law. All three of the men had opposed this law, but the American cabinet members supported it. It was even written by the Hawaiian Supreme Court Chief Justice, a former American lawyer.

The law was the Alien Land Ownership Act, which allowed foreigners to buy and hold title to land. The reasoning behind it was to promote an influx of both capital and labor in the island kingdom.

Native Hawaiians had no interest in working on the plantations; they did not see a need for it. To this point in their history, they worked the land and lived on what it provided. The need to be paid for work was unnecessary. Because of this, the plantations could not find enough workers. This led to pressure to admit new settlers as farm laborers. 

Without land ownership… well, I am sure you can guess. The managers of these plantations could not earn maximum profit.

While the trio was away, the law passed, and Alexander laid that at the feet of the Americans on the island. We could dispute the truth of that, but knowing how the future plays out, I would not be surprised. 

Soon after, the legislature passed the Kuleana Act, which did several things. Most importantly, it allowed common Hawaiians to make land claims. They could make claims on the common lands they worked; this is like the homestead act of the American west.

(Mark Zuckerberg would use this law in 2019 to gain control of land around his estate in Hawaii.)

Unfortunately, as previously mentioned, land ownership was an alien concept to Hawaiians. Many did not even know they needed to make a claim because of illiteracy. Many could not afford the cost of land surveys or to present the witnesses required. Many of those who did get their land rights, later lost them because of disease or inability to pay taxes.

Sugar production grew by leaps and bounds. The push for annexation also grew as the population of American expatriates grew. They wanted to increase profits, but this required free trade with the United States. Lobbyists in the United States actively worked against this. They were afraid that sugar from Hawaii would hurt their clients' profits.

Alexander believed that annexation would be the end of his kingdom and its people. History would prove him right. When he ascended to the throne, he slowly purged the cabinet positions of Americans. He immediately ended any talk of annexation by the US. Instead, he pushed for a reciprocity agreement to satisfy the sugar producers (unsuccessfully). He invited the Church of England to establish a presence in Hawaii. He did as much as he could to put space between his kingdom and the United States. 
A year after taking the throne, he married Emma Rooke. By all records, they shared a happy marriage. In 1858, their son Albert was born, with Queen Victoria of England as his godmother.

During his reign, Alexander and his wife were responsible for several innovations. They created an agricultural program to encourage natives to farm. They established the first Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce. They made improvements to Hawaii’s harbors. They set up Queen’s Hospital to fight the disease ravaging their people. 

Though happy by most accounts, Alexander could be possessive. In September of 1859, Alexander shot his secretary and close friend, Henry Neilson. There were rumors that Neilson and Emma were having an affair, but it was not true. Also, the king had been drinking heavily at the time. Once he sobered up, he apologized and set Neilson up in his Waikiki estate. Neilson never completely recovered and lived there for the last two years of his life. Alexander considered abdicating over the incident.

In 1861 at the outbreak of the civil war in the United States, Alexander declared Hawaii to be neutral.

Sadly, in 1862 at the age of four, young Prince Albert died. The cause is unknown, but meningitis and appendicitis are both theories. Alexander blamed himself for his son’s death and withdrew from public life. He never recovered from the shock and grief. It exacerbated his asthma and nerve disorder, and Alexander died in 1863. He had reigned for only eight years. 

Alexander’s brother Lot Kapuaiwa assumed the throne. He took the moniker Kamehameha V. Interestingly, he was Alexander’s older brother. Lot had grown up in a similar fashion to Alexander. He had traveled with Alexander and was a member of the King’s Privy Council. Many believed he held the same feelings toward America. This was evident when he appointed a Frenchman as Minister of Finance. 

Under Kamehameha III, the Hawaiian Constitution had been rewritten. The updated version introduced more elements of democracy into the monarchy. It included a more specific declaration of rights. It also ensured no male Hawaiian could be enslaved. The Constitution had grown from 47 sections in 1840 to 106 in 1852.

The fear of America’s motives was palpable, and Lot worked in earnest to return Hawaii to the Hawaiians. 

When he came to power, he did not support the new constitution and refused to endorse it. His desire was to restore the power of the monarchy. He assembled a convention to rewrite the Constitution, but the members refused to sign it. The king dismissed them and enacted this new constitution without their consent. 

The Constitution of 1864 did what he wanted, and expanded the king’s power. It also reduced the legislature to a single unicameral legislature. It restricted the freedom of the press and weakened the judicial branch. It also included a property requirement for the right to vote. 

Lot supported a return to the old ways. He brought kahuna-ism back and even refused to allow the sale of liquor to his people. But as I pointed out last episode, once capitalists catch the scent, there is no holding back the tide. 

Lot would be the last king of the Kamehameha dynasty. He did not consider his expected successor worthy, so he refused to name him as heir. He attempted to name High Chiefess Bernice Bishop as his successor, but she refused. Lot never got the chance to name another successor. He died on his birthday in 1872 at the age of forty-two. With no legitimate heir, his death would leave a vacancy on the throne.

As per the Constitution, that decision would be up to the legislature. 

Despite Lot’s misgivings, he was still succeeded by William Lunalilo. Lunalilo staged an election, attempting to intimidate the legislature into choosing him. He was popularly elected, even though the election held no power. Whether the intimidation worked or not is unknown. The legislature elected him unanimously to be the next king. Thus, Lunalilo became the first of two elected monarchs of Hawaii. 

Lunalilo was a well-liked man. By all accounts, he was handsome and had done well in school, but he was rarely the serious type. When he would deign to appear in his seat at the House of Nobles, he would often interrupt the proceedings. He would loudly make jokes or imitate speakers. 

 Lot was determined to return the monarchy. Lunalilo was equally determined to champion democracy. He wanted to revert some of the changes to the constitution that Lot had made. This included changes like the unicameral legislature and property requirements for voting. 

Lunalilo also wanted to strengthen Hawaii’s economy. 

During the United States Civil War, the sugar industry in Hawaii boomed. Sugar in the United States was produced in Florida, Louisiana, and Texas. Because those states seceded, the United States needed to find an alternate supply. The existing relationship with Hawaii made it the ideal trading partner. Import taxes (tariffs) were reduced or eliminated altogether and Hawaii prospered. Unfortunately, after the civil war ended there was no longer a need to import sugar, and tariffs came back. 

As the primary export, Hawaii needed the sale of sugar to be profitable. This would require a reciprocity agreement with the United States. That way, they could sell their sugar there without an import tax. To achieve this, Hawaii would need to cede lands to the United States. This was an unacceptable condition for most Hawaiians. As a result, the pursuit of a reciprocity agreement perished. 

Whether he was worthy of succeeding Lot or not, Lunalilo hardly had time to prove it. He died only one year and twenty-five days into his reign. 

Although it was illegal to sell liquor to native Hawaiians, it was still available. There was even a popular Hawaiian spirit called okolehao. You could consider it Hawaiian moonshine. Lunalilo had always struggled with alcohol; this and other bad health habits led to his death. He caught a severe cold, which then developed into tuberculosis. Within only a few months, he succumbed in February of 1874. 

Lunalilo designated no heirs. This left the legislature with the responsibility for a second time, and it would not go as smoothly as the last. Two eligible candidates declared their intentions. 

The first was Queen Emma Rooke, the wife of the late Kamehameha IV. She had remained politically active since his death. In 1865, she made a diplomatic/sightseeing visit to the United States and Europe. In Europe, she met such notables as Queen Victoria, Napoleon III, and Frederick I of Prussia. In the United States, she attended a reception in her honor. Here she met President Andrew Johnson and Secretary of State William Seward. While in Washington, she also met representatives from several indigenous tribes. She met the chief of the Choctaw and delegations from the Chickasaw and Cherokee tribes. 

She was well-liked by the Hawaiian people. She also favored closer ties with the United Kingdom over the United States. Two days after Lunalilo’s death, she declared her candidacy.

Her opponent in this election was David Kalakaua. Kalakaua had served in the military and several government positions. He had worked under Kamehameha IV, V, and Lunalilo, serving on the latter’s Privy Council. Kalakaua had put his name forward in the last election against Lunalilo. Even though the election was irrelevant, Kalakaua had been trounced. 

Kalakaua was distinctly pro-Hawaiian but favored the United States. His opposition to ceding any land to foreign interests made him very popular. He was especially popular among the political class.

It seemed as if the two candidates were linked outside of this election, too. Kalakaua had embarked on a diplomatic mission in 1860 aboard a yacht named for his rival, the Emma Rooke. He also married the widow of Queen Emma’s uncle.

Queen Emma had a more direct claim to the Hawaiian throne than Kalakaua. She had been married to Kamehameha IV and Kamehameha I was a distant cousin. It was also believed by many that she was Lunalilo's choice to succeed him. They believe his belief in a popularly elected monarch kept him from naming her. 

Kalakaua didn’t have a direct claim to the Kamehameha dynasty. He descended from a royal counselor of Kamehameha I.  As the child of a lesser chief, he had been chosen as a possible heir to the throne. During the reign of Lunalilo, a mutiny in the Hawaiian military led to its disbandment. There are many who believe Kalakaua was behind the mutiny to weaken the king who had beaten him.

The election for the new monarch took place nine days after the death of Lunalilo. In those few days, the election became nasty. Mudslinging and innuendo were voiced by all parties involved. The people seemed thoroughly behind Queen Emma. 

Unfortunately for her supporters, the people would not determine the winner. The legislature was controlled by a very pro-American faction. Kalakaua was the more sympathetic to America of the two. On February 12, 1874, David Kalakaua became the second elected monarch of Hawaii. 

Supporters of Queen Emma, referring to themselves as Emmaites, were not happy. They gathered around the courthouse in Honolulu, and they waited. When the committee to notify the King exited, they struck. A mob of about 100 Emmaites attacked the men while they were trying to enter a carriage. The committee members attempted to defend themselves. Without weapons, they had no other option but to retreat inside. Two of them had been seriously wounded. 

At this point, a full-on riot broke out. It would later become known as the Honolulu Courthouse Riots. The mob attacked legislators and damaged the building. In the melee, thirteen legislatures were severely injured. One of these, J. Lonoaea, succumbed to his injuries and died about a month later.

Extra police had been added, but they were either incapable or unwilling to quell the riot. Some stood by as events unfolded. Many were sympathetic to the mob. That sympathy and the lack of arms made them ineffective at ending the riot. With the military disbanded, the riot raged on.

Anchored in the harbor were two American and one British warships. The Minister of Foreign Affairs requested their aid in the riots. A landing force of 150 Marines and Sailors came ashore, joined by 80 British Marines and Sailors. The Americans moved to the courthouse, pushing back rioters. They took control of the armory, treasury, and jail. The British marched to Queen Emma’s house and dispersed the crowd there. Both forces patrolled the city for a few nights with no incident, before withdrawing.

Kalakaua took the oath of office on February 13. Queen Emma immediately acknowledged his sovereignty, ending the threat. Kalakaua ascended to the throne (unbeknownst to him) as the last king of Hawaii.

Up until this point, the United States has been a secondary player on the Hawaiian stage. As will become clearer, our presence was always there. We were always affecting events, but mostly out of sight. As we move forward, the role of the United States becomes a lot more overt. 

Next week, we move into the period of open American intervention. I hope you will continue this journey with me in the story of Hawaii’s statehood.