Kaʻiulani
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Princess Kaʻiulani (; Victoria Kawēkiu Kaʻiulani Lunalilo Kalaninuiahilapalapa Cleghorn; October 16, 1875 – March 6, 1899) was a Hawaiian royal, the only child of Princess Miriam
Likelike Likelike (; Miriam Likelike Kekāuluohi Keahelapalapa Kapili; January 13, 1851February 2, 1887) was a princess of the Hawaiian Kingdom and member of the reigning House of Kalākaua. She was born in Honolulu, on the island of Oahu, Oʻahu. Like ...
, and the last
heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...
to the throne of the
Hawaiian Kingdom The Hawaiian Kingdom, also known as the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi ( Hawaiian: ɛ ɐwˈpuni həˈvɐjʔi, was an archipelagic country from 1795 to 1893, which eventually encompassed all of the inhabited Hawaiian Islands. It was established in 1795 w ...
. She was the niece of King
Kalākaua Kalākaua (David Laʻamea Kamanakapuʻu Māhinulani Nālaʻiaʻehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua; November 16, 1836 – January 20, 1891), was the last king and penultimate monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, reigning from February 12, 1874, u ...
and Queen
Liliʻuokalani Queen Liliʻuokalani (; Lydia Liliʻu Loloku Walania Kamakaʻeha; September 2, 1838 – November 11, 1917) was the only queen regnant and the last sovereign monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom, ruling from January 29, 1891, until the overthrow of th ...
. After the death of her mother, Kaʻiulani was sent to Europe at age 13 to complete her education under the guardianship of British businessman and Hawaiian sugar investor Theo H. Davies. She had not yet reached her eighteenth birthday when the 1893
overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom The Hawaiian Kingdom was overthrown in a ''coup d'état'' against Queen Liliʻuokalani that took place on January 17, 1893, on the island of Oahu. The coup was led by the Committee of Safety, composed of seven foreign residents (five Americ ...
altered her life. The Committee of Safety rejected proposals from both her father Archibald Scott Cleghorn, and provisional president Sanford B. Dole, to seat Kaʻiulani on the throne, conditional upon the abdication of Liliʻuokalani. The Queen thought the Kingdom's best chance at justice was to relinquish her power temporarily to the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. Davies and Kaʻiulani visited the United States to urge the Kingdom's restoration; she made speeches and public appearances denouncing the overthrow of her government and the injustice toward her people. While in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
she paid an informal visit to President
Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Hist ...
and First Lady
Frances Cleveland Frances Clara Cleveland Preston (, christened Frank Clara; July 21, 1864 – October 29, 1947) was the first lady of the United States from 1886 to 1889 and again from 1893 until 1897, as the wife of President Grover Cleveland. She was the ...
, but her efforts were in vain. The situation put both Kaʻiulani and her father in dire financial straits. Her annual government
stipend A stipend is a regular fixed sum of money paid for services or to defray expenses, such as for scholarship, internship, or apprenticeship. It is often distinct from an income or a salary because it does not necessarily represent payment for work pe ...
ceased, and her father's income as a government employee came to an end. Father and daughter spent the years 1893–1897 drifting among the European aristocracy, relatives and family friends in England, Wales, Scotland and Paris, before finally returning to Hawaii. After arriving back in Hawaii in 1897, Kaʻiulani settled into life as a private citizen and busied herself with social engagements. She and Liliʻuokalani boycotted the 1898 annexation ceremony and mourned the loss of Hawaiian independence. However, she later hosted the American congressional delegation in charge of formalizing the Hawaiian Organic Act. She suffered from chronic health problems throughout the 1890s and died at her home at
ʻĀinahau ʻĀinahau was the royal estate of Kaʻiulani, Princess Victoria Kaʻiulani, heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Hawaii, Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. History ʻĀinahau was located at the ʻili (traditional subdivision) of ʻAuʻaukai, the ahupua ...
in 1899.


Name

Kaʻiulani was born at
Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...
, on the island of Oʻahu, in the
Hawaiian Kingdom The Hawaiian Kingdom, also known as the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi ( Hawaiian: ɛ ɐwˈpuni həˈvɐjʔi, was an archipelagic country from 1795 to 1893, which eventually encompassed all of the inhabited Hawaiian Islands. It was established in 1795 w ...
. At her christening, she was named ''Victoria Kawēkiu Kaʻiulani Lunalilo Kalaninuiahilapalapa Cleghorn''. In 1898, her aunt
Liliʻuokalani Queen Liliʻuokalani (; Lydia Liliʻu Loloku Walania Kamakaʻeha; September 2, 1838 – November 11, 1917) was the only queen regnant and the last sovereign monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom, ruling from January 29, 1891, until the overthrow of th ...
wrote it as ''Victoria Kaʻiulani, Kalaninuiahilapalapa, Kawēkiu i Lunalilo'' or ''Victoria Kawēkiu Lunalilo Kalaninuiahilapalapa Kaʻiulani Cleghorn'' in her memoir '' Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen''. Kaʻiulani was named after her maternal aunt Anna Kaʻiulani who died young, and
Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...
of the United Kingdom, whose help restored the sovereignty and independence of the Hawaiian Kingdom during the reign of Kamehameha III. Her primary Hawaiian name comes from ''ka ʻiu lani'' which means or "the royal sacred one" in the
Hawaiian language Hawaiian (', ) is a critically endangered Polynesian language of the Austronesian language family, originating in and native to the Hawaiian Islands. It is the native language of the Hawaiian people. Hawaiian, along with English, is an offi ...
. Kawēkiu means "the highest rank or station". At the request of
Charles Kanaʻina Charles Kanaʻina (Kanaʻina II; May 4, 1798 – March 13, 1877) was an aliʻi (hereditary noble) of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Kingdom of Hawaii, prince consort of Kuhina Nui, Kaʻahumanu III and father of Lunalilo, William Charles Lunalilo, the 6 ...
, she was also given the name Lunalilo, translated as ''Luna'' (high) ''lilo'' (lost) or "so high up as to be lost to sight", after Kanaʻina's son and her uncle King
Kalākaua Kalākaua (David Laʻamea Kamanakapuʻu Māhinulani Nālaʻiaʻehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua; November 16, 1836 – January 20, 1891), was the last king and penultimate monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, reigning from February 12, 1874, u ...
's predecessor King
Lunalilo Lunalilo (William Charles Lunalilo; January 31, 1835 – February 3, 1874) was the sixth monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaii from his election on January 8, 1873, until his death a year later. Born to Kekāuluohi and High Chief Charles Kanaʻin ...
(r. 1873–74) to strengthen her eligibility for the throne. The name ''Kalaninuiahilapalapa'' signified her association with the royal house of Keawe (traditional rulers of the island of
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...
) and the flames of the torch that burns at midday, a symbol of '' kapu'', used by the
House of Kalākaua The House of Kalākaua, or Kalākaua Dynasty, also known as the Keawe-a-Heulu line, was the reigning family of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Kingdom of Hawaiʻi under Kalākaua, King Kalākaua and Liliʻuokalani, Queen Liliʻuokalani. They assumed power ...
from their ancestor Iwikauikaua.


Early life and family: 1875–1887

Kaʻiulani was the only child of Princess Miriam Likelike and Scottish businessman Archibald Scott Cleghorn. She was born in a downstairs bedroom of her parents' Emma Street mansion in
Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...
, on October 16, 1875, during the reign of her uncle King
Kalākaua Kalākaua (David Laʻamea Kamanakapuʻu Māhinulani Nālaʻiaʻehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua; November 16, 1836 – January 20, 1891), was the last king and penultimate monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, reigning from February 12, 1874, u ...
. Her birth was announced by gun salutes and the ringing of all of the bells in the city's churches. At the time of her birth, she became fourth in line of succession to the throne, moving to third in the line of succession upon the death of her uncle Leleiohoku II in 1877. She had three older half-sisters: Rose Kaipuala, Helen Maniʻiailehua, and Annie Pauahi, from her father's previous union with a Hawaiian woman. Through her mother, she descended from Keaweaheulu and
Kameʻeiamoku Kameeiamoku (died 1802) was a Native Hawaiians, Hawaiian high chief and the Counselor of State to King Kamehameha I. He was called Kamehameha's uncle, but he was really the cousin of Kamehameha's mother, Kekuʻiapoiwa II, Kekuiapoiwa II. Birth a ...
, the royal counselors of Kamehameha I during his conquest of the Hawaiian Islands from 1780 to 1795. Kameʻeiamoku was one of the royal twins along with
Kamanawa ''For other persons with this name, please see Kamanawa II.'' Kamanawa (died c. 1802?) was a Hawaiian high chief and early supporter of King Kamehameha I, known as one of the royal ''Nīʻaupiʻo'' twins with his brother Kameeiamoku. He later be ...
depicted flanking the Hawaiian coat of arms, and his son
Kepoʻokalani Kepookalani was a High Chief during the founding of the Kingdom of Hawaii. Two of his grandchildren would marry each other, and two of his great-grandchildren would be the last two ruling monarchs of the Kingdom. Life Kepookalani was born around ...
was the first cousin of the conqueror on the side of Kamehameha's mother Kekuʻiapoiwa II. Their family were collateral relations of the
House of Kamehameha The House of Kamehameha ''(Hale O Kamehameha)'', or the Kamehameha dynasty, was the reigning royal family of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Kingdom of Hawaii, beginning with its founding by Kamehameha I in 1795 and ending with the death of Kamehameha V in ...
and ascended to the throne in 1874 upon the election of her uncle Kalākaua as King of the Hawaiian Islands. Her mother was a younger sister to Kalākaua and Liliʻuokalani. Kaʻiulani's father was a Scottish financier from
Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
; he served as Collector General of Customs from 1887 to 1893 and as the final Governor of Oahu from 1891 until the office was abolished by the
Provisional Government of Hawaii The Provisional Government of Hawaii (abbr.: P.G.; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Aupuni Kūikawā o Hawaiʻi'') was proclaimed after the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom on January 17, 1893, by the 13-member Committee of Safety (Hawaii), Co ...
after the 1893 overthrow of the monarchy. She was christened by Bishop Alfred Willis, at 1:00 p.m. on December 25, 1875, at the Pro-Cathedral of St. Andrew's Anglican Cathedral in Honolulu. This was the first christening of a Hawaiian princess since the birth of
Victoria Kamāmalu Victoria Kamāmalu Kaʻahumanu IV (November 1, 1838 – May 29, 1866) was ''Kuhina Nui'' of Hawaii and its crown princess. Named Wikolia Kamehamalu Keawenui Kaʻahumanu-a-Kekūanaōʻa and also named Kalehelani Kiheahealani, she was mainly refe ...
in 1838. The baby Kaʻiulani, clad in a "cashmere robe, embroidered with silk", was reported to have "behaved with the utmost respect" and did "not utter a sound during the service". Kalākaua, his wife Queen
Kapiʻolani Kapiʻolani (December 31, 1834 – June 24, 1899) was the queen of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi as the consort of Mōʻī (king) Kalākaua, who reigned from 1874 until his death in 1891, when she became known as the Dowager Queen Kapiʻolani. Dee ...
, and Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani, stood as her godparents. A later reference in a 1916 issue of the ''
Honolulu Star-Bulletin The ''Honolulu Star-Bulletin'' was a daily newspaper based in Honolulu, Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. At the time publication ceased on June 6, 2010, it was the second largest daily newspaper in the state of Hawaii (after the ''Honol ...
'' stated Hawaiian judge Emma Nakuina was also her godmother. Diplomatic representatives from the United States, Britain and France and members of the consular corps in Honolulu were among the spectators. The royal family held a reception and afternoon dinner at
ʻIolani Palace The Iolani Palace () was the royal residence of the rulers of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi beginning with Kamehameha III under the Kamehameha Dynasty (1845) and ending with Queen Liliʻuokalani (1893) under the Kalākaua Dynasty. It is located i ...
for the guests of the ceremony during which Kaʻiulani was present and attended by her nurse. The Royal Hawaiian Band played at the reception. Captain Henri Berger, the leader of the band, composed the "Kaʻiulani March" in her honor. Princess Ruth gifted Kaʻiulani with land at Waikiki, from Honolulu, which combined with adjacent lands previously purchased in 1872 by Cleghorn to form
ʻĀinahau ʻĀinahau was the royal estate of Kaʻiulani, Princess Victoria Kaʻiulani, heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Hawaii, Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. History ʻĀinahau was located at the ʻili (traditional subdivision) of ʻAuʻaukai, the ahupua ...
. Her mother Likelike named it ʻĀinahau (cool place) after the cool winds blowing down from the Manoa Valley. Her father relocated the family to the country estate in 1878 when Kaʻiulani was three years old. Cleghorn planted a large botanical garden on the grounds of the estate, including a
banyan A banyan, also spelled banian ( ), is a fig that develops accessory trunks from adjacent prop roots, allowing the tree to spread outwards indefinitely. This distinguishes banyans from other trees with a strangler habit that begin life as ...
tree, known as Kaʻiulani's banyan. Kaʻiulani's mother Princess Likelike died at age 36 on February 2, 1887, officially of unknown causes. Her doctors had believed in vain that she could have been cured with proper nourishment. Upon the death of her mother, when Kaʻiulani was eleven years old, she inherited the estate.


Education and unrest in Hawaii 1879–1893

From a young age, governesses and private tutors educated Kaʻiulani starting with a British woman, Marion Barnes, from 1879 until her early death of pneumonia in 1884, and then an American woman, Gertrude Gardinier, who became her favorite governess. After Gardinier's marriage in 1887, her governesses included a French woman, Catalina de Alcala or D'Acala, and a German woman, Miss Reiseberg, with whom Kaʻiulani did not develop as strong a bond. Her governesses taught her reading, writing letters (often to relatives), music practices and social training. She also read biographies about her namesake, Queen Victoria. She would become fluent in the Hawaiian, English, French and German languages. Kalākaua championed future Hawaiian leaders attaining a broader education with his 1880 Hawaiian Youths Abroad program. His niece Kaʻiulani was not the first Hawaiian royal to study abroad. The Hawaiian government sent her cousins
David Kawānanakoa David Laʻamea Kahalepouli Kinoiki Kawānanakoa (February 19, 1868 – June 2, 1908) was a prince of the Hawaiian Kingdom and founder of the House of Kawānanakoa. Born into Hawaiian nobility, Kawānanakoa grew up the royal court of his uncle Kin ...
(known as Koa), Edward Abnel Keliʻiahonui and
Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole (March 26, 1871 – January 7, 1922) was a prince of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi until it was overthrown by a coalition of American and European businessmen in 1893. He later went on to become the delegate of the Territo ...
to attend Saint Matthew's Episcopal Day School in the United States in 1885. Keliʻiahonui died young in 1887 while Kawānanakoa and Kūhiō traveled to England in 1890 to finish their education a few months after Kaʻiulani's own departure for an education abroad. Months after the death of Kaʻiulani's mother, Likelike, political unrest gripped Hawaii. Local businessmen accused Kalākaua's cabinet under Prime Minister
Walter Murray Gibson Walter Murray Gibson (January 16, 1822 – January 21, 1888) was an American adventurer and a government minister in the Kingdom of Hawaii prior to the kingdom's 1887 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii, 1887 constitution. Early life Gibson ...
of
influence peddling Influence peddling, also called traffic of influence or trading in influence, is the practice of using one's influence in government or connections with authorities to obtain favours or preferential treatment for another, usually in return for ...
in elections and manipulation of legislative governance. Although the Gibson cabinet was replaced by the Reform Cabinet, the business community remained dissatisfied. The Committee of Thirteen businessmen under the leadership of Lorrin A. Thurston, drafted what became known as the Bayonet Constitution, codifying the legislature as the supreme authority over the monarchy's actions. Thurston is believed to have been the principal author of the new constitution. Presented to Kalākaua for his signature on July 6, 1887, it limited the power of the monarchy and increased the influence of Euro-American interests in the government.


Abroad in England, 1889–1893

Upon the death of her mother, Likelike, Kaʻiulani became second in line to the throne, following her aunt Liliʻuokalani. She would become the heir apparent after the death of her uncle Kalākaua and the accession of Liliʻuokalani. In 1889, it was deemed appropriate to send Kaʻiulani to England for a proper education and remove her from the intrigues and unrest between Kalākaua and his political opponents. Cleghorn, Kalākaua and allegedly Lorrin A. Thurston, who served as Minister of the Interior, made the plans to send Kaʻiulani abroad. Thurston later denied involvement in the decision. Leaving Honolulu on May 10, 1889, the travel party included her half-sister Annie, and Mary Matilda Walker, wife of the British vice-consul to Hawaii Thomas R. Walker, as their chaperone. Cleghorn accompanied his daughters to San Francisco before returning to Hawaii. They traveled across the United States by train, stopping briefly at Chicago and New York before sailing to England. They landed in Liverpool on June 17, after a month-long journey. After Mrs. Walker returned to Hawaii, Kaʻiulani and Annie were placed under the guardianship of Theo H. Davies and his wife Mary Ellen. Davies was a British citizen and owner of Theo H. Davies & Co., one of the Big Five leading sugar firms operating in Hawaii. During school holidays, Kaʻiulani stayed at Sundown, the Davies' residence in Hesketh Park, Southport. By September, Kaʻiulani and Annie were sent to
Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...
and enrolled at Great Harrowden Hall, a boarding school for young girls, under the elderly schoolmistress Caroline Sharp. After the first academic year, Annie returned to Hawaii to marry leaving Kaʻiulani alone at the school. Sharp noted that Kaʻiulani continued "making good progress in her studies" despite the separation. Kaʻiulani proudly wrote home that she was third in her French class. The
Bishop of Leicester The Bishop of Leicester is the Ordinary of the Diocese of Leicester in the Province of Canterbury of the Church of England. Through reorganisation within the Church of England, the Diocese of Leicester was refounded in 1927, and St Martin's ...
confirmed her in the
Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
faith in May 1890. In the summer of 1891, her father visited her, and they toured the British Isles and visited the Cleghorns' ancestral land in Scotland. Davies persuaded her family to remove Kaʻiulani from Great Harrowden Hall in early 1892 to attend a
finishing school A finishing school focuses on teaching young women social graces and upper-class cultural rites as a preparation for entry into society. The name reflects the fact that it follows ordinary school and is intended to complete a young woman's ...
to prepare her for society. By February, Kaʻiulani moved to
Hove Hove ( ) is a seaside resort in East Sussex, England. Alongside Brighton, it is one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove. Originally a fishing village surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th century in respon ...
,
Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...
, where she was placed in the care of Phebe Rooke who set up private tutors and a curriculum that included German, French, English, literature, history, music and singing. This village by the sea pleased her, and she holidayed in late April and early May at
Saint Helier St Helier (; Jèrriais: ; ) is the Capital city, capital of Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands in the English Channel. It is the most populous of the twelve parishes of Jersey, with a population of 35,822, over one-third of the island' ...
in the Channel Island of
Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...
with her host. The prospect of returning to Hawaii renewed her enthusiasm for her studies. Plans were made for her return to Hawaii by the end of 1893, with the Hawaiian legislature appropriating $4,000 for her travel expenses. This trip would mark her entrance in society as the heir-apparent to the throne. There were arrangements for an audience with Queen Victoria, followed by a tour of Europe and a possible visit to the
World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in Chicago from May 5 to October 31, 1893, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The ...
in Chicago. In anticipation, Kaʻiulani wrote to her aunt Liliʻuokalani, "I am looking forward to my return next year. I am beginning to feel very homesick." However, following the overthrow on January 17, 1893, these plans were cancelled.


Overthrow 1891–1893

During her absence, much turmoil occurred back in Hawaii. Kalākaua died in San Francisco on January 20, 1891. Kaʻiulani learned of her uncle's death by the next day through the
Transatlantic telegraph cable Transatlantic telegraph cables were undersea cables running under the Atlantic Ocean for telegraph communications. Telegraphy is a largely obsolete form of communication, and the cables have long since been decommissioned, but telephone and dat ...
s while news did not reach Hawaii until January 29, when the ''Charleston'' returned to Honolulu with the king's remains. Liliʻuokalani ascended immediately to the throne. On March 9, with the approval of the House of Nobles, and as required by the Hawaiian constitution, Liliʻuokalani appointed her niece Kaʻiulani as her
heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...
and eventual successor to the throne. The Queen's staff then rode through the streets of Honolulu announcing the proclamation, while gun salutes were fired from both the
artillery battery In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit or multiple systems of artillery, mortar systems, rocket artillery, multiple rocket launchers, surface-to-surface missiles, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, etc., so grouped to f ...
and the American vessels ''Mohican'' and ''Iroquois'' in Honolulu Harbor. As heir apparent, Kaʻiulani had influence with the queen on political issues. In the fall of 1891, she wrote to Liliʻuokalani requesting the appointment of her father, instead of Prince David Kawānanakoa, to the recently vacated governorship of Oahu caused by the death of Liliʻuokalani's husband John Owen Dominis. The queen acceded to her request, and made the appointment of Cleghorn on November 11. The princess also received approval for her father to retain his post as collector general after she explained, "we cannot do without his salary for that, as the salary of Governor is only half the other." Kaʻiulani, looking forward to her return, promised, "When I come home I shall try to help you as much as I can, tho icit will not be much as I don't understand State Affairs." The Committee of Safety, under the leadership of Thurston, met for two days in the final planning of the overthrow, and unanimously selected Sanford B. Dole to lead the coup and organize a provisional government. Dole put forth what he believed was a more reasonable immediate plan of action, a possible outcome that had been discussed by others in the kingdom, "...that the Queen be deposed and Princess Kaʻiulani be installed as queen, and that a regency be established to govern the country during her minority..." In fact, Cleghorn had also directly approached Thurston the morning before the overthrow, with the exact same proposition. Thurston reiterated what he had already told Cleghorn, that the committee had no interest in dealing with a future monarchy in any form, and rejected the plan outright. The monarchy was overthrown and the
Provisional Government of Hawaii The Provisional Government of Hawaii (abbr.: P.G.; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Aupuni Kūikawā o Hawaiʻi'') was proclaimed after the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom on January 17, 1893, by the 13-member Committee of Safety (Hawaii), Co ...
was proclaimed by President Sanford B. Dole on January 17, 1893. Liliʻuokalani relinquished her power to the United States temporarily, rather than the Dole-led government, in hopes that the United States would recognize the monarchical government as the lawful power, and thereby restore Hawaii's sovereignty. Cleghorn lost his governorship position as of February 28. He blamed Liliʻuokalani's political inaction for the overthrow and believed that the monarchy would have been preserved had she abdicated in favor of Kaʻiulani. He met privately with Thurston and requested that he respect Ka'iulani's claim to the throne, which Thurston tersely refused to consider. Cleghorn later took an oath to the Provisional Government under protest in order to retain his position in the custom house, but resigned on April 15. The Provisional Government's ultimate goal was annexation by the United States. Thurston headed a delegation to
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, to negotiate with President
Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was the 23rd president of the United States, serving from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia—a grandson of the ninth president, William Henry Harrison, and a ...
, while the queen sent her attorney Paul Neumann and Prince Kawānanakoa to represent her case to Harrison and President-elect
Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Hist ...
. Cleghorn paid for the travel expenses of Edward C. Macfarlane, another of the queen's envoys, to protect the rights of Kaʻiulani. The annexation treaty would have offered Liliʻuokalani a lifetime pension of $20,000 annually, and compensated Kaʻiulani with a one-time settlement of $150,000, if they would subordinate themselves to the United States government, and to local governance of the Islands. The queen never saw that as a viable option.


Visit to the United States, 1893

Many factions in Hawaii and abroad preferred restoring Kaʻiulani to the Hawaiian throne in place of Liliʻuokalani under a more restricted form of
constitutional monarchy Constitutional monarchy, also known as limited monarchy, parliamentary monarchy or democratic monarchy, is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in making decisions. ...
. James Hay Wodehouse, the British commissioner to Hawaii, reported to his superior in London that the natives would support and welcome Kaʻiulani as queen. Charles Reed Bishop, the widower of the High Chiefess
Bernice Pauahi Bishop Bernice Pauahi Pākī Bishop KGCOK RoK (December 19, 1831 – October 16, 1884) was an '' alii'' (noble) of the royal family of the Kingdom of Hawaii and a well known philanthropist. Ancestry, birth and early life Pauahi was born in Hon ...
, wrote that, "the better class of the British prefer her, and they would help to control her and make as good a government as possible". Dole, the leader of the Provisional Government, had stated that it would have been "far more tactful" to "hold the power of the throne" through a "regency in the name of the young Princess Kaʻiulani until she reaches her majority". Kaʻiulani learned of the overthrow via a short telegram received by Davies on January 30, Queen Deposed', 'Monarchy Abrogated', 'Break News to Princess". In the weeks after the overthrow, Davies wrote to the Hawaiian Minister to the United States John Mott-Smith in Washington suggesting that the Hawaiian electorate vote on a revised constitution for the abdication of the queen and for the placing Kaʻiulani under a council of regency headed by Dole. Davies reiterated this stance in a later address. Davies advised Kaʻiulani to take her case directly to the American people. Kaʻiulani, accompanied by Mr. and Mrs. Davies, their daughter Alice Davies, Annie Whartoff, as her lady-in-waiting and a chaperone, and a maid of Mrs. Davies, traveled from
Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...
to New York, arriving on March 1. Macfarlane and Mott-Smith met the party on their ship. Upon landing on the pier, Kaʻiulani delivered to the assembled press and curious onlookers a speech written by Davies: During her first two days, Kaʻiulani and the Davieses toured New York and received callers, including her cousin Kawānanakoa, although he was only allowed to speak to her briefly. Dissent developed between Davies and Liliʻuokalani's representatives in the United States over his influence over Kaʻiulani. Kawānanakoa along with Neumann, Macfarlane and Mott-Smith voiced criticism at Davies' action in bringing Kaʻiulani to the United States without the consent of Cleghorn or the queen. They felt Davies' public statements supporting a regency in place of the queen undermined the cause against annexation and created the impression of a "three-cornered fight". Macfarlane, himself of British descent, stated to the press, "Her coming will do no good, especially when she is under the wing of an ultra-Britisher." From March 3 to March 7, Kaʻiulani visited Boston while Cleveland waited to be sworn in as President. She attended various social events, many in her honor, and toured the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...
(where the Davies' son Clive attended) and
Wellesley College Wellesley College is a Private university, private Women's colleges in the United States, historically women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henr ...
. Arriving in Washington, D.C., on March 8, Kawānanakoa greeted her at the train station with a floral lei. She stayed at Arlington Hotel where she awaited the chance to meet with the President. In the meantime, Cleveland, who espoused anti-imperialist views, withdrew the treaty of annexation on March 9 and appointed James Henderson Blount on March 11 as special commissioner to investigate the overthrow. On March 13, President and First Lady
Frances Cleveland Frances Clara Cleveland Preston (, christened Frank Clara; July 21, 1864 – October 29, 1947) was the first lady of the United States from 1886 to 1889 and again from 1893 until 1897, as the wife of President Grover Cleveland. She was the ...
received Kaʻiulani at the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
. Her traveling companion Alice recalled, "We were received by President and Mrs. Cleveland and we had a short interview where all references to our mission were carefully avoided." Politics remained uncertain as Hawaii waited for the conclusion of the
Blount Report The Blount Report is the popular name given to the part of the 1893 United States House of Representatives Foreign Relations Committee Report regarding the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii. The report is formally titled "Affairs in Hawaii," and ...
. Macfarlane wanted Kaʻiulani to return to Honolulu while Davies wanted her to accompany him back to England. Macfarlane believed that going back narrowed her perspective in favor of the British, which might affect her policy making should she become queen. On April 8, Cleghorn wrote to Kaʻiulani, "I think for the present you are better not here, much as I would like to have you home. ... ings must be settled soon and then we will know what to do."


Establishing life in Europe 1893–1897

Prior to the 1893 overthrow, Kaʻiulani had been allocated an annual pension by the Hawaiian government. As a member of the royal family, she had received $5,000 annually from the civil list between 1882 and 1888, $4,800 between 1888 and 1892 and $10,000 as heir apparent to the throne in 1892. Archibald Cleghorn had also been supported from the Hawaiian civil list through his governmental positions. These sources of income ended after the overthrow. The unsettled political situation in Hawaii prevented Kaʻiulani from returning home, and her father arranged for her to remain with the Davies family in England. The press releases under her name were in reality created by Davies who, in the beginning, did not ask for her input. It is unclear whether any of the public statements were at her request, but he did eventually give her the opportunity to approve the final product before it went to the news media of the day. The teenage Kaʻiulani spent her summer of 1893 with the Davies family in
Killiney Killiney () is an affluent coastal suburb on the southside of Dublin, Ireland. It lies south of Dalkey, east and northeast of Ballybrack and Sallynoggin and north of Shankill, in the local government area of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown within ...
, Ireland, where she and her friends played
cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
and enjoyed tea. That winter, Mary Ellen Davies sent her daughter Alice to
Wiesbaden Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...
, Germany, with Kaʻiulani, and three other women of the same age. Traveling with a chaperone, they were primarily there to learn the
German language German (, ) is a West Germanic language in the Indo-European language family, mainly spoken in Western Europe, Western and Central Europe. It is the majority and Official language, official (or co-official) language in Germany, Austria, Switze ...
. Alice later said, " .. I forget just about everything about that journey except that she made many conquests among the susceptible German officers we met." Family friend Lillian Kennedy remembered a very fun-loving young lady who engaged in pillow fights and played
hide-and-seek Hide-and-seek (sometimes known as hide-and-go-seek) is a children's game in which at least two players (usually at least three) conceal themselves in a set environment, to be found by one or more seekers. The game is played by one chosen playe ...
games. Politics in Hawaii began to seem far away and less important to her. She was beginning to enjoy life abroad, so much so that she resisted returning to the Davies' home to once again become a political asset. Accustomed to the life of a Victorian society woman, Kaʻiulani preferred her new life. Writing to her father on June 10, 1894, she expressed her sadness at the change in Hawaii and asked him to consider a life abroad in Europe. After the 1895 royalist counter-revolution, he agreed. While they were abroad, the news of the March 6, 1897, death of her half-sister Annie impacted both Kaʻiulani and Cleghorn. From August 1895 to October 1897, she and her father assumed the lives of itinerant aristocrats traveling across Europe and the British Isles. They stayed in the French Riviera, Paris, and on the island of Jersey, as well as England, and Scotland. Kaʻiulani was treated as royalty in the French Riviera where they wintered each year and made friends, including Nevinson William (Toby) de Courcy, a British aristocrat who corresponded with her over the next three years and saved her letters until his death. During these years, Kaʻiulani began to have recurring illnesses, writing her aunt Liliʻuokalani that she'd had "the grip" (
influenza Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These sympto ...
) seven times while living abroad. She also complained of headaches, weight loss, eye problems and fainting spells. A migraine episode in Paris on May 4, 1897, prevented her from attending the Bazar de la Charité, which caught fire and killed a number of French noble women including the
Duchess of Alençon Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...
. Growing expenses also exacerbated Cleghorn's drained financial status, and he wrote to Liliʻuokalani, asking for assistance. Kaʻiulani knew little about financial management and had no means to repay her benefactors. As her funding ran out, she wondered if the Provisional Government would give her an allowance. Her father had no means to support her, so both were dependent upon the generosity of others. Davies was a hard-nosed businessman who had risen from working-class parents, to make a fortune in Hawaii's sugar plantation business. While he agreed to assist with the finances, he took the princess to task for her careless spending in 1894, "I am disappointed in what you say about money matters because I have always been disagreeably plain about them ... You have the chance to be a heroine but unless you exercise resolution and self control ... we shall all fail". He cautioned that any funding from the Provisional Government obligated her to support their cause. He tried to get Kaʻiulani to re-focus on the goal ahead regarding Hawaii, but she wanted to be in charge of her own destiny. Stress from her financial situation had an adverse effect on her mental and physical health, and she fell into an emotional drift.


Return to Hawaii, 1897

Kaʻiulani felt duty-bound to her family in Hawaii, especially her ailing aunt, the Dowager Queen Kapiʻolani. However, the princess was wary of her uncertain future as a former royal and was reluctant to accept the prospect of an arranged marriage back home. She was also growing accustomed to life abroad. Despite her misgivings, the changing political situation in Hawaii called her home in 1897. On June 16, Cleveland's successor President
William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until Assassination of William McKinley, his assassination in 1901. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...
presented the United States Senate with a new version of the annexation treaty to incorporate the Republic of Hawaii into the United States. Liliʻuokalani filed an official protest with Secretary of State John Sherman. Hawaiians against annexation coalesced, including the political entity Hui Kālaiʻāina which ran petition drives to oppose annexation.; Between 1896 and 1897, she divulged her plans to return to Hawaii in two candid letters written to her friend Toby de Courcy. In the first letter, written in the fall of 1896 from Rozel, Jersey, she confided in him that a secret engagement was arranged and she was expected to return in April of the following year. In a subsequent letter dated July 4 from
Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells (formerly, until 1909, and still commonly Tunbridge Wells) is a town in Kent, England, southeast of Central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the High Weald, whose sandstone ...
, she explained to Toby that she would visit her aunt Liliʻuokalani in the United States. The decision to return to Hawaii was still undecided at this point. Kaʻiulani added that, "If I went over to see my Aunt I would only stay about Three 'sic''weeks there and return again here (Europe)", although Davies "may think it advisable for me to return home the end of this winter". By August and September, Kaʻiulani and her father were making farewell calls to friends, hiring an Irish maid, Mary O'Donell, to assist her and preparing for their return to Hawaii. Kaʻiulani and her father Cleghorn sailed from Southampton to New York on October 9, 1897. After a brief stay at the
Albemarle Hotel Albemarle Hotel (also known as Albemarle House; alternate spelling Albermarle) was located at 1101 Broadway (also addressed as 1 West 24th Street) in the Flatiron District of Manhattan, New York City. Built in 1860 and overlooking Madison Squa ...
in New York, the two traveled to Washington, D.C., to pay their respects to Queen Liliʻuokalani, who was staying at Ebbett House in the U.S. capital to lobby against annexation. Afterward, Kaʻiulani and Cleghorn took a train heading west and reached San Francisco on October 29 where they stayed at the Occidental Hotel. During her travels across the United States, many journalists interviewed her, although her father made sure to shield her from topics of politics. Many detractors of the monarchy had painted a negative image of Hawaiians, especially of Kaʻiulani and her aunt Liliʻuokalani. However, interviews with the Hawaiian princess dispelled these rumors. A journalist of San Francisco's '' The Examiner'' wrote, "A barbarian princess? Not a bit of it ..Rather the very flower — an exotic — of civilization. The Princess Kaʻiulani is a charming, fascinating individual." According to historian Andrea Feeser, the contemporary portrayals of Kaʻiulani were "shaped by race and gender stereotypes, and although they aimed to be favorable, they granted her no authority" with emphasis placed on her Caucasian features, Victorian manners, feminine fragility and exoticism. Kaʻiulani and her father sailed from San Francisco on November 2 and arrived in Honolulu on the morning of November 9. Thousands of well-wishers, including her cousin Kawānanakoa, greeted her at the harbor in Honolulu and showered her with garlands of lei and flowers. They returned to ʻĀinahau where Kaʻiulani was to assume the life of a private citizen. Her father had built a two-storied new Victorian-style mansion designed by architect Clinton Briggs Ripley next to the bungalow which had been her childhood home in the intervening years when she was abroad. Despite her lack of political status, she continued to receive visitors and made public appearances at events hosted by both monarchists and supporters of the Republic. The Hawaiian Red Cross Society was formed in June 1898, with Mrs. Harold M. Sewall as its president. Her husband was the United States Minister to the Republic. First Lady of the Republic Anna Prentice Cate Dole was selected as first vice-president, and Kaʻiulani was second vice-president. It is unclear if the princess had given her consent to be named as part of the committee, but she did not attend the subsequent meeting of the officers. In the United States Senate, McKinley's annexation treaty failed to pass after months without a vote. However, following the outbreak of the
Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...
, Hawaii was annexed in any event via the
Newlands Resolution The Newlands Resolution, , was a joint resolution passed on July 7, 1898, by the United States Congress to annexation, annex the independent Republic of Hawaii. In 1900, Congress created the Territory of Hawaii. The resolution was drafted by R ...
, a
joint resolution In the United States Congress, a joint resolution is a legislative measure that requires passage by the Senate and the House of Representatives and is presented to the president for their approval or disapproval. Generally, there is no legal diffe ...
of Congress, on July 4, 1898. With the impending
annexation of Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only state not on the North American mainland, th ...
only weeks away and Liliʻuokalani still in Washington, D.C., Hawaii wanted to show its support of U.S. troops heading to the Pacific theater of the war. If nothing else, the harbor traffic meant income for the local businesses. Cleghorn and Kaʻiulani issued an open invitation for visiting American troops to stay at ʻĀinahau, although it was more likely solely her father's idea. She wrote to Liliʻuokalani, "I am sure you would be disgusted if you could see the way the town is decorated for the American troops. Honolulu is making a fool of itself and I only hope we won't be ridiculed." The annexation ceremony was held on August 12, 1898, at the former ʻIolani Palace, now being used as the executive building of the government. President Dole handed over "the sovereignty and public property of the Hawaiian Islands" to United States minister Harold M. Sewall. The flag of the Republic of Hawaii was lowered, and the flag of the United States was raised in its place. "When the news of Annexation came it was bitterer than death to me," Kaʻiulani told the ''San Francisco Chronicle''. "It was bad enough to lose the throne, but infinitely worse to have the flag go down ...". Liliʻuokalani with Kaʻiulani, their family members and retainers boycotted the event and shuttered themselves away at Washington Place in mourning. Many Native Hawaiians and royalists followed suit and refused to attend the ceremony. The Republican government attempted to invite her to the Annexation Ball, and she responded by saying, "Why don't you ask me if I am going to pull down Hawaii's flag for them?" On September 7, 1898, Kaʻiulani hosted the United States Congressional commission party and more than 120 guests with a grand luau at ʻĀinahau. The commissioners: the new Territorial Governor Dole, Senators Shelby M. Cullom of Illinois and John T. Morgan of Alabama, Representative Robert R. Hitt of Illinois, and Hawaii associate justice and the later Territorial Governor Walter F. Frear were tasked with forming a new territorial government. Kaʻiulani arranged the event to highlight the importance of Hawaiian culture and started the luau by dipping her finger in the poi. The luau at ʻĀinahau for the congressional party was portrayed in the 2009 film as a fight for Hawaiian suffrage, which was ensured in the 1900 Hawaiian Organic Act.


Personal life


Surfing

Kaʻiulani had always been an athletic young woman, who enjoyed equestrianism, surfing, swimming, croquet, and canoeing. In an 1897 interview for ''
The Sun The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. It is a massive, nearly perfect sphere of hot Plasma (physics), plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, radiating the energy from its surface mainly as ...
'' newspaper in New York, she stated, "I love riding,
driving Driving is the controlled operation and movement of a land vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, trucks, and buses. A driver's permission to drive on public highways is granted based on a set of conditions being met, and drivers are required to ...
, swimming, dancing and cycling. Really, I'm sure I was a seal in another world because I am so fond of the water… My mother taught me to swim almost before I knew how to walk." An avid surfer on the shores of Waikiki, her 7 feet, 4 inch '' alaia'' surfboard made of koa (
acacia koa ''Acacia koa'', commonly known as koa, is a species of Flowering plant, flowering tree in the Family (biology), family Fabaceae. It is Endemism, endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, where it is the second most common tree. The highest populations ar ...
) is preserved at the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum. Acquired by the museum in 1922 from her deceased father’s estate, it is one of the few surviving examples of 19th-century Hawaiian surfboards. According to popular belief, she may have been the first female surfer in the British Isles. However, the
Museum of British Surfing The Museum of British Surfing is a Museum based in Braunton, Devon; the museum contains exhibits relating to the history of surfing in the United Kingdom. The Museum of British Surfing was founded by ITV News journalist and surfing historian Pe ...
states "the only tangible evidence – so far – is a letter in which she wrote that she enjoyed ‘being on the water again’ at Brighton." Her three cousins Kawananakoa, Kuhio and Keliʻiahonui pioneered surfing in California in 1885. Kawananakoa and Kūhiō became the first male surfers in the British Isles in 1890 when they went surf riding with their tutor
John Wrightson Professor John Wrightson Chemical Society, FCS, Royal Agricultural University, MRAC (1840 – 30 November 1916) was a British agriculturalist and the founder of Downton Agricultural College (1880–1906) at Downton, Wiltshire, Downton in Wilt ...
at
Bridlington Bridlington (previously known as Burlington) is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is on the Holderness part (Flamborough Head to the Humber estuary) of the Yorkshire Coast by the North Sea. The town is ...
in northern England. The swimming attire for Victorian-minded Hawaiian royals would have been full-body swimwear made of wool or cotton.


Robert Louis Stevenson

Kaʻiulani was a painter who enjoyed the company of other artists. While under Davies' guardianship, she sent some of her paintings of England home to Hawaii. When Kalakaua was ill in his final year, she sent a painting to cheer him up. Her few surviving paintings are found in Hawaii. She was acquainted with Joseph Dwight Strong, a landscape painter in the court of
Kalākaua Kalākaua (David Laʻamea Kamanakapuʻu Māhinulani Nālaʻiaʻehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua; November 16, 1836 – January 20, 1891), was the last king and penultimate monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, reigning from February 12, 1874, u ...
, and Isobel Osbourne Strong, a lady-in-waiting to Likelike. Isobel's stepfather was Scottish writer
Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll ...
. In June 1888, Stevenson chartered the yacht ''Casco'' and set sail with his family from San Francisco. The poet spent nearly three years in the eastern and central Pacific, stopping for extended stays at the Hawaiian Islands, where he became a good friend of King
Kalākaua Kalākaua (David Laʻamea Kamanakapuʻu Māhinulani Nālaʻiaʻehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua; November 16, 1836 – January 20, 1891), was the last king and penultimate monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, reigning from February 12, 1874, u ...
and Ka'iulani. Stevenson and the princess often strolled at ʻĀinahau and sat beneath its banyan tree. Prior to her departure, Stevenson composed a poem for her. He later wrote to his friend Will Hicok Low, "If you want to cease to be Republican, see my little Kaiulani, as she goes through he United States" Historian A. Grove Day noted, "Of all his island friendships, the platonic affair with the half-Scottish princess has most persisted in the imagination of lovers of Hawaiiana."


Matchmaking and engagement rumors

During his 1881 world tour, Kalākaua held a secret meeting with
Emperor Meiji , posthumously honored as , was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the List of emperors of Japan, traditional order of succession, reigning from 1867 until his death in 1912. His reign is associated with the Meiji Restoration of 1868, which ...
and proposed to unite the two nations in an alliance with an arranged marriage between his 5-year-old niece Kaʻiulani and the 13-year-old Prince Yamashina Sadamaro. From extant letters to the king, both by Prince Sadamaro, upon the advice of his adoptive father, and by Japanese foreign minister Inoue Kaoru declined the proposal on behalf of the government of Japan. In February 1893, the Japanese Imperial Navy gunboat ''Naniwa'' was docked at Pearl Harbor with the Japanese prince on board. Rumors circulated in the American press that the Japanese considered intervening militarily. From 1893 until her death, rumors of whom Kaʻiulani would wed circulated in the American and Hawaiian press, and on one occasion she was pressured by Queen Liliʻuokalani to marry. When Clive Davies, son of Kaʻiulani's guardian Theo H. Davies, was a student at
Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...
in 1893, he was rumored to be Kaʻiulani's fiancé. Although the princess had stayed with the family occasionally while she was in England, her father said there was no engagement between the two young people and the rumors were "absurd and preposterous". In spite of the denial, the rumors persisted for a time. However, Clive was engaged to Edith Fox, daughter of civil engineer Francis Fox, between 1896 and 1898 while he resided in Honolulu and handled his father's business. Another rumor, which circulated after Kaʻiulani's return to Hawaii, said she was to marry Clive's brother George Davies. Members of Kaʻiulani's household denied this.; On January 29, 1894, when Kaʻiulani was nineteen, Liliʻuokalani wrote asking her to consider marrying either Prince David Kawānanakoa, Prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole, or an unnamed Japanese prince (then studying in London). She reminded her, "To you then depends the hope of the Nation and unfortunately we cannot always do as we like." It took five months for Kaʻiulani to respond to Liliʻuokalani's suggestion. In a June 22, 1894, letter Kaʻiulani asserted that she would prefer to marry for love unless it was necessary stating, "I feel it would be wrong if I married a man I did not love." Based on personal letters and letters by her friends, many suitors courted Kaʻiulani while she resided in England and Europe. Prior to her return to Hawaii in November 1897, Kaʻiulani confided in her friend Toby de Courcy that she would have to end her courtship with one of her "young men" because there was an arranged marriage waiting for her in Hawaii. She further hinted that the union, approved by her father and Theo H. Davies, was being kept secret for political reasons. She lamented, "I must have been born under an unlucky star as I seem to have my life planned out for me in such a way that I cannot alter it." Historian Marilyn Stassen-McLaughlin and biographer Sharon Linnea could not identify the gentleman behind the secret union from the primary sources, but conjectured it was Kawānanakoa because he was the only likely candidate for a political union after Kūhiō had married in 1896. Records indicate that there may have been a written agreement of betrothal with Kawānanakoa, that was quickly aborted. An unsubstantiated announcement dated February 3, 1898, was printed in '' The San Francisco Call'' and later reprinted in newspapers across the United States. According to the report, the betrothal was dependent upon the finalization of deeds to a sizeable real estate holding, transferred from Queen Kapiʻolani to both Kawānanakoa and Kalanianaʻole. On February 19, a denial of betrothal from Kawānanakoa was printed in the newspapers. Kapiʻolani did deed all her property, real and personal, to the brothers on February 10, with the express stipulation that the documentation not be executed until she was ready. Kapiʻolani wanted to hold off the transfer until she was too old to manage the property herself, and/or otherwise would believe she was close to death. She last saw the document with her notary Carlos A. Long, with her instructions to have changes made in the wording. Instead, the brothers had the deed executed immediately, without her knowledge. Family lore also conflicts over the exact nature of her relationship with Kawānanakoa. Kaʻiulani's niece Mabel Robertson Lucas (daughter of her sister Rose) said that the two cousins were close but only like siblings. Nancy and Jean Francis Webb's 1962 biography of Kaʻiulani says that Kawānanakoa's eventual wife, Abigail Campbell Kawānanakoa, told an unnamed biographer or close friend that "of course I never could have married David if Kaʻiulani had lived". The Bishop Museum collection has a number of jewels owned by Kaʻiulani, including a diamond and aquamarine necklace given to her by Queen Kapiʻolani in 1897, in honor of her engagement to an unnamed suitor. Kaʻiulani replaced the chain attaching the gems with strands of small pearls. According to a letter written to Liliʻuokalani dated to June 22, 1894, in which she declined the idea of an arranged marriage, she mentioned that she had rejected a proposal by an "enormously rich German Count". She was connected in the press to two other suitors in 1898: Captain Putnam Bradlee Strong, an American officer en route to fight in the
Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...
in Manilla and son of New York City Mayor William Lafayette Strong, and Andrew Adams, a New England-born journalist for ''The Pacific Commercial Advertiser'' whom her father favored. In 1895, '' The Evening Republican'' reported a rumor that Kaʻiulani was to marry Rudolph Spreckels, the son of sugar magnate
Claus Spreckels Claus Spreckels (July 9, 1828 – December 26, 1908) was a German-born American industrialist in California and Hawaii, during the Kingdom of Hawaii, kingdom and Republic of Hawaii, republican periods of the islands' history. He founded or was i ...
. A posthumous report in ''The Butte Daily Post'', after Kaʻiulani's death, connected her to James G. Blaine, Jr, son of former United States Secretary of State James G. Blaine.


Illness, death, and burial, 1898–1899

Kaʻiulani traveled to the Parker Ranch at Waimea, on the island of
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...
on December 6, 1898. The ranch owner, Samuel Parker, had served on Kalākaua's privy council, and was Liliʻuokalani's
minister of foreign affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and foreign relations, relations, diplomacy, bilateralism, ...
when the monarchy was overthrown. Kaʻiulani attended the December 14 wedding of Parker's daughter, who was her childhood friend Eva, to Frank Woods, and stayed for Christmas festivities. The celebrations and activities went on for weeks. In mid-January 1899, Kaʻiulani and a number of other guests mounted horses and rode out for a picnic. What started out as pleasant weather soon turned into a windy rainstorm. While others on the ride donned raincoats, Kaʻiulani was gleefully galloping through the rain without a coat. It was not until later, when they were back on the ranch, that she began feeling ill. Upon learning of her situation on January 24, her father sailed immediately to the island on the steamship ''Kinau''. Their family physician, "Doctor Walters" (Saint David G. Walters), accompanied him. After medical treatment, the public was told two weeks later that she was on the mend. However, Kaʻiulani was still frail, and her illness lingered. A petition to President
William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until Assassination of William McKinley, his assassination in 1901. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...
and Congress, urging the United States to grant the princess a pension, was being circulated for signatures. In reality, she was still gravely ill, and Cleghorn brought her back to ʻĀinahau on February 9, on the steamship ''Mauna Loa''. She was so ill she had to be carried on a stretcher. Walters said it was "inflammatory
rheumatism Rheumatism or rheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the joints or connective tissue. Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including a ...
". He later added that she also had an exophthalmic
goitre A goitre (British English), or goiter (American English), is a swelling in the neck resulting from an enlarged thyroid gland. A goitre can be associated with a thyroid that is not functioning properly. Worldwide, over 90% of goitre cases are ...
. Kaʻiulani died of inflammatory
rheumatism Rheumatism or rheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the joints or connective tissue. Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including a ...
, at her home at ʻĀinahau, on Monday, March 6, 1899, at the age of 23. Later, George W. Macfarlane, a family friend and King Kalākaua's chamberlain, told a reporter from the ''San Francisco Call'' that the princess possibly died of a broken heart. Kaʻiulani had loved peacocks, growing up around a flock originally belonging to her mother at ʻĀinahau. She would sometimes be called the "Peacock Princess". Her beloved peacocks could be heard screaming in the night when she died. It was later determined that the late-night activities and lights likely agitated the birds, but others still believed that the peacocks were mourning her death. Native Hawaiian protocol dictated that the body of an ''
aliʻi The aliʻi were the traditional nobility of the Hawaiian islands. They were part of a hereditary line of rulers, the ''noho aliʻi''. Cognates of the word ''aliʻi'' have a similar meaning in other Polynesian languages; in Māori it is pronoun ...
'' (royal) could only be moved after midnight following death and had to be interred on the
sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, Ten Commandments, commanded by God to be kept as a Holid ...
. She lay in her own home until Saturday, March 11, when her body was moved just after midnight. The route from ʻĀinahau to the lying in state at Kawaiahaʻo Church became a growing funeral procession as native Hawaiians fell in line with lit torches and wailed mournfully. The
Republic of Hawaii The Republic of Hawaii (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Lepupalika o Hawaii'' epupəˈlikə o həˈvɐjʔi was a short-lived one-party state in Hawaii, Hawaii between July 4, 1894, when the Provisional Government of Hawaii had Black Week (H ...
government put all its resources at the family's disposal and gave her a state funeral on March 12. She lay in state at Kawaiahaʻo Church until her final service. Hundreds of individuals and organizations made up the procession. ''The Pacific Commercial Advertiser'' estimated that 20,000 spectators lined the streets. The most-recent (1896) census had shown only 29,000 residents in all of Honolulu. Her remains were brought to the Royal Mausoleum of Hawaii at ʻMauna Ala in the Nuʻuanu Valley for burial. She was interred in the main chapel of the mausoleum, joining her mother Likelike and the other deceased members of the royal houses of Kalākaua and Kamehameha. In a ceremony officiated by Liliʻuokalani on June 24, 1910, the family's remains were transferred for a final time to the underground Kalākaua Crypt after the main mausoleum building had been converted into a chapel. Her father was also interred in the crypt after his death on November 1, 1910.


Cultural impact and legacy

When Kaʻiulani was born, kerosene lamps provided Honolulu's street lighting. During Kalākaua's 1881 world tour, he visited
Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February11, 1847October18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventions, ...
who gave him a demonstration of electric light bulbs. ʻIolani Palace led the way in and installed the first electric lighting in Hawaii in 1886. The public was invited to attend the first-night lighting ceremonies. The Royal Hawaiian Band entertained, refreshments were served, and the king, on horseback, paraded his troops around the grounds. When Honolulu finally electrified all its street lighting, the honor of throwing the switch at the Nuʻuanu generators to light up the city fell to 12-year-old Kaʻiulani on Friday, March 23, 1888. In the fall of 2007, British filmmaker Marc Forby began production on a $9 million film titled ''Barbarian Princess'' based on the princess' attempts to restore her nation's independence. Princess Kaʻiulani was played by 12-year-old Kaimana Paʻaluhi of Oahu and by
Q'Orianka Kilcher Q'orianka Waira Qoiana Kilcher (; born February 11, 1990) is an American actress. Her best known film roles are Pocahontas in Terrence Malick's 2005 film '' The New World'', and Kaiulani in '' Princess Kaiulani'' (2009). In 2020, she starred i ...
. Barry Pepper,
Will Patton William Rankin Patton (born June 14, 1954) is an American actor. He starred as Colonel Dan Weaver in the TNT science fiction series '' Falling Skies''.Shaun Evans co-star. In March 2008, scenes were filmed on location at the ʻIolani Palace. The film's world premiere was held at the Hawaii Theatre in Honolulu, Hawaii, on Friday, October 16, 2009, as part of the
Hawaii International Film Festival Hawaii ( ; ) is an island state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only state not on the North American mainland, th ...
. The film's title provoked controversy, and the film opened with mixed reviews. However, demand to see the film was high and the film festival scheduled several additional screenings. The movie's title has since been changed to '' Princess Kaʻiulani''.
Roadside Attractions Roadside Attractions, LLC is an American independent production company and film distributor based in Los Angeles, California, founded on July 27, 2000, by Howard Cohen and Eric d'Arbeloff. Lionsgate Films Lionsgate Films (spelled as Lions ...
acquired the movie's United States rights and scheduled it for theatrical release on May 14, 2010. Forby's film is not the first project to bring the Princess to the screen: Kaʻiulani biographer Kristin Zambucka produced a docudrama called ''A Cry of Peacocks'' for Hawaiian television, broadcast in 1994 by Green Glass Productions and KITV. Princess Kaʻiulani was played by Heather Kuʻupuaohelomakamae Marsh. In 1999, the Outrigger Hotels commissioned a statue of Kaʻiulani at Waikiki. An annual ''keiki'' (children) hula festival is held in her honor in October at the Sheraton Princess Kaiulani Hotel (built on the former grounds of ʻĀinahau). In March 2017, ''Hawaiʻi Magazine'' ranked her on a list of the most influential women in Hawaiian history.


The Kaʻiulani Project

The Kaʻiulani Project began in 2007 after completion of five years of research on the life of the princess. Members of the project, which was founded by Jennifer Fahrni, include descendants of the princess's family, Hawaiian cultural leaders, kumu hula and Hawaiian educators. The goal of the project was to make Kaʻiulani's dual culture and her legacy for the Hawaiian people more widely known and ultimately taught in Hawaiian schools. In 2007 the project began work with Hawaiian educators as well as cultural and performing arts organizations, producing presentations and play readings throughout the state. On October 16, 2010, The Kaʻiulani Project, in co-ordination with the Royal Guards of Hawaii produced the Lahaina Royal Hoʻike where official Hawaiian protocols were performed for the first time in honor of Kaʻiulani in over 100 years. Delegations from all islands took part in the event on the sacred grounds of Mokuʻula and Waiola Church. This was first time since Kaʻiulani’s passing that her family participated in official Hawaiian celebrations of her life. Hoʻokupu offerings were presented to and received by Kaʻiulani’s grand-niece in honor of the princess’s 135th birthday. Numerous civic and cultural organizations in Hawaii including the Royal Order of Kamehameha I participate in the event. Entertainment was provided by the Royal Hawaiian Band and other performers. The story of the princess's life was also presented with selected scenes from the original script “Ka’iulani, The Island Rose”. The Kaʻiulani Project includes ''Kaʻiulani: The Island Rose'', a fact-based screenplay and stage play researched and written since 2003 by Fahrni and Carol Harvie-Yamaguchi, and a biography ''Princess Kaʻiulani – Her Life and Times''. The script was first performed as a public reading on April 12, 2008, in
Kahului, Hawaii Kahului () is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place (CDP) in Maui County in the U.S. state of Hawaii. It hosts the county's main airport ( Kahului Airport), a deep-draft harbor, light industrial areas, and commercial shopping ...
, on
Maui Maui (; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ) is the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2). It is the List of islands of the United States by area, 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of ...
.


ʻĀinahau and her banyan tree

Archibald Cleghorn willed the estate of ʻĀinahau to the Territory of Hawaii for a park to honor Ka'iulani after his death in 1910. However, the territorial legislature refused the gift. The property was subdivided and sold with the Victorian mansion at ʻĀinahau becoming a hotel and then a rental property before it burned down on August 2, 1921. The Daughters of Hawaii, an organization founded in 1903 to preserve the islands' historic legacy, was given responsibility for the care of Ka'iulani's banyan tree. On October 16, 1930, the Daughters of Hawaii installed a bronze plaque near the tree to honor the memory of Ka'iulani and her friendship with Robert Louis Stevenson. However, the mounting cost of annual pruning, and concerns about the health of the tree, led to it being cut down in 1949.


Kaʻiulani Elementary School

Kaʻiulani Elementary School was founded in the Kapālama neighborhood of Honolulu on April 25, 1899. During Arbor Day of 1900, the school principal planted a cutting from her banyan tree at ʻĀinahau, given to the school by Archibald Cleghorn. Local efforts prevented the tree from being cut down in the 1950s and the tree survives to the present. The bronze plaque from the original banyan tree was later moved to this site. Other cuttings from the original banyan were planted in other parts of Hawaii.


Ancestry

* Kalākaua family tree


Notes


References


Bibliography


Books and journals

* * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Newspapers and online sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Further reading

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


External links

* * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kaiulani, Victoria 1875 births 1899 deaths Burials at the Royal Mausoleum (Mauna ʻAla) Hawaiian Kingdom Anglicans Hawaiian Kingdom artists Hawaiian Kingdom people of Scottish descent Hawaiian princesses Hawaiian heirs apparent who never acceded House of Kalākaua Native Hawaiian surfers Presidencies of Grover Cleveland Robert Louis Stevenson Royalty of the Hawaiian Kingdom Crown princesses