Bayonet constitution king kalakaua biography
King kalakaua!
Bayonet constitution king kalakaua biography
1887 Constitution of the Hawaiian Kingdom
Legal document drafted by anti-monarchists
The 1887 Constitution of the Hawaiian Kingdom was a legal document prepared by anti-monarchists to strip the absolute Hawaiian monarchy of much of its authority, initiating a transfer of power to a coalition of American, European and native Hawaiian people.
It became known as the Bayonet Constitution for the rising by the armed militia which forced King Kalākaua to sign it or be deposed.[2][3]
Rebellion of 1887
On June 30, 1887, a meeting of residents including the armed militia of the Honolulu Rifles, a group of soldiers that were secretly the Hawaiian League's military arm,[4] and politicians who were members of the Reform Party of the Hawaiian Kingdom, demanded from King Kalākaua the dismissal of his Cabinet, headed by Walter M.
Gibson. Their concerns about Gibson stemmed from the fact that he supported the king's authority.[5]: 5