The Hawaiian revolution ( History of the United States ) - Essay Example

The Hawaiian Revolution It is believed that the Hawaiian Revolution was staged by a group of wealthy American businessmen, coupled with few of the American sugar planters that were in the region. The aim of the coup against the monarchy was to set a constitution that would give this group of individuals all the power they had to control the island, and at the same time, restrict and prohibit the power of Asians and native Hawaiians from all voting proceedings. The constitution that was drafted, aiming to reduce the power of the king by giving more power to the cabinet and legislature, which was controlled by the wealthy class of Americans (Lightner 58).

This paper will look at some of the events that led to the Hawaiian Revolution, and what the revolution meant to the people of Hawaii during that period. Being a monarchial state, Hawaii was ruled by a royal family, which ensured the safety and protection of the land. The king, David Kalakaua, got his authority from the people of Hawaii after successfully managing to reduce the power of the missionaries in the region. He ruled but was unsuccessful in completely eliminating the foreign powers in Hawaii, who would later turn against him.

This led to the drafting of a new constitution that would limit his authority (Lightner 67). After the death of the king, Liliuokalani, his sister, succeeded him in 1891 and she refused to recognize the constitution in place opting to bring forth another that would give the native Hawaiians the right to vote and restore power to the monarch. It was at this point that the wealthy American class in Hawaii chose to establish the 13-member committee, which would ensure that the queen was overthrown for her treachery against the constitution.

The coup took place on January 17, 1893 after the shooting and wounding of a police officer who tried to cease armament meant for the committee. In order to avert violence in the region, the queen opted to surrender peacefully after her palace was surrounded by the committee’s militia. It was at this point that the committee put in place a government that would rule the region and had a president who was given the authority to rule over the dominion. In 1895, however, a group of Hawaiian loyalists who believed in the old ways and traditions started their own coup, but failed in securing the region back to its rightful owners (Fritz 59).

In some history books, this has been identified as the counter-revolution, which was brief and the lack of casualties makes it largely forgotten by most people. After its failure, the queen was arrested by the government headed by committee member Sanford B. Dole, and charged with treason. The monarchy was dissolved by the queen while she was under house arrest. At the time of all these operations and activities, Hawaii was recognized as a United States protectorate, and when Dole submitted a treaty that was to see Hawaii annexed, most people were opposed to the idea.

In 1898, however, there was need to annex Hawaii after the strategic use of a naval base in Pearl Harbor proved to be of use for the Americans. In 1959, Hawaii became recognized as the 50th state of the United States of America. An apology was issued in 1993 by the American government over its role in the revolution that led to the dissolution of the monarchy in Hawaii (Fritz 73). Works CitedFritz, A. William. The Hawaiian revolution: Tomorrow is too late. New York: American Printing Press, 2011. Print.Lightner, Richard.

Hawaiian History: An Annotated Bibliography. Oxford: Oxford University, 2004. Print.