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Primary sourcePhotograph

Queen Liliuokalani's Staff

Unknown

A group photograph of four men of Queen Liliʻuokalani's military staff, who served in her royal court.

This photograph of her royal military staff shows the court structure that surrounded Liliʻuokalani's reign.

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Black and white studio portrait of four uniformed men posed before a painted garden backdrop. Two stand at left and right, one stands at top center, and one kneels or sits in front holding a plumed helmet and sword. The men wear dark military-style dress uniforms with sashes, cords, and medals.
Unknown photographer, Queen Liliuokalani's Staff. Hawaiʻi State Archives, PP-27-8-007.

About this source

What it is

This black-and-white studio photograph shows four men of Queen Liliʻuokalani's military staff: Col. James Harbottle Boyd, Col. Henry Franz Bertelmann, Chamberlain James William Robertson, and Col. John Dominis Holt. They pose in dress uniforms with sashes and medals before a painted backdrop. The photographer is unknown.

Why it matters

This image shows the formal structure of Liliʻuokalani's royal court, including the officials and officers who supported her rule. It helps students see that a monarch's reign depended on a wider network of appointed people, not the ruler alone.

Look closer

  • What do the uniforms and poses tell you about the status of these men?
  • Why might a monarch want a formal photograph of her staff?
  • Whose names and roles are recorded here, and whose might be missing?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Queen Liliʻuokalani on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Black-and-white studio portrait of a woman standing full length beside an upholstered chair with a fur-like back, wearing a light pale gown with ruffled trim, a long train pooling on the floor, a dark sash across her chest with a decorative badge, and a necklace. Painted backdrop of foliage behind her.Book

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Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen

Liliʻuokalani · 1898

Page of the 1898 Joint Resolution to Provide for Annexing the Hawaiian Islands to the United States, handwritten annotation 'Public Resolution No. 51' at top, with printed text of the resolution's preamble and sections below.Document

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Joint Resolution to Provide for Annexing the Hawaiian Islands to the United States

United States Congress · 7 July 1898

Sheet music cover for 'Aloha Oe', reading 'Aloha Oe. Song and Chorus', with an ornate border, a crown and 'Oniipaa' monogram emblem, and text 'Composed by Her Royal Highness Princess Liliuokalani, of Honolulu, Oahu, H.I.' Published by The Pacific Music Co., 208 Post St., San Francisco, Cal.Artifact

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Aloha ʻOe

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Black-and-white studio portrait of a seated woman in a dark dress with lace trim at the bodice, hands folded in her lap, wearing rings. She sits in an ornate carved wooden armchair with upholstered back and arms against a pale paneled backdrop.Photograph

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Liliuokalani in 1891

James J. Williams · 1891

Photograph of a large patchwork quilt with nine square blocks in a three by three grid, bordered in dark brown. Blocks feature crazy-quilt piecing in varied fabrics, embroidery, and embroidered text, with a central block of blue and red fabric bearing printed script.Artifact

Primary source

Imprisonment Quilt

Liliʻuokalani · 1895

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