Overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom

BelligerentsCommittee of Safety
United StatesHawaiian KingdomCommanders and leadersStrengthCommittee of Safety
~200 Honolulu Rifles
United States 496 troops
Casualties and losses None 1 wounded

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-born permanent residents and six Hawaiian-born people in Honolulu. There was no Hawaiian army so the victorious Committee asked American minister John L. Stevens for U.S. Marines. He sent in Marines and sailors to protect the new government, and to ward off a Japanese invasion. The committee established the independent nation of the Republic of Hawaii, but their ultimate goal was the annexation of the islands to the United States, which occurred in 1898.

The 1993 Apology Resolution by the U.S. Congress concedes that "the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii occurred with the active participation of agents and citizens of the United States and [...] the Native Hawaiian people never directly relinquished to the United States their claims to their inherent sovereignty as a people over their national lands, either through the Hawaiian Kingdom or through a plebiscite or referendum". Debates regarding the event play an important role in the Hawaiian sovereignty movement.