Kamehameha IV

Kamehameha IV
Alexander Liholiho assumed the title of Kamehameha IV, King of Hawai‘i in 1855.
Birth name	Alexander Liholiho ‘Iolani
Reign	11 January 1855 - 30 November 1863
Successor	Kamehameha V
Predecessor	Kamehameha III
Consort	Queen Emma
Issue	Albert Kamehameha
Born	9 February 1834(1834--)
Died	30 November 1863 (aged 29)

Kamehameha IV, King of Hawaii, born Alexander Liholiho ‘Iolani, reigned as the fourth king of the united Kingdom of Hawai‘i from 11 January 1855 to 30 November 1863. He served alongside Emma, Queen Consort of Hawai‘i.

Royal Birth

Alexander was born on 9 February 1834 in Honolulu on the island of Oʻahu to Mataio Kekuanaoa, Governor of Hawaiʻi, and Kīnaʻu, the Kuhina Nui or Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. He was the grandson of Kamehameha the Great, Hawaiʻi's first monarch. As a toddler, Alexander was adopted by his uncle, Kamehameha III, who by decree made Alexander heir to the throne.

Education

Alexander was educated by Anglican missionaries Mr. and Mrs. Amos Cooke at the Royal School in Honolulu. The school survives today as public elementary school of the same name. Often, advisors to Kamehameha III thought it best that the heir apparent, Alexander, and his brother, Lot, would benefit from education through extensive travel. With the supervision of their guardian Dr. Gerrit P. Judd, Alexander and his brother sailed to San Francisco in September 1849. After their royal tour of California, they continued on to Panama, Jamaica, New York and Washington, D.C. They toured numerous countries in Europe and met with various heads of state. In May 1850, the royal brothers, Prince Albert of England and others boarded a ship in England and sailed to the United States of America for a more extensive stay before returning to Hawaiʻi.

Succession to the Throne

Upon his return from a global tour, Alexander was appointed to the Cabinet of Kamehameha III. As a minister of the royal Cabinet, he had the opportunity to gain administrative experience that he would one day employ as King of Hawaiʻi. During his term he also studied various foreign languages and became accustomed to traditional European social norms upon which the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi was modeled. On 11 January 1855 Alexander was installed as Kamehameha IV, succeeding his deceased uncle as King of Hawai'i. He was only 20 years old.

Queen Emma and Prince Albert

Emma, a British descendant and great grand niece of Hawaiʻi's first king, reigned as Kamehameha IV's Queen Consort.

Only a year after assuming the throne, Alexander took the hand of Emma Rooke as his queen. Queen Emma was the granddaughter of John Young, Kamehameha the Great's British royal advisor and companion. She also was the great grand niece of Hawaiʻi's first king.

Upon marrying in 1856, the royal couple had their only child, Prince Albert. Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was Prince Albert's godmother at his christening, held at Cathedral Church of Saint Andrew in Honolulu. Sadly at the age of four, the young prince died. All of Hawaiʻi was distraught over the loss of the boy they had grown to love as their future King.

Fighting American Influence

At the time of Alexander's assumption to the throne, the local American population continued to grow. They began to exert a great deal of economic and political pressure in the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. Alexander worried that the United States of America would make a move to conquer his nation. In an effort to balance the amount of influence exerted by American interests, Alexander began a campaign to limit Hawaiʻi's dependence on American trade and commerce. He sought deals with the British and other European governments. His reign did not survive long enough to make a difference.

Legacy

Alexander and Queen Emma devoted much of their reign to providing quality healthcare and education for their subjects. They were concerned that foreign ailments and diseases like leprosy and influenza were decimating the native Hawaiian population. In 1855, Alexander addressed his legislature to promote an ambitious public healthcare agenda that included the building of public hospitals and care homes for the elderly. The legislature, empowered by the Constitution of 1852 which limited the King's authority, struck down Alexander's healthcare plan.

Alexander and Queen Emma responded to the legislature's refusal to fund the project by lobbying local businessmen, merchants and wealthy residents to fund their healthcare agenda. The fundraising was an overwhelming success and the royal couple built The Queen's Hospital, one of the most technologically advanced medical centers in the world today. The fundraising efforts also yielded separate funds for the development of a leprosy treatment facility built on the island of Maui.

The residents of Sikaiana near the Solomon Islands believe their island was annexed by Kamehameha IV to Hawaii in 1856 (or 1855). Some maintain that through this annexation, Sikaiana has subsequently become part of the US through the annexation of 'Hawaii and its dependencies'. The US position is stated here on page 39, footnote 2.

Personal Tragedy

Alexander Liholiho thought he was responsible for the death of Prince Albert because he gave a cold shower to "cool him off" when Albert wanted something he could not have. This made his already ailing health even worse.

End of Reign

Alexander died of chronic asthma on 30 November 1863 and was succeeded by his brother, who took the name Kamehameha V. Alexander was only 29 years old.

Queen Emma remained active in Hawaiʻi politics. With the end of the Kamehameha dynasty and King William C. Lunalilo dying without an heir of his own, Queen Emma ran unsuccessfully to become the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi's ruling monarch. She lost to King David Kalakaua who would establish a dynasty of his own.

Alexander (as Kamehameha) and Emma are remembered with a feast day on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America on 28 November.

Resources

• American National Biography of Kamehameha IV
• American National Biography of Queen Emma
• The Queen's Hospital

Monarchs of Hawaiʻi
Kamehameha I | Kamehameha II | Kamehameha III | Kamehameha IV Kamehameha V | Lunalilo | Kalākaua | Liliʻuokalani

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