Title: Hawaii’s Monarchy Overthrown With U.S. Support, 120 Years Ago - HISTORY
Headings: Hawaii’s Monarchy Overthrown With U.S. Support, 120 Years Ago
Hawaii’s Monarchy Overthrown With U.S. Support, 120 Years Ago
Sugar barons and businessmen overthrew Hawaii’s longstanding monarchy 120 years ago, setting the stage for U.S. annexation.

Content: I] yield my authority until such time as the government of the United States shall, upon the facts being presented to it, undo the action of its representatives and reinstate me,” she wrote. In the aftermath of the coup, U.S. troops piled sandbags around the government building in order to fortify it against a potential counterattack. Some also looted the palace, stripping decorations from the walls and stealing a valuable crown. For his part, Stevens wrote to the secretary of state in favor of annexation, saying: “ The Hawaiian pear is now fully ripe and this is the golden hour for the United States to pluck it.” But after U.S. President Grover Cleveland took office that March, he withdrew an annexation treaty, dismissed Stevens from his post and appointed a special commissioner to look into the matter. When the commissioner determined that Liliuokalani had been illegally overthrown and that most Hawaiians opposed the coup, Cleveland’s administration urged that the monarchy be restored. The provisional government instead dug in its heels, establishing a Republic of Hawaii in July 1894. Cleveland proved unwilling to use military force, so Liliuokalani’s supporters launched a counter-revolution in January 1895. Several people died in the failed attempt, over 350 were arrested and the queen was forced to officially abdicate the throne.