Archaeological
evidence suggests that the first settlers to the Hawaiian Islands arrived from
the Marquesas sometime between 500 and 750. Settlers from Tahiti arrived
sometime in 1000 and may have enslaved the Marquesans, forcing them to build
temples and work in the fields.
The
British explorer Captain James Cook (1728–79) was the first known Westerner to
sight the island of Oahu, on January 18, 1778. He was killed in a fight with
Hawaiians when he returned to the islands a year later. Many Westerners would
soon come to the islands, some with the idea of conquest in mind. By the late
eighteenth century, powerful Hawaiian rulers battled for control of the
archipelago. In 1795, King Kamehameha the Great (c. 1758–1819; r. 1792–1819),
who controlled the Big Island of Hawaii, captured Maui and Molokai and set his
eyes on Oahu. Kamehameha's large fleet of battle canoes landed in present-day
Waikiki. His soldiers moved across the valley and into the mountains pursuing
Kalanikupule, the king of Oahu.
Kamehameha
had quite an advantage. Among his troops were several Western sharpshooters
with firearms. With superior firepower, they forced Kalanikupule's troops high
into the valley. In the final battle, hundreds of Oahuans were forced to jump
to their deaths from the Nuuanu Pali (cliffs). After his victory, Kamehameha
united the islands under one kingdom.
During
the time of the Kamehameha's invasion, Honolulu was little more than a village
of small huts near the water. In 1793, Captain William Brown directed his
English frigate Butterworth into what is now known as Honolulu Harbor.
He named it Fair Heaven, but it came to be known as Brown's Harbor. It is not
clear how the harbor came to be known as Honolulu, which means protected bay.
But it was clear to sailors that the bay offered a perfect place to set anchor.
As more ships came, Honolulu began to grow. By 1809, King Kamehameha moved his
residence from Waikiki to Honolulu to tighten his control on the valuable
sandalwood trade. By the 1820s, whaling ships began to stop in Honolulu. Their
crews were a rough crowd. Taverns and brothels soon followed to serve their
needs. Not far behind were Christian missionaries who traveled to the islands
to convert the Hawaiians.
For the
United States, the Territory of Hawaii—especially Honolulu—became a key
military post. Large installations were built, including bases inside Diamond
Head, an extinct volcano and important Honolulu landmark. Massive guns pointed
out to sea. Through the early 1900s, the military presence grew steadily.
"A
day that will live in infamy," President Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945;
president 1933–45) told Americans on December 7, 1941, after 360 Japanese
aircraft dropped bombs on Pearl Harbor, just west of Honolulu, and other
military bases throughout the island of Oahu. A 798-kilogram (1,760-pound)
armor-piercing bomb slammed through the deck of the USS Arizona and
ignited its forward ammunition magazine. The massive explosion at about 8:10 AM was heard in Honolulu. In less than nine minutes,
the ship sank with its crew. The loss of the Arizona symbolized the
beginning of World War II (1939–45) for Americans; the explo sion that
instantly galvanized public opinion in favor of the war effort. Admiral Isoroku
Yamamoto, who planned the attack on Pearl Harbor even though he opposed going
to war against the United States, said he feared that Japan "had awakened
a sleeping giant and filled him with a terrible resolve."
In all,
2,341 military personnel and 54 civilians were killed. More than 50 of the
bombs that fell on Honolulu were American Navy anti-aircraft shells that missed
their targets. The Japanese destroyed eight battleships, three destroyers, and
188 planes, bombing several military targets throughout the island. The
Japanese lost 64 men, 29 aircraft, and five midget submarines.
In the
middle of the Pacific, Honolulu played a crucial role in the war against Japan.
More than one million soldiers passed through the city on their way to battles
in the Pacific. Thousands who died in the war were buried in a cemetery in
Honolulu. Its residents lived under martial law for more than three years, the
only place in the United States subjected to such measures.
Resource
http://www.city-data.com/world-cities/Honolulu-History.html
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