Aliʻiōlani Hale is today the home of the Hawaiʻi State Supreme Court and the statue of Kamehameha the Great.

Aliʻiōlani Hale is a building located in downtown Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, currently used as the home of the Hawaiʻi State Supreme Court. It is the former seat of government of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi and the Republic of Hawaiʻi. Image File history File links Aliiolanihale2003. ... Image File history File links Aliiolanihale2003. ... Downtown Honolulu is the current and historic central part of Honolulu—bounded by Nu‘uanu Stream to the west, Ward Avenue to the east, Vineyard Boulevard to the north, and Honolulu Harbor to the south—situated within the larger Honolulu District. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Aliiolani Hale in downtown Honolulu is the home of the Hawaii State Supreme Court. ... Royal Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Hawaii The Kingdom of HawaiÊ»i was established during 1795 - 1810 with the subjugation of the smaller independent chiefdoms of OÊ»ahu, Maui, MolokaÊ»i, LānaÊ»i and KauaÊ»i by the chiefdom of HawaiÊ»i (or the Big Island) into... Iolani Palace in Honolulu, formerly the residence of the Hawaiian monarch, was the capitol of the Republic of Hawaii. ...

Located in the building's courtyard is the famed gold-leaf statue of Kamehameha the Great. The Kamehameha Statue stands before Ali‘iolani Hale, the home of the Hawai‘i State Supreme Court. ...

Establishment and monarchy period

Aliʻiōlani Hale was originally designed in a Renaissance revival style as the royal palace for King Kamehameha V. In the Hawaiian language, Aliʻiōlani Hale means "House of the heavenly King"; also, the name "Aliʻiōlani" was one of the given names of Kamehameha V. The neoclassical movement that produced Neoclassical architecture began in the mid-18th century, both as a reaction against the Rococo style of anti-tectonic naturalistic ornament, and an outgrowth of some classicizing features of Late Baroque. ... Kamehameha V was the last monarch of the House of Kamehameha. ... The Hawaiian language is an Austronesian language that takes its name from that of the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. ...

Although the building was designed to be a palace, Kamehameha V realized that the Hawaiian government desperately needed a government building. At that time, the several buildings in Honolulu used by the government were very small and cramped, clearly inadequate for the growing Hawaiian government. Thus, when Kamehameha V ordered construction of Aliʻiōlani Hale, he commissioned it as a government office building instead of a palace.

Kamehameha V laid the cornerstone for the building on February 19, 1872. He died before the building was completed, and it was dedicated in 1874 by one of his successors, King David Kalākaua. At the time, Hawaiian media criticized the building's extravagant design, suggesting that the building be converted into a palace as originally designed. February 19 is the 50th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1872 (MDCCCLXXII) was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Wednesday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... Kalākaua, King of Hawaii — born as David LaÊ»amea KamanakapuÊ»u Mahinulani Nalaiaehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua and called The Merrie Monarch (November 12, 1836 - January 20, 1891) — was the last reigning king of the Kingdom of HawaiÊ»i. ...

Until 1893, the building held most of the executive departments of the Hawaiian government as well as the Hawaiian legislature and courts.

Overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy

It was from Aliʻiōlani Hale in 1893 that the Committee of Safety, under the leadership of Lorrin A. Thurston, deposed Queen Liliʻuokalani by public proclamation and the United States Marine Corps was ordered to forcibly remove the reigning queen. A 1993 resolution passed by Congress and signed by President of the United States Bill Clinton declared the use of American military force in 1893 illegal. Lorrin A. Thurston led the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii through the Committee of Safety in 1893. ... Lorrin A. Thurston led the overthrow of the Hawaiian kingdom in 1893. ... Her Majesty Lili‘uokalani, Queen of Hawai‘i Queen Lili‘uokalani of Hawai‘i (September 2, 1838 - November 11, 1917), given the Christian name Lydia Lili‘uokalani and later named Lydia K. Dominis, was the last monarch of the Kingdom of Hawai‘i. ... The United States Marine Corps (USMC) is a branch of the U.S. military responsible for providing power projection from the sea,[1] utilizing the mobility of the U.S. Navy to rapidly deliver combined-arms task forces to global crises. ... Type Bicameralism Houses Senate House of Representatives United States Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D, since January 4, 2007 Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D, since January 4, 2007 Members 535 plus 4 Delegates and 1 Resident Commissioner Political groups (as of November 7, 2006 elections) Democratic Party Republican... The presidential seal was first used by President Hayes in 1880 and last modified in 1959 by adding the 50th star for Hawaii. ... William Jefferson Bill Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III[1] on August 19, 1946) was the 42nd President of the United States, serving from 1993 to 2001. ...

After the establishment of the Hawaiian provisional government in 1893 and the Republic of Hawaiʻi in 1894, some of the offices in Aliʻiōlani Hale were moved to ʻIolani Palace, including the Hawaiian legislature. As a result, Aliʻiolani Hale became primarily a judicial building. Iolani Palace in Honolulu, formerly the residence of the Hawaiian monarch, was the capitol of the Republic of Hawaii. ... Iolani Palace was the official residence of King David Kalakaua and Queen Julia Kapiolani and then Queen Liliuokalani and Prince Consort John Owen Dominis. ...

Aliʻiōlani Hale since 1900

The growing size of Hawaiʻi's government continued to be a problem for the building, however, especially after Hawaiʻi became a United States territory in 1900. In 1911, the building was extensively renovated to help solve these space problems. The entire interior of the building was gutted and rebuilt, giving the building's interior a completely new floorplan. Since the building was originally designed to be a palace, its floorplan was not adequate for its later usage as a judicial building. The new layout of the building fixed this problem.

The size of the territorial government continued to grow. In the 1940s, a new wing was added to the building to help alleviate the growing problem of overcrowding. The architects who designed the new wing tried to blend it in with the original building that dated back to the 1870s.

Over the next many decades, most of the state judiciary functions moved out of Aliʻiōlani Hale to various other buildings around Honolulu (including the state district, family, and circuit courts). Today, the building houses the Hawaiʻi State Supreme Court and is the administrative center of the Hawaiʻi State Judiciary. It also houses the Judiciary History Center, a museum featuring a multimedia presentation of Hawaiʻi's judiciary, a restored historic courtroom, and other exhibits dealing with Hawaiʻi's judicial history. The building also houses Hawaiʻi's largest law library.

In December 2005, the U.S. military's Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command used radar equipment to locate a time capsule buried by Kamehameha V at the building site on February 19, 1872. According to records from the time, the capsule contains photos of the royal family, Hawaiian coins and postage stamps, the constitution of the Hawaiian Kingdom, local newspapers, and books, such as a Hawaiian language dictionary. But despite the radar discovery, the time capsule was not disturbed, in part because digging it up would harm the building's structural integrity. February 19 is the 50th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1872 (MDCCCLXXII) was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Wednesday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ...

Aliʻiōlani Hale is one of many buildings in downtown Honolulu listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Within walking distance are the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, Hawaiʻi State Capitol, Hawaiʻi State Library, Honolulu Hale, ʻIolani Palace, Kawaiahaʻo Church, Territorial Building, and Washington Place. A typical plaque showing entry on the National Register of Historic Places. ... The Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace is the oldest Roman Catholic cathedral in continuous use in the United States. ... The Hawai‘i State Capitol is the official statehouse or capitol building of Hawai‘i. ... The Hawaii State Library is the seat of the Hawaii State Public Library System, one of the largest free lending libraries in the United States. ... Honolulu Hale Honolulu Hale, located on 530 South King Street in downtown Honolulu in the City & County of Honolulu, Hawaii, is the official seat of government of the city and county, site of the chambers of the Mayor of Honolulu and the Honolulu City Council. ... Iolani Palace was the official residence of King David Kalakaua and Queen Julia Kapiolani and then Queen Liliuokalani and Prince Consort John Owen Dominis. ... Kawaiahao Church is known as the Westminster Abbey of Hawaii, the site of coronations, royal christenings and funerals. ... The Territorial Building was built in 1925 and served as the administrative building of the Territory of Hawaii. ... Washington Place is a Greek Revival home in the Capital District in Honolulu, HawaiÊ»i and was formerly the official residence of the Governor of HawaiÊ»i. ...

Trivia

• When Kamehameha V laid the cornerstone, a time capsule was buried there. It contains Hawaiian postage stamps, 21 Hawaiian and foreign coins, 11 different local newspapers, the Hawaiian Kingdom constitution, a calendar and books, such as a Hawaiian language dictionary. It also contains photos of royal families.
• At first, the room immediately under the clocks was used as a studio for various artists hired by the Hawaiian government.
• Aliʻiōlani Hale is built from concrete blocks, unlike nearby Kawaiahaʻo Church (1836) and ʻIolani Barracks (1870), each constructed of coral blocks.
• The building was built with four clocks in its tower, one facing each direction. For many decades now, however, the clocks have failed to keep accurate time, often off by many hours and off to varying degrees.

A time capsule is a histori c cache of goods and/or information, usually intended as a method of communication with people in the future. ... The Hawaiian language is an Austronesian language that takes its name from that of the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. ...

See also

• History of Hawaiʻi

The history of Hawaiʻi includes phases of early Polynesian settlement, Euro-American and Asian immigration, the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy, and admission to the United States as a territory and then a state. ...

External link

• Hawaiian king's time capsule found, but will stay buried, a December 2005 Associated Press article (via CNN)