Aliiolani Hale rises in front of you, its name Hawaiian for House of the Heavenly King. This handsome Italian Renaissance building was commissioned by King Kamehameha V in the 1870s and originally intended to serve as a royal palace — but it was repurposed as a government building before construction was even complete, and it opened in 1874 as the seat of Hawaiian Kingdom's judiciary and legislature. It was designed by the Australian architect Thomas Rowe, who gave it an Italianate grandeur that was meant to announce Hawaii's sophistication to the world.
History took another unexpected turn here on January 17, 1893, when the Committee of Safety — the group of mostly American and European businessmen plotting to overthrow the monarchy — seized this building and declared a provisional government from its steps. Queen Lili'uokalani, watching from Iolani Palace across the street, yielded her authority here under protest rather than risk bloodshed. Today Aliiolani Hale houses the Hawaii Supreme Court and the Judiciary History Center, where you can learn more about the legal history of a kingdom transformed into a territory and eventually a state.
The golden statue of King Kamehameha I in front watches all who pass.