Honolulu’s Iolani Palace

Posted: 03.24.2025 | Updated: 03.24.2025

Peering longingly at a picture of the Aloha state is an oft-favored pastime of American mainlanders. The sheer beauty of the island chain is intoxicating. The rugged and majestic volcanic silhouettes peer over an island paradise. They beckon countless envious souls to dip their toes in Hawaiian waters. But behind the beauty lays an unmistakable darkness filled with betrayal and tormented spirits. The Iolani Palace is such a place. 

Dive in on a Honolulu Ghost Tour for those searching for mystery and adventure.

What Happened At The Iolani Palace?

No place on the islands captures the regal flavor of this serene destination, Honolulu’s royal palace. In fact, it is the only royal palace on American territory. 

Iolani Palace symbolizes an age lost to history and a people subjugated against their will. For many, the palace represents a cultural focus and a place where dead kings and queens still whisper. Iolani Palace was the scene of a very American coup d’etat. 

Television shows such as Magnum P.I. and Hawaii 5-0 brought this otherworldly tropical land into the living rooms of generations of Americans.

However, Ferrari and Tom Selleck aside, it’s easy to forget that Hawaii and its iconic Iolani Palace remain a contentious issue and a place of uprising in centuries past. 

The History Of Iolani Palace

The 19th century’s turbulent winds of change blew through Honolulu with vigor. The completion of Iolani Palace symbolized a growing desire for the old world to be greeted by the new in the splendor it had become accustomed to. 

Built in 1882 by King Kalākaua, Iolani Palace would become a bright beacon of Hawaii’s ambition to forge relations with Western powers.

An opulent and elegant structure, the 50,000-square-foot, five-story Iolani Palace would be the official royal residence and the seat of Hawaiian politics until the monarchy was overthrown in 1893. 

The land on which the palace stands was already hallowed ground to the Hawaiian people and its rulers. Nearby was an ancient burial ground known as Pohukaina.

It was named after an ancient chief whose final resting place was the Kanehoalani of the Ko’olau volcanic range. 

The area was populated by Hawaain dignitaries and retained a spiritual and societal connection to the deep-rooted local culture.

In keeping with a gradual Westernization that crept over the Hawaiian ruling class, these burial mounds would be replaced with European-style tombs after a visit to London by King Kamehameha II, who was inspired by Westminster Abbey. 

After the overthrow of the monarchy, the stunning palace would serve again as a seat of government. This time, Iolani would house representatives of the new American territory. Later, it would be the seat of government for the state of Hawaii before a purpose-built structure would replace it and consign it to history.

However, the glittering facade of Iolani cannot blind history to the contention and controversy that still surrounds it. This resplendent structure was once a prison to one of the Hawaiian royal family, a symbol of a nation stolen and a reminder that those days shall never return. 

Seeds of an American Coup D’etat in Hawaii

The completion of Honolulu’s Iolani Palace in 1882 symbolized the Kamehameha Dynasty. It thrust Hawaii confidently and assuredly into the coming 20th century. 

But, in the shadows of this bright future, Hawaiians of American descent secretly and swiftly prepared to enact a clandestine overthrow of the Hawaiian royal family.

These efforts were so clandestine that even President Grover Cleveland was caught by surprise. The coup was led by the ‘Committee of Safety.’

The insurgents were seven foreign residents of the islands (five Americans, one Scotsman, and a German) and six Hawaiian Kingdom subjects of American descent. 

The United States formally recognized the independence of the Hawaiian Kingdom in 1846. Meanwhile, the Kamehameha Dynasty oversaw treaties with major powers worldwide. In the end, however, sugar toppled this dynasty from its highest point. 

Sugar was a major component of the Hawaiian economy. So much so that American-born landowners pushed for a louder voice in Hawaiian politics.

But, these foreign plantation owners felt the pressure and squeeze of the Hawaiian rulers over land agreements. Growing tension over sugar tariffs raised the stakes further. The seeds that would grow to topple a dynasty were planted. 

The Committee of Safety Strikes

On January 17, 1893, Committee of Safety Chairman Henry E. Cooper addressed a crowd in front of the Iolani Palace. He read a proclamation that formally deposed Queen Liliʻuokalani and abolished the Hawaiian monarchy. 

Thus, a provisional government of Hawaii was established under President Sanford B. Dole. Fearing native reprisals, the Committee and their assembled militia of armed non-natives lobbied for American military involvement. 

Concerned that Japan could seize upon a power vacuum, American diplomat on site, John L. Stephens, agreed to summon 162 sailors and Marines from the USS Boston.

Despite their mission of neutrality, this act all but secured the end of the Hawaiian monarchy, beginning the final chapters of Hawaii passing into US control. 

The deposed Queen would be a prisoner within the royal palace walls for 9 months as Hawaii’s dream of independence faded with each day. Her presence as a mouthpiece and symbol in the days to come was a valued asset to the occupiers. 

Despite President Grover’s request for an investigation into the overthrow, the end result remained unchanged. The Kamehameha Dynasty was over.

Hawaii had been swallowed by the first moves of regional geopolitics, which would cascade into WW2 some decades later. 

Today, locals are still outraged and resentful that their island chain was annexed. They think Iolani Palace is a museum of the past, not a symbol of the Hawaiian future.

But, the sacred land on which the place stands still echoes with voices of that struggle. Some say that the dead of Iolani Palace do not rest easy and speak to the living even now. 

The Ghosts Of Iolani Palace

Hawaii is swirling with mysticism, native tradition, and, some say, the wrath of the gods. It is hardly surprising that a place of such contention, like Iolani Palace, is a place for the restless dead. 

Staff at the palace and visitors alike have witnessed odd phenomena, eerie moments that lead some to suggest the long-gone Queen Liliʻuokalani may remain a prisoner within the palace walls, even in death.

A piano resides within the palace’s Blue Room and is preserved in a glass case under lock and key. Staff claim with certainty that, on occasion, something or someone plays random keys on the piano despite no access.

The Queen is known to have regularly entertained visiting guests with her skill on the piano. 

The Queen’s bedroom is kept secure. However, staff state that an intruder alarm sounds, sending staff to rush to the location once a month. Upon arrival, they are greeted with the same scene each time: the door ajar and an empty room.

Queen Liliʻuokalani was also a lover of fine cigars. While smoking is forbidden on the premises, staff within the Palace today claim to walk through a warm, strong puff of tobacco smoke. 

Perhaps the most eerie of all these encounters is the phantom figure in a vintage dress. Staff have often seen this shadowy woman in a period black dress. She is known to prance around the courtyard and rooms, only to vanish when inspected closer.  

All these moments have led staff to believe that Queen Liliʻuokalani, the last ruling monarch of Hawaii, may still reside within the Palace.

She cannot escape the sadness of those dark days–forever in search of the future that was stolen in 1893. 

Haunted Honolulu

Hawaii is known as a sun-baked tourist trap, albeit drenched in beauty. But it does not do justice to the majesty of Iolani Palace nor the ruling dynasty broken by greed and fear.

The story of the Hawaiin monarchs, the Iolani Palace, and the dark days of January 1893 all deserve closer inspection. Who knows? Should you make your own adventure in Iolani Palace, you may be granted an audience with a Queen. 

Sample these ancient tales of Hawaiian spirits on a Haunted Honolulu Ghost Tour. 

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Sources:

• https://www.crownofhawaii.com/sovereigns
• https://www.nvlchawaii.org/hawaiian-monarchy-overthrown-territory-of-hawaii/
• https://www.iolanipalace.org
• https://www.pacificworlds.com/nuuanu/native/native3.cfm
• https://shannonselin.com/2017/04/king-queen-sandwich-islands-visited-england/
• https://www.honolulumagazine.com/friday-night-frights-the-ghosts-who-haunt-hawaiis-historic-iolani-palace/