Historical Collections of The Hawaiian Islands - Elected King-- William C. Lunalilo The US GenWeb Archives provide genealogical and historical data to the general public without fee or charge of any kind. It is intended that this material not be used in a commercial manner. All submissions become part of the permanent collection. Historical Collections of The Hawaiian Islands " Keepers of the Culture " A study in time of the Hawaiian Islands As told by the ancients-- Elected King-- William C. Lunalilo by Darlene E. Kelley December 30, 2000 http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00026.html#0006374 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ As told by the ancients -- Elected King-- William C. Lunalilo [ 1835--1874 ]. Born; January 31, 1835. Father ; Charles Kana'ina, a minor chief and friend of the Kamehamehas. Mother; Miriam Kelauluohi, one of the five wives of Kamehameha the Great and, after his death, one of the wives of his son, Kamehameha ll; married Charles Kana'ina in 1834; kukina nui [1839-1845]. Schooled; High Chiefs' Children's School in Honolulu, Ran by Amos Starr Cooke and Juliette Montague Cooke [ a missionary boarding school for the royal children and those of the highest chiefs.], stood near the palace, near Beretania Street. Ruled; January 8, 1873 until his death on February 3, 1874. While Lunalilo possessed a superior inteligence and was well read in English literature, he had little experience in practical matters. This handsome, fun-loving and spoiled prince had literally no experience in financial affairs since his guardians had seen to his personal affairs for many years. Despite having been a member of the Privy Council and the House of Nobles, Lunalilo had acquired almost no experience in public administration. Well aware of his weaknessess, the new King quickly put together a cabinet that consisted of men of high character and ability who would add strength to his new government. With the exception of a Scotsman, all the new cabinet ministers were Americans. The King then sent a message to the legislature recommending a number of amendments that would nullify numerous changes made in the Constitution of 1864 if they were enacted. Unlike his predecessor, Lunalilo sought a more democratic approach to changing the constitution. Several weeks after Lunalilo ascended the throne, customhouse figures were released showing that the quantity of sugar exported had fallen off by nearly five million pounds. In addition to the smaller crop, the average price that the sugar planters received was lower than it had been for many years. The depressed state of the sugar industry naturally spilled over into other segments of the business community, and once again the old solutions of reciprocity and annexation began making the rounds in private as well as public conversations. The reforms that the new King so vigorously launched early in his reign were slow to materialize, and the change in Kings did little to erase the problems that plagued the tiny island kingdom. American warships and military men visited the islands to check on the strategic importance of Pearl Harbor, a lease on which was being touted as a way of obtaining a reciprocity treaty with the United States. A secret mission of Major General John M. Schofield and Brevet Brigadier General B. S. Alexander was sent by the United States secretary of war to " ascertain the value of Pearl River Harbor. " Talk was renewed for the cessation of Pearl Harbor in return, possibly, for reciprocity on sugar sent to the United States. Charles Bishop, as minister of foreign affairs, said that such a move would not be a part of annexation; the natives, however, thought otherwise. Queen Emma spoke for them: " The reciprocity treaty giving away land, is much dicussed these days---- There is a feeling of bitterness against these rude people who dwell on our land and have high handed ideas of giving away somebody else's property as if it were theirs. " Lunalilo remained in the peculiarly fatherly position of listening, for a time committing himself to the proposition, and then withdrawing his acquiescence-- no doubt influenced by the fear of revolution among the people. Charles R. Bishop wrote to Secretary Hamilton Fish of the United States that -- " reports received from other islands indicated excitment and turbulence of feeling among the Masses [ against reciprocity ]. " Another problem, the segregation of lepers, was a part of Lunalilo's reign, resulting in the establihment of a New Board of Health. Leprosy was a serious problem in Hawaii. It is not completely known where and when Leprosy came to Hawaii, although some suspected as early as 1840, and that it may have come from China, there being frequent travel between the two countries. The disease came to public notice in a Board of Health report in 1863, when outbreaks were becoming alarming. Enforced segregation came in 1865 by the Board of Health, when the legislature passed an act to Prevent the Spread of Leprosy. The disease knew no boundaries, as rich, middle class, and poor, were being infected. Those who could afford Hospital isolation were segregated in certain conditions. Rewards were made for turning in the lepers and the epidemic was out of control. The lepers were then sent to Kalaupapa on Molokai. Conditions were abominable. The lepers often were starving, as they had been dumped of the coast and forced to swim ashore, that is to say if they could swim, others who could not swim or were to weak, drowned. Finally. a little poi and beef was sent to them each week. However there were also non-lepers, close relatives of the ill, who volunteered to work with them. but their help was often such a drain on the food supply that the lepers began to resent them as they slowly starved to death, or became so weak from infection. Morale was extremely low, as the lepers had nothing to look forward to but getting worse and dying. Government agents often cheated the lepers and furnished them with island-made alcohol. Under the New Board of Health. persons who had been cheated by agents were repaid and the food was increased and varied. A store was established and money given to the leper to buy his clothes rather receiving cast-offs from agents who doled them out, all due to the generosity of donations of many christian missionaries as well as the Catholic Fathers. Before the year ended 500 new victims of the disease were discovered and sent to te leper settlement on Molokai. Friendsand relatives of the afflicted were no longer allowed to visit the settlement. This policy reversal caused bitter resentment among the Hawaiian people toward their government and also toward the King, since he approved of the policy. While Lunalilo escaped leprosy, he experienced chest pains and came down with a severe cold in the middle of August, 1873. Avoiding public contact, Lunalilo retreated to his summer palace at Waikiki with his ministers. physicians, and close friends. While his health soon improved, he never returned to a normal state of health. The King's doctors called for complete abstention from intoxicating drinks, but Lunalilo would not here of it. Recovering from pneumonia, he contracted tuberculosis in his weakened condition, [ Many whispered that they thought it was that dreaded disease that was plaguing Hawaii ]. In Septemeber, the sick and weary monarch faced a mutiny by the Houshold Troops who rebelled against their superiors. After several days, the King agreed to protect the mutineers from injury and then he abruptly disbanded the household troops except for the Royal Band. This action left the KIngdom without any regular, organized military protection. Withe the government humiliated, Lunalilo tried to sidetrack the crisis by returing to the palace in Honolulu. In November, the Kings's health began to deteriorate again, and the King attempted to recuperate in the warmer sunshine and clear sea air at Kailua on the island of Hawaii. But this change didn't help and the King's condition grew steadily worse. In mid-January of 1874, Lunalilo returned to Honolulu as an invalid, having had to be carried ashore. He clung to life for about two more weeks before dying on February 3. 1874, barely passing his thirty-ninth birthday. His reign was the shortest of any monarch. Only one year and twenty five days. Often called the " People's King" because of the first election. He left all his estate for the establishment of a home for "Poor, destitute and infirm people of Hawaiian blood or extraction, giving preference to old people." The Lunalilo Home later became an enduring momumet to his memory. Like his predecessor Kamehameha V, Lunalilo died a bachelor and consequently had no direct heirs to the throne. Likewise, he failed to appoint a successor, saying repeatedly that he had not made up his mind. Having felt slighted by the clannish Kamehameha family, Lunalilo's last wish was to be buried away from them. So instead of being entombed in the Royal Mausoleum, Lunalilo was buried in a separate mausoleum that was constructed after his death.