'Iolani School Archives - People of 'Iolani: King Kamehameha IV

King Kamehameha IV
Image: Hawaii State Archives, call # PP-97-8-011

Image: Hawai'i State Archives, PPWD-15-2-023

Prince Albert Edward Kauikeaouli Leiopapa a Kamehameha
Ka Haku o Hawai'i (Prince of Hawai'i)
Son of King Kamehameha IV and Queen Emma
Life, May 20, 1858 - Aug. 27, 1862 (4 years old)
Named after the Prince Consort to Britain's Queen Victoria
Godparents: Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

Speeches of His Majesty Kamehameha IV to the Hawaiian Legislature

Excerpts from:
Staley, Mildred E. A Tapestry of Memories: An Autobiography. Hawaii: Hilo Tribune Herald, 1944, p. 16-17.
Dr. Mildred Ernestine Kaholamoana Staley, daughter of Bishop Thomas Nettleship Staley.

"It was in 1861 that Archbishop Sumner selected father to be the first Bishop of Honolulu...
This decision was in response to a request to Queen Victoria by King Kamehameha IV and his Queen to 'give all the assistance she could in sending out to Hawaii a bishop of the Church of England, with clergy.'"

"In 1850 the King had visited England and had been deeply impressed by the reverence and beauty of Anglican worship, which he craved to bring to his own people. He and the Queen desired to have from England one who could direct the education of the young Crown Prince, heir to the throne, and whose experience would be of benefit to the state schools of Hawaii which they were establishing."

"Father and Mother, with seven children, a nurse and a governess, landed at Honolulu, via the Isthmus of Panama Railway, on October 11, 1862, to find the King and Queen Emma in sad grief for the loss of the little Prince, who had just died. The King died the following year."

See Chapter 6: Alexander Liholiho / Kamehameha IV: Turning to a New Generation (1854 - 1863), page 28 - 33.

• Name : Alexander Liholiho 'Iolani
• Life : February 9, 1834 - November 30, 1863 (29 years old)
• Regnal Name : King Kamehameha IV
• Reign : 1855 - 1863
  (Ascended to the throne at 20 years old)
• Spouse : Queen Emma
• Child : Prince Albert Edward Kauikeaouli Leiopapa a Kamehameha
  [Life : May 20, 1858 - August 27, 1862]
• Founder, The Queen's Hospital
• Honoree, The Cathedral of St. Andrew so named because of the death of the King on Saint Andrew's Day
• Educated at the Chiefs' Children's School a.k.a. Royal School

Alexander Liholiho 'Iolani ascended the throne as King Kamehameha IV in 1855 and reigned until his death on November 30th, 1863. He and his wife, Queen Emma, preferred the religious teachings of the Church of England.

When they had a child, Prince Albert, they desired him to be educated with those teachings as foundation. After several requests, the first Anglican bishop and priests arrived to establish a mission of the Church of England in October 1862.

"I may mention a very interesting fact, in connection with the subject, that your Majesty is the first independent sovereign who has invited an English Church Establishment into his dominions."
Manley Hopkins to King Kamehameha IV, 9 March 1860, Box 1, Folder 3, MS 127 Manley Hopkins Letters to Kamehameha IV 1858 - 1862, Bishop Museum Archives.

Unfortunately, the four-year-old Prince Albert fell ill and died before the clergymen arrived, sending a nation into mourning.

In 1863, Bishop Thomas Nettleship Staley and Archdeacon George Mason, with the patronage of King Kamehameha IV and Queen Emma, began St. Alban's College. This is the beginning of what would become 'Iolani School. More about the history of 'Iolani School can be found at School History.

October through December 1862, missionaries arrived, founded the church in the islands, and prepared to open the school.

• 10/11/1862 - Bishop Thomas N. Staley, Archdeacon George Mason, Rev. Edmund Ibbotson arrive. Rev. William R. Scott arrives soon after.
• 10/12/1862 - First service in the Hawaiian Kingdom
• 10/25/1862 - Hawaiian Reformed Catholic Church charter accepted at the courthouse
• 11/08/1862 - Notice in the Polynesian newspaper that a "Collegiate Grammar School for Young Gentlemen" would be opening soon.
• 11/09/1862 - First Hawaiian language service.
• 12/14/1862 - First service in Lahaina, Maui
• 12/27/1862 - Polynesian newspaper announcement that school will start January 12, 1863 at the Parsonage House, Kukui Street (behind the temporary cathedral; temporary; Mason residence; beginning of St. Alban's College). "The Warden will receive a limited number of boarders."
• Summer 1863 - Rev. Scott establishes an English day school for boys in Lahaina, Maui

The newspaper issue has been digitized and made available via Chronicling America, a website providing access to historic American newspapers, sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Library of Congress. For direct access to the page containing the article "Court News," click on the following link:

Sample excerpt:

"To-day we begin a new era. Let it be one of increased civilization-- one of decided progress, industry, temperance, morality and all those virtues which mark a nation's advance. This is beyond doubt a critical period in the history of our country, but I see no reason to despair. We have seen the tomb close over our Sovereign, but it does not bury our hopes. If we are united as one individual in seeking the peace, the prosperity and independence of our country, we shall not be overthrown. The importance of this unity is what I most wish to impress upon your minds. Let us be one and we shall not fall!"