Saturday, March 16, 2024

Queen Liliuokalani the Fire from Heaven

 


Queen Liliuokalani, the Fire from Heaven


The Story of the First and Last Queen Regent of Hawaii


Queen Liliuokalani’s Manao (motto) was:

"E ʻonipa'a i ka 'imi na'auao" (Be steadfast in the seeking of knowledge).

 As the last reigning queen of the Kingdom of Hawaii, Queen Liliuokalani was born Lydia Kamakaeha on September 2, 1838 to a high chief and chieftess. When she became queen at the age of 60, she took on the name Liliuokalani.

As was common among Hawaiian royalty, Liliuokalani was adopted at birth by Abner Paki and his wife, Laura Konia. She received an education at the Chief’s Children’s School where she learned to speak English fluently, and traveled Europe and America. This exposure to western art and culture influenced much of the more than 160 songs that she composed in her lifetime, many of which are still frequently played throughout the islands today.

Queen Liliʻuokalani is remembered for her many musical compositions, including the famous song Aloha ‘Oe (Farewell to Thee). Many of these were written during her imprisonment after she abdicated her throne, and they express a deep love of her land and people. Her compositions were compiled into The Queen’s Songbook in 1999.

 "To compose was as natural to me as to breathe; and this gift of nature, never having been suffered to fall into disuse, remains a source of the greatest consolation to this day."



 Ke Aloha O Ka Haku, the Queen’s Prayer

`O kou aloha no

Aia i ka lani

A `o Kou `oia `i`o

He he molelo ho`i

 

Ko`u noho mihi `ana

A pa`ahao `ia

`O `oe ku`u lama

Kou nani ko`u ko`o

 

Mai nana `ino`ino

Na hewa o kanaka

Aka e huikala

A ma`ema`e nô

 

No laila e ka Haku

Ma lalo o kou `eheu

Ko makou maluhia

A mau loa aku no

`Amene

 

Your loving mercy

Is as high as Heaven

And your truth

So perfect

 

I live in sorrow

Imprisoned

You are my light

Your glory, my support

 

Behold not with malevolence

The sins of man

But forgive

And cleanse

 

And so, o Lord

Protect us beneath your wings

And let peace be our portion

Now and forever more, Amen

Hawaii’s Story by Hawaii’s Queen Liliuokalani Washington, D.C. Feb. 9, 1898 tells the story of her life, the overthrow of the monarchy, her attempts to reclaim it, and Hawaii during that time. It remains a key work in Hawaiian history. "I was a studious girl; and the acquisition of knowledge has been a passion with me during my whole life."

In 1862 Liliuokalani married John Owen Dominis, who in time became the governor of Oahu and Maui.

As the elder sister to King David Kalakaua, Liliuokalani became the queen of the Kingdom of Hawaii upon the King’s death in 1891.

A Fight for Hawaii’s Freedom

One of Queen Liliuokalani’s main goals was to reestablish the power and sovereignty of the monarchy that her brother had to give up.

When Liliuokalani inherited the throne, she took repealed the Bayonet Constitution, which deprived the authority of the Hawaiian monarchy and gave power to foreigners. She drafted a new constitution which would restore the power to Hawaii.

"Never cease to act because you fear you may fail."

In January 1895 Liliuokalani was arrested following the failed Counter-Revolution in Hawaii. At her trial Liliuokalani denied any knowledge of the revolution but was found guilty and sentenced to five years of hard labor in prison and a fine. That sentence was later commuted to imprisonment to an upstairs bedroom of Iolani Palace. Iolani Palace stands to this day as the only royal residence on American soil.

In 1896, Liliuokalani was granted a full pardon by the now annexed Republic of Hawaii. She resumed her attempts at appealing annexation and traveled to the United States many times in the process. Despite her efforts, Hawaii became a Territory of the United States in 1898 and in one last push in 1910 Liliuokalani unsuccessfully sued the United States government for the loss of the Hawaiian crown land.

On January 16, 1893, United States troops invaded the Hawaiian Kingdom without just cause, which led to a conditional surrender by the Hawaiian Kingdom’s executive monarch, Her Majesty Queen Lili‘uokalani, the following day. Liliʻuokalani believed in peaceful resistance. She did not want the blood of Hawaiian people to be shed.

"It was the intention of the officers of the government to humiliate me by imprisoning me, but my spirit rose above that. I was a martyr to the cause of my people, and was proud of it."

Her conditional surrender read:

“I, Liliuokalani, by the grace of God and under the constitution of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Queen, do hereby solemnly protest against any and all acts done against myself and the constitutional Government of the Hawaiian Kingdom by certain persons claiming to have established a provisional government of and for this Kingdom….”

"Love of country is deep-seated in the breast of every Hawaiian, whatever his station. The cause of Hawaiian independence is larger and dearer than the life of any man connected with it."

"I have pursued the path of peace and diplomatic discussion, and not that of internal strife."

The last queen of Hawaii lived in Washington Palace until her death in 1917 as a private citizen.

Liliuokalani still remains an icon and much beloved by the Hawaiian people. She was the first activist for Hawaiian culture and sovereignty, a movement that still exists to this day. Her legacy also lives on in the Queen Liliuokalani Trust Fund, which works to serve the children of Hawaii.

“Aloha 'Oe, Farewell to Thee . . . 

One fond embrace before I now depart. Until we meet again."

"All things in this world are two: in heaven there is but One.


Hawaiian Art doll Liliuokalani was created in honor of Queen Liliuokalani, the Fire from Heaven.




 


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