AMERICA'S ONLY PALACE

                                        Iolani Palace

      I normally don’t post U.S. sites or events, but this one I feel is important.  We lived a decade in Hawaii, in fact the children, for all practical purposes, grew up there.  As we were leaving the islands,  restoration of the only palace in the United States was in progress. Hawaii is a very popular vacation destination and when I get to taking to returnees I almost always get a NO from them in answer to my question, “Did you visit Iolani Palace 

     Many know about the lavish abodes of our early wealthy merchants in Newport and other areas. They certainly could be in the palace category; although rich and in a category of their own, they were not royalty.

     Iolani Palace in what is now downtown Honolulu was the official residence of King Kalakaua from 1882 until his death in 1891. Then his sister, Queen Liliuokalani resided there until 1893 when the Hawaiian monarchy was overthrown.

     The present palace was started in 1879 and completed in 1882 at a cost of $360.000 and is close to the previous one that termites managed to destroy.

      The Royal family’s living quarters were on the second floor, while the first floor was used for formal functions. The kitchen, storerooms and household  offices were in the basement. The attic provided space for cooling the palace.  In 1883 the coronation of King Kalakaua and his consort Queen Kapiolani was held in the Palace on the King’s 50^th birthday.

      Between 1893-1968 Iolani Palace was used as the capitol for the Republic, the Territory and finally the State of Hawaii.  When the new capitol building was completed in 1969, the palace was vacated and its restoration began.

     On the ground level a beautiful wide staircase leading to the second floor dominates the wide hall that runs the whole length of the  building. Built of Hawaiian woods, the staircase gracefully curves as it approaches the second floor.  The throne room, decorated in crimson and gold was the scene of royal audiences, balls and receptions.

     Across the hall the Blue Room was for informal audiences and small receptions. Large pictures of the Royal family are displayed throughout the Palace.

     The palace is on the city bus route. Parking, if driving, is tight but doable. Individual headphones contain much information and allow one to wander the palace at your own pace, a big improvement to a crowd listening to a history lecture by a docent.

THE U S PALACE

IOLANI PALACE

This is one exception to my posting of US sites. I have always loved the Iolani which was just about to undergo restoration when we moved back to the mainland. I was delighted to see the wonderful results a few years later on a stopover visit enroute to Midway.

One might think that Iolani Palace is located in some exotic location, but being  the only palace in the United Stated, it sits in downtown Honolulu, Hawaii. It was the official residence of King Kalakaua from 1882 until his death in 1891. Kalakaua played an active role in the construction of the palace making sure innovations of the time like toilets, sinks, running water, electric lights and telephones were installed. His sister, Queen Liliuokalani lived in the palace until the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy in 1893. The coronation of the king and his consort, Queen Kapiolani took place in 1883.

The present structure stands close to the old palace which termites destroyed. King Kalakaua took up residence as soon as the palace, which cost $360,000 to build, was completed. The basement housed kitchens, storerooms, and household staff offices. The main floor was used for formal functions, while the second floor was devoted to family living quarters. The large attic merely provided air space to keep the floors below cool.

A wide curved staircase, carved of Hawaiian woods, dominates the wide hall that runs the length of the palace. Portraits of Hawaiian royalty line the walls above niches displaying valuable vases and statuary.

Crimson and gold dominate the Throne Room, the scene of royal audiences, balls and receptions. Small receptions and informal audiences took place across the hall in the Blue Room. The huge painting of a French King  was presented to King Kamehameha III in 1848. Beautiful carved sliding doors separate the Blue Room from the State Dining Room. The massive sideboards in this room were specially made in Boston, Massachusetts. The King and Queen suites are on opposite sides of the hall.

From 1893 to 1968 the palace served as the capitol of the Republic, the Territory and finally of the state. During that time the Throne Room was used by the House of Representatives and the State Dining Room was the Senate Chamber. In 1969 when the new capitol was completed the palace was vacated so restoration could begin.

When you visit, be sure to take a guided tour to learn many more details of America’s only Royal Palace.

In Hawaii don’t expect to hear north, south east and west when given directions. Instead you’ll hear makai (toward the water), Waikiki, Ewa and mauka (toward mountains)

June 11 is Kamehameha Day and since it is also my birthday I always celebrated with a festive parade!