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When Prince Kuhio returned to Hawaii in 1891, Hawaii was in the midst of
political and economic turmoil, with mostly non native forces, some
citizens of the Kingdom, some foreign born residents, aligning themselves
against the monarchy, calling for annexation of the islands by the United
States. and while the time was not yet ripe for revolution, that fateful
event would occur in mid-January, 1893, when Queen lili'uokalani, on the
throne since Kalakaua's death in 1891, was forcibly overthrown, in part
with the unauthorized involvement of the United States naval forces.
Kuhio, no longer a prince in title, had just turned 20, with prospect for
the future very different than they had been.
The following year, he would be arrested for involvement in the plot to
restore Queen Lili'uokalani to the throne and reassert the primacy of
Hawaii's Polynesian past. Filled with righteous indignation and the fervor
of youth, Kuhio helped organize what he hoped would be a paramilitary
force capable of overpowering the strong, well-equipped forces of the
Republic, volunteers called Citizen Rifles who support the Republic's goal
of annexation by the United States.
Working with others of like mind, he spearheaded a plan that involved
smuggling guns and ammunition to O'ahu that would allow for a surprise
attack and a subsequent coup against the newly formed Republic of Hawaii.
For a number of reasons, including conflicted planning, failed
communications, and advance warnings passes on to the government forces,
the coup quickly failed, with Kuhio captured, arrested, and brought to
trial along with Queen Lili'nokalani. Both were convicted, with the
ex-Queen sent under supervised house arrest in a small suite of rooms on
the second floor of Iolani Palace and Prince Kuhio sent to prison, serving
two years of a five year term.
Released from prison he and Kahanu departed in 1899 for what proved to be
a two year journey that took them from Niagara Falls to South Africa. It
was a free-spirited vagabond's journey that gave Kuhio time to disconnect
from times that harbored unhappy memories. And while he and Kahanu toyed
with the idea of permanently settling overseas, they were ultimately drawn
back to their island home, well aware of the world beyond Hawaii's shores.
The experience, form the failure to rally adequate forces to the time
spent in prison, tamed Kuhio's revolutionary fervor. Accepting the end of
the monarchy as a fait accompli, he would become a key figure in defining
the relationship of the United States and it's new territory.
Blessed by a strong will and unwavering commitment to ideals, witty,
open-hearted and charismatic, he put these assets into service to the
Hawaiian people, taking on the responsibilities that his chiefly descent
required of him. In 1902 he would serve the first of 10 elected terms as
Hawaii's non voting representative in the United States Congress, serving
as a founding member of Hawaii's Republican party, an interesting contrast
to his brother David, who was a founder of the territory's Democratic
party.
It was an affiliation suited to his perspective and to the times, with
Republican President Theodore Roosevelt, a political ally who came to
Kuhio's aid more than once to secure legislation he sought, setting the
tone for political discourse and government action. Hand-jabbing the sky,
with riding boots and hat that matched Roosevelt's Rough Rider persona,
Kuhio evolved into a powerful speaker, able to inspire not only his own
people, whom he addressed in Hawaiian, but the policy makers in the U.S.
government who appreciated his polished English, passionate commitment,
and powerful logic.
Kuhio's nineteen years of service representing Hawaii in Congress were
more than a matter of cultivating new friendships, although kuhio proved
very popular with his Congressional colleagues. Blessed with strong will,
a commitment to the well being of the Hawaiian people, he proved
invaluable, championing their needs and reconciling their right to
cultural integrity with their newly found place as a territory of the
United States of America. More often than not, he was able to secure what
he was after, using political alliances that went all the way to the White
house.
The Hawaiian Home Commission Act that he championed for years, finally
secured in July 1921, setting aside nearly 200,000 acres to allow Native
Hawaiians to return to the land as productive farmers or ranchers, an
effort Kuhio considered crucial to the survival of his people, with land
leased for 99 years at a rate of $1 per year, with loans also to be made
available at modest interest rates.
"The Hawaiian race is passing," he noted. "And if conditions continue to
exist as they do today, this splendid race of people, my people, will pass
from the face of the earth."
"Do not leave it possible for any Hawaiian to say that either politically
or economically, he was better off under the old monarchy, then he may be
today under the American flag," he said, concluding an earlier request for
funds from a reluctant Congress.
Kuhio also pursued forwarding funding for projects he considered important
to the islands, with harbor improvements, lighthouses, and developing
faculties at Pearl Harbor consistent with America's expansion as a world
power, all early initiatives that helped modernize Hawaii's economic
infrastructure. In 1911, he proposed a national park be created that would
include vast expanses of volcanic lands. That effort proved successful in
1916, with Hawaii National park, later to become Hawaii Volcanoes National
park on the island of Hawaii and Haleakala National Park on Maui.
Like the Prince, Princess Kahanu, was a popular and sophisticated in her
own right, with a wide circle of friends, she and Kuhio maintained an
active social life in Hawaii from Pualeilani, with Kapi'olani's original
home replaced by a more contemporary residence. It was here that Kuhio,
his health failing, returned to retire after completing the Congressional
session for 1921.
he had accomplished much for the benefit of his people, as he would have
done had he become Hawaii's king. From bitter opposition, he had come to
appreciate the benefits American democracy brought to Hawaii, seeking to
assure that the Native Hawaiians, whose extinction he greatly feared,
would have a secure future in their island home.
With a few days of celebrating his return to Hawaii, the prince took ill.
It soon became obvious that his time was at hand. At home at pualeilani,
with princess Kahanu by his side, Prince Cupid died at 51, having
dedicated half his life to the cause of his people. A grand funeral
followed, with the Prince honored in a grand processional parade that
included members of the native and non-native communities. It was to be
the last royal funeral in the islands, a reminder of Kuhio's special role
in Hawaii's history.
HAWAIIAN LEGACY
IN DAYS OF OLD
The setting alone defined Waikiki as a special place, or wahi pana as the
Hawaiians called places possessed of unusual mana, or spiritual energy.
Diamond Head, called leahi' by the Hawaiians who saw the brow (lae) of the
tuna ('ahi) in it's summit ridgeline, provided an iconic backdrop to a
crescent beach that faced tropic hued, reef-sheltered waters. It was only
after British sailors saw the glitter of volcanic olivine on Leahi's
beaches and slopes that the name Diamond head came into being, the
Hawaiians transforming diamond into the Hawaiians word Kaimana.
Before the Hawaiians settled here about a thousand years ago, this stretch
of coast had been a wetland fed by water draining the nearby Ko'olau
Mountains. It was a place rich in sealife and birds that the Hawaiians
reconfigured to suit their needs, making it a place of abundance.
To the west they built large, rock-walled fishponds called loko t'a, where
preferred species were grown and harvested for the year-round benefit of
the chiefs (ali'i) who came to claim Waikiki as their own, making it a
gathering place not only for chiefs from O'ahu, but from other islands as
well. To the cast, inland of what is today Kuhio Beach, were lo'i kalo,
the elaborately irrigated, rock-walled fields that provided the royals
with an abundance of taro, the nutritious staple of the Hawaiian diet.
In Hawaiian times, Waikiki consisted of several districts intercepted by
streams, including Uluniu, so named for the large grove (ulu) of palms (niu)
that added the rich abundance of coconuts to the chiefly diet. When
Captain James Cook came ashore here in 1778, he marveled at the
productivity of the land and the industriousness of the Native Hawaiians
planted, maintained and harvested it.
Rising in aesthetic perfection over Waikiki and the flatlands inland of
the coast, Leahi was a reminder of the gods, it's cratered walls evidence
of the goddess Pele, she of the volcanic fires to whom chants were sung
and sacred hula danced. in the shadow of Diamond head, these were sacred
lands, home to temples dedicated to the gods, where prayers and offerings
were made. Papa ena ena, on the lower slope of Diamond Head, overlooking
Uluniu's tall palms, human sacrifice was part of the ritual. It was here,
in 1795 that the last such ceremonial sacrifice took place, with king
Kamehameha offering the defeated Maui chief Kalanikupule in the war-god
Kukailimoku's honor
In addition to towering palms, it was at Uluniu that ceremonial makahiki
games were held each year. Makahiki, which began in October, continued
into January. It was the time when the peaceful god Lono reigned supreme
and royal processionals circled the island, collecting taxes, celebrating
with feasts, sporting comition, music and dance, and resorting the bond
between chiefs and commoners. But times were not always peaceful, and when
makahiki drew to an end and the more violent god Ku was restored to
primacy, wars would again be fought. In 1795 the beach uluniu was host to
war canoes bought to O'ahu by the Big Island chief Kamehameha in what
proved a successful conquest of O'ahu.
When the communally owned lands of old Hawai'i were divided in 1848,
Ulumiu's prime lands were claimed by royals, whose heirs would include
Queen lili uokalani, Queen Kapi olani, and later, Prince Jonah kuhio
Kalanianaole.
Rising from trop seas, Waikiki's sandy shoreline was sheltered by a
barrier reef from the wave-tossed waters of the open sea. Fish were
harvested from the reef-lined shallows as well as the deeper waters
offshore, with the beach lined with both the small two-man outrigger
canoes used by individual fisherman and the larger canoes used for
inter-island travels and in times of war.
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