Enjoy the voices of the Merrie Monarchs and performing arts by Kumu Hula Etua Lopes and his Halau Na Pua Ui O Hawaii during an Afternoon at Hulihee Sunday at Hulihee Palace.
Enjoy the voices of the Merrie Monarchs and performing arts by Kumu Hula Etua Lopes and his Halau Na Pua Ui O Hawaii during an Afternoon at Hulihee Sunday at Hulihee Palace.
The free Afternoon at Hulihee, presented by the Daughters of Hawaii and Calabash Cousins, gets underway at 4 p.m. and will remember the late King Kamehameha IV.
King Kamehameha IV, Alexander Liholiho, was 21 when he inherited the throne in 1855. He agonized over the dwindling native population that declined from 300,000 in 1778 to 70,000 in 1855.
“Hawaiians had no resistance to the diseases of foreigners and over 6,000 caught smallpox brought to the islands in 1853,” says Casey Ballao, docent coordinator. “The king and his Queen Emma pushed for the building of a hospital so Hawaiians could get adequate medical care.”
Brought up by a physician, Queen Emma shared her husband’s values on health. Liholiho married Emma Naea Rooke in 1856. She was the granddaughter of John Young, Kamehameha’s British advisor. As was the custom for children in Hawaii to be given to relatives for upbringing, Emma was the hanai (adopted) daughter of T. C. Rooke, an English physician practicing in Honolulu, and Emma’s aunt.
“Besides providing funds, the royal couple earnestly solicited donations from others,” said Ballao. “In 1860, Kamehameha IV laid the cornerstone for the Queen’s Hospital, which he named to honor his wife.” Today, it is the prestigious Queen’s Medical Center in downtown Honolulu.
The king died when he was 29, a short time after his 4-year-old Prince Albert became fatally ill. A crib used by the prince, during a visit to Kona, is on display at Hulihee Palace.
“Queen Emma became a candidate to the throne but lost a heavily contested election to Prince David Kalakaua,” says Ballao “Queen Emma died at the age of 49.”
Afternoon at Hulihee is part of the palace’s series of free monthly concerts that honor Hawaii’s past monarchs and historical figures; donations are appreciated. Attendees should bring a beach mat or chair.
Caretakers of Hulihee Palace are the Daughters of Hawaii and the Calabash Cousins. The Daughters of Hawaii was founded in 1903 and opens membership to any woman who is directly descended from a person who lived in Hawaii prior to 1880. Helping the Daughters in its efforts since 1986 are the Calabash Cousins; membership is open to all.