The Overthrow of the Hawaiian
Monarchy
Bayonet Constitution
The Bayonet Constitution
• A new law for the Hawaiian
government in 1887 in which King
David Kalakaua was forced to sign.
• The Bayonet Constitution would
eventually limit the power of the
king and transfer power to the elite
(American, European, Hawaiian
elites).
The Bayonet Constitution
• King David Kalakaua:
–The 7th monarch (of 8) of the Hawaiian
Monarchs. Reigned from February 12,
1874(succeeding King William
Lunalilo) — January 20, 1891(Died and
succeeded by Queen Liliuokalani).
King David Kalakaua
The Bayonet Constitution
• Unhappy with the rule of Kalakaua and
his premier, Walter Murray Gibson,
leaders of the Hawaiian League (“the
Committee of Safety”) used threats to
force the king to adopt a new
constitution.
• It was rumored that Kalakaua had given a
$60,000 bribe from a farmer to receive
license to grow opium.
Walter Murry Gibson
The Hawaiian League
• “The Committee of Safety” or the
“Annexation Club.”
• It was made of 13 American and
Hawaiian citizens.
• It’s main goal was to annex Hawaii.
–“Annex” – The first step in adding
and controlling a place to a larger
country.
The Hawaiian
League – “The
Committee of
Safety.”
The Steps to the Bayonet Constitution of 1887
• June 30, 1887:
• a meeting of residents(local businessmen, sugar
planters, politicians) with the backing of the armed
militia of the Honolulu Rifles( secret affiliation with
the Missionary Party ), as well as the “Committee of
Safety” demanded King Kalakaua to fire his cabinet
headed by Walter Gibson.
• The meeting was called to order by Sanford B. Dole.
• Lorin A. Thurston prepared demands for the king to
follow including a new constitution to be written.
The Steps to the Bayonet Constitution of 1887
• July 1, 1887:
• a shipment of arms was discovered (although
later found to be smooth-bore hunting guns used
to scare bird from farmers' fields). The Honolulu
Rifles took control and arrested Gibson.
– This was to believe that Gibson was planning a
rebellion.
• Kalakaua, with the advice of foreign advisors,
complied with the demands of the U.S.
government and allowed Lorin A. Thurston to
replace Walter Gibson as the Interior Minister.
The Steps to the Bayonet Constitution of 1887
A Week Later. . . .
•A group of lawyers drafted a new
constitution: Sanford B. Dole, Lorrin A.
Thurston, William Ansel Kinney, William
Owen Smith, George Norton Wilcox,
Edward Griffin Hitchcock.
•Most of these men were associated with
the “Hawaiian League,” aka “Committee of
Safety.”
The Steps to the Bayonet Constitution of 1887
July 6, 1887. . . .
• Kalakaua signed the document to
become the new law of Hawaii.
• It created a constitutional monarchy like
that of the British, stripping the king of
his authority, giving power to the
legislative branch and his cabinet.
Specifics of the New Constitution
• Executive power was placed in the hands
of the cabinet, appointed by the king but
responsible only to the legislature.
• The king was not allowed to appoint any
legislator and his veto power was
restricted.
Specifics of the New Constitution
The constitution also removed the
monarch's power to appoint members of
the House of Nobles (the upper house of
the legislature), instead making it a body
elected by the wealthy landowners to sixyear terms and enlarging it to 40 members.
Specifics of the New Constitution
• Only Hawaiian, American, and European
males were granted full voting rights if
they met the economic and literacy
requirements.
• Property qualifications effectively kept
Hawaiians from voting for nobles, but
awarded big gains to haole voters.
The Bayonet Constitution
• Like a soldier with bayonet (at the end of
a rifle) threatening the life of another,
Kalakaua was threatened to sign and
change his Hawaii forever. . . . .
• by giving up his power and giving it to
the “people.”