Who was Queen Liliʻuokalani?

0:00 Welcome to History's Not Boring by Kidopholi.com. I'm Mira. And I'm Finn. Before we start, we have some massive birthday shout-outs today. First, a huge shout-out to Kikaha, who wrote to us in Hawaiian, all the way from Hawaii.

0:16 Kikaha turns seven on the 3rd of September. And get this, his birthday is the exact day after the birthday of the Queen we're talking about today. Happy 7th birthday, Kikaha!

0:28 This episode is specially for you. We also want to say a very happy 9th birthday to James in Bellingham, Washington, who listens to Histories Not Boring every single day!

0:39 Happy birthday, James! If you haven't already, tap follow wherever you're listening so you never miss an episode.

0:47 Now, Finn, imagine being locked inside just one bedroom for eight whole months, with guards watching your every move.

0:54 Wait, eight months? I couldn't even go outside to play. I would go completely crazy.

1:01 Exactly! But the person in this room wasn't just anyone. She was a brilliant musician, a fierce leader, and a real life queen who ruled a kingdom in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

1:12 A real queen? In a real kingdom? Who was she?

1:17 Her name was Queen Lili Uokalani, and she was the very last queen of Hawaii. Today, we're telling the story of her incredible bravery, a stunning palace, and a beautiful song that outlasted a kingdom.

1:30 Okay, so where exactly is Hawaii? I know it's an island, right?

1:35 It's actually a chain of 137 islands in the Pacific Ocean, about 2,400 miles away from the coast of California. And back in the 1800s, it wasn't a US state. It was a proud, independent nation, recognised all over the world.

1:54 Whoa! 2,400 miles is like driving across the entire United States. So they had their own kings and queens?

2:02 Yes. Queen Lili Uokalani was born on September 2nd, 1838. She was raised studying languages, music, and learning how to lead. Her brother, King Kalakawa, built the most amazing royal home in 1882, called Iolani Palace.

2:22 Was it a massive stone castle with a moat?

2:26 Not a medieval castle, but it was incredibly grand. It had 104 rooms, a massive staircase made of polished koa wood, and get this, it had glowing electric lights in 1886. Wait, wasn't electricity super rare back then? It was. Iolani Palace had electricity a full five years before the President of the United States had it in the White House.

2:53 It also had telephones and indoor flushing toilets.

2:59 Flushing toilets are definitely a good thing. I do not want to know how medieval kings went to the bathroom.

3:05 Hawaii was incredibly modern. By the 1880s, the city of Honolulu already had a telephone network with hundreds of lines. This was a thriving, brilliant kingdom.

3:17 So if the kingdom was doing so well, what happened? How did she end up locked in a bedroom?

3:22 It started with sugar. By 1890, wealthy businessmen and sugar planters, many from the United States, were growing millions of pounds of sugar on Hawaiian land. Sugar was a massive money maker. The planters were exporting nearly 250 million pounds of it every year. But they wanted more power, and they wanted Hawaii to join the United States, so they wouldn't have to pay expensive taxes to sell their sugar there.

3:52 But it wasn't their country.

3:54 They couldn't just take it, could they?

3:57 Well, in January 1891, Lili Uokalani became the Queen. She saw that her people, the native Hawaiians, were losing their rights. So in 1893, she tried to introduce a new constitution to give the voting power back to the Hawaiian people. That sounds fair. She's the Queen. She's protecting her people. The wealthy businessman did not like that at all.

4:24 A group of 13 men formed something they called the Committee of Safety. They secretly planned to overthrow the Queen and end the Hawaiian monarchy. Overthrow the Queen? But she had an army, right? The Royal Guard? She had police and royal guards, yes. But the Committee of Safety had powerful friends.

4:47 They got a US official to call for backup from a massive warship called the USS Boston that was already anchored in the harbour.

4:56 Oh no! What did the warship do?

4:59 On January 16, 1893, over 160 heavily armed United States Marines and sailors marched off the ship and took up positions in the streets of Honolulu, right near the palace. They had artillery guns and Gatling guns.

5:17 Wait, 160 soldiers with big guns against the Queen? What did she do?

5:24 This is where Queen Lily Orkalani showed her true bravery. On January 17, 1893, she was faced with a terrible choice. She could order her guards to fight, which would start a bloody war in the streets of her city. Or what?

5:42 Did she have another choice?

5:44 Or she could step down peacefully to save the lives of her people. She chose peace. She wrote a famous letter saying she yielded her authority to the superior force of the United States, hoping the US government would eventually fix the injustice and give her kingdom back.

6:03 Wow! She gave up her crown so her people wouldn't get hurt. That is real leadership.

6:10 Exactly. But the story didn't end there. In 1895, some loyal Hawaiians tried to launch a rebellion to put her back on the throne. The rebellion failed, and the new government blamed the Queen, even though she hadn't started it.

6:26 Is this when she gets locked up?

6:28 Yes. She was arrested, brought back to Iolani Palace, and locked in a single bedroom on the second floor. She was kept there as a prisoner for nearly eight months.

6:39 Eight months? She wasn't allowed visitors or letters or anything?

6:44 Her guards wouldn't let her have newspapers. But her supporters found a sneaky way to send her news. They would wrap secret messages inside the beautiful flower bouquets they delivered to her room.

6:56 Haha, that is genius! Secret agent flower deliveries.

7:01 And she used her time in that room to do something beautiful. She wrote music. She translated an ancient Hawaiian chant called the Kumulipo and wrote songs to comfort her people. Did she ever get her kingdom back? No, she didn't. In 1898, Hawaii was annexed by the United States, which means it was taken over and became a territory.

7:24 It later became the 50th US state in 1959. Queen Lili Uokalani lived out the rest of her life in Honolulu, fighting peacefully for her people, until she died in 1917. That's kind of sad. Does anyone still remember her today? Oh, absolutely. The Hawaiian people never forgot her. In fact, 100 years after the overthrow, in 1993, the United States government passed a formal apology resolution, acknowledging what happened was wrong.

7:57 And her music? It's famous worldwide. Wait, she wrote a famous song. She wrote over 160 songs in her lifetime. Her most famous is called Aloha Oei, which means Farewell to Thee. She actually wrote it in 1878 after a horseback ride. It started as a gentle love song, but it became a beautiful song of farewell to her beloved kingdom.

8:22 Over 160 songs. She was like a pop star and a queen at the same time.

8:28 Exactly. And speaking of star power, did you know she travelled to London in 1887 to attend Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee? She travelled over 7,000 miles by ship and train just to get there.

8:42 7,000 miles? Back then, that must have taken forever. She really was a global superstar. Alright, Finn, time for the quiz. Are you ready? I am so ready. Lay those questions on me.

8:56 Okay, first question. What year did Queen Lili Uokalani step down from her throne? Next one, this is tricky. What was the name of the amazing palace with 104 rooms where she lived? Question 3. Ialani Palace had something cool five years before the White House did. What was it? Alright, here's number four.

9:32 About how many months was the Queen kept locked in a single bedroom? Last question. What is the name of her most famous song that means farewell? Great job! Let's go through the answers. The answer to question one is she stepped down in 1893. For question two, the palace is called Iolani Palace. Number three, the answer is electricity.

10:07 It had glowing electric lights. Question four, she was locked in the bedroom for nearly eight months. And the final answer is her beautiful song is called Aloha Oi.

10:21 Queen Lili Uokalani was so brave. Giving up her kingdom to save people's lives must have been the hardest decision ever, but it was incredibly heroic.

10:31 I agree, Finn. She chose peace over war, and she left behind music that the whole world still sings today. That's a powerful legacy.

10:40 If you love learning about amazing leaders like Queen Lily Uokalani, please leave us a five-star review. Just scroll down and tap the stars.

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11:10 Thanks for exploring history with us today. See you next time on History's Not Boring. Bye, everyone.