Posted
on March 26, 2016
I
love holidays, which is one reason I do these write-ups, and of
course that means I know quite a few holidays. So when I looked at a
list of March holidays and noted that today is Prince
Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana`ole Day, in the United States, I was sort of
amazed. Wait, who the heck is Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana`ole? And
why is he celebrated today? And why have I never heard of him?
Of
course, I knew the answer to my own question, since the prince's name
was distinctly Hawaiian. Presumably, if I'd ever lived in Hawaii, I
would've known about this holiday. I guess traveling to Hawaii's many
glorious beaches during four glorious weeks spread out over three
glorious summers just didn't convey the necessary information about
March holidays in Hawaii!
Hawaii
used to be an independent nation, of course, and it had its own
rulers. The last ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii, Queen Lili'uokalani,
had a cousin that she named as the heir to the throne. Of course, he
then took on the title of “Prince,” and if you guessed that this
cousin was Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana`ole, you're right!
Kuhio
was born on this date in 1871, on the island of Kaua'i.
Prince
Kuhio was one of the best-known leaders in Hawaii's history. In 1893,
his kingdom was overthrown by a group of American and European
businessmen, and the “Republic of Hawaii” was formed. The
businessmen didn't want Hawaii to become a republic, though; they
immediately lobbied for the United States to annex Hawaii.
How
awful is it that a bunch of American businessmen went to another
country, stage an overthrow, and then demanded that their new
“republic” become an American territory?
Pretty
awful!
Well,
Prince Kuhio was in his early twenties, and he and other Hawaiians
planned a rebellion against the new republic. However, the rebels
were no match for the troops and police, and soon all the
participants were rounded up and put into prison. The prince was
sentenced to a year in prison; everyone else was sentenced to death.
The death sentences were (thankfully) commuted to prison sentences.
Kuhio—no
longer a prince, I guess, at this point—was in prison for that
entire year. His fiancee visited him every day. When he got out, he
married her, and he and his wife traveled all over Europe. They were
treated like visiting royalty.
Soon
the U.S. did annex Hawaii, and Kuhio returned to his native land to
serve his people in a new way: he ran for Congress! He ended us
serving as a U.S. Congressman from 1903 until his death, and he did a
lot for his state and his people. He helped develop Pearl Harbor and
Honolulu Harbor, he made sure that mail service was well established,
and he helped make sure that native Hawaiians could obtain homesteads
and go “back to the farm.”
He also did things to remember the
royals who were his ancestors, such as reorganizing the Royal Order
of Kamehameha I, starting the first Hawaiian Civic Club, and
organizing a celebration of Kamehameha a century after his death.
During
all that time, Hawaii was a U.S. “Territory,” not a state. In
1919 Kuhio introduced in Congress the first call to make Hawaii a
state – but that didn't happen until 40 years later!
To
celebrate Prince Kuhio, there are festivals that feature Hawaiian
music and dancing and food and customs; health organizations hold
events about health issues in Prince Kuhio's name; there are special
services at Kuhio's grave; schools and government buildings, and many
businesses, are closed. Some people participate in canoe races,
cultural demonstrations, or luaus.
One
way for Hawaiian visitors to participate in the holiday is the
lei-draping
– people drape leis on the statue of the prince on Waikiki, in
Honolulu.
- Learn to make a lei.
Also
on this date:
Plan
ahead:
And
here are my Pinterest boards for:
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