African Entrepreneurship Record

Elealele Port.

”Your Excellency Governor, Rog has sent a message. Are the Americans making a move today? They must have already started. Should we take action?” Lieutenant Granston inquired.

John Cran nodded and said, ”It’s already seven o’clock. I’ll let our people on the island prepare. We’ll initiate the coup at six o’clock in the evening.”

Gladstone did not object to John Cran’s words. This action cannot solely rely on our own people; it also requires the collaboration of other forces hidden on the island by East Africa.

The two thousand people under Gladstone’s command cannot be spread across the entire island; they must be used in key locations. After all, Kauai is not small in area, and too scattered a force is detrimental to potential conflicts with the Americans.

Gladstone said, ”At that time, I’ll lead the main force to Lihu’e. How many should stay back in Elealele?”

John Cran thought for a moment and said, ”Leaving three hundred in Elealele should suffice. Too few, and there’s a risk of being overwhelmed. Too many, and it becomes difficult to control Lihu’e. After controlling Lihu’e, we may need to divide the troops to other areas in the east and north of the island, so you should retain at least a thousand forces in Lihu’e, and personally oversee Lihu’e.”

Gladstone said, ”Of course, the population is largest in Lihu’e, so I’ll pay extra attention to it. As for the eastern and northern parts of the island, the north should be watched more closely. After all, securing the east of Lihu’e would stabilize things, with the north mainly focused around Princeville, east of Hanalei Bay.”

”Princeville is the second most populous town on the island, covering a distance around half the island. If we send people there now, the news won’t spread quickly.” John Cran also suggested.

As for Elealele, because it is not far from Lihu’e, it was developed relatively late. It was only after the East Africans arrived that Elealele began to take shape.

After discussing the arrangements related to the coup, Gladstone asked, ”Your Excellency Governor, why hasn’t the navy arrived at Kauai yet?”

John Cran replied, ”The previous day, we received word back that the navy should be on its way. They should arrive within a day or two.”

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Oahu Island.

Iolani Palace.

Iolani Palace, built in 1882, stands in the center of Honolulu, and is the ”only” royal palace on what was once American soil.

This relatively late-built palace is completely Western in architectural style, appearing slightly smaller compared to the Sultan’s palace in Zanzibar from years ago, but also more exquisite.

At this point, the Hawaiian royal family did not realize that the Americans would ultimately show no ”mercy.” Previously, the Americans had acted honorably, helping the Hawaiian Kingdom resist the invasions of Tsarist Russia, the United Kingdom, and France.

Of course, in recent years, the Hawaiian royal family has realized the danger of America’s dominance in Hawaii, but can only play ostrich, hoping the U.S. has some decency left.

America’s approach to the Hawaiian Kingdom was to ”boil the frog in warm water,” slowly realizing local annexation. Originally, Hawaii had the native Kapu Religion.

The Kapu Religion was eradicated, which provided conditions for the American invasion. Many American missionaries preached the Bible in Hawaii, with Christianity spreading recklessly throughout the country.

On the surface, American missionaries opened free schools and hospitals in Hawaii, and hosted numerous charitable activities. But in reality, this was a form of covert invasion.

Of course, the Hawaiian Kingdom brought this upon themselves. Today, King Kalakaua of Hawaii is an unabashed America-leaner. After succeeding to the throne, Kalakaua implemented a series of measures to align more closely with the U.S. Therefore, the destiny of the Hawaiian royal family was sealed upon Kalakaua’s succession.

In fact, Hawaii’s location is not easy to invade. Even the distance from mainland America to Hawaii is over 3,700 kilometers.

If Hawaii could balance the various forces on the island, it would still easily manage to play one side off against the other. However, the Hawaiian royal family has blocked their own path.

Today, the sea breeze in Hawaii remains remarkably fresh. Kalakaua stood by the palace window, enjoying the blessings of the ”civilized” world.

Since his accession, Kalakaua moved the capital from Lahaina to the more economically prosperous Honolulu, with Iolani Palace as his masterpiece.

The exterior walls of the palace are painted the same bright white as the White House, with tall tropical trees planted in front of the palace, and roads well-maintained, rivalling even some European royal palaces.

Then there’s Ernst’s Hohenzollern Palace, which is more like a military fortress, not particularly comfortable for living. Iolani Palace, on the other hand, is located in the city center, offering little in defense, only simple walls enclosing it. Now, outside these walls, armed Americans have aggressively arrived.

”Your Majesty, something’s wrong! Our palace is surrounded!” Kalakaua’s minister reported nervously to him.

”What’s happening?” Kalakaua exclaimed in shock.

”The Americans, they’re outside. They’ve surrounded the palace with weapons, and I also see banners opposing monarchical rule.”

”Damn it, how can this be!” Kalakaua exclaimed in disbelief. How could his ”American Daddy” turn and overthrow him?

It’s clear that Kalakaua trusted Americans too much. If it were Ernst, he would undoubtedly not station the palace in Honolulu. Although Lahaina is more remote, it was also harder for Americans to encircle. If it had a military palace like the Hohenzollern Castle, it could withstand a siege for months without heavy weapons.

Of course, the Hohenzollern Castle’s most prominent feature is its location on a small hill, implying poor residential conditions. Iolani Palace and the Hohenzollern Castle are entirely opposites.

Kalakaua built this palace to ”enjoy life,” with Honolulu’s Pearl Harbor being the best port in the entire archipelago, making the economy the most prosperous. With a large American population, conditions are ideal for living, but these have now become Kalakaua’s death knell.

Of course, judging by the Americans’ nature, they’re unlikely to kill Kalakaua. They still need to use the name of the Hawaiian Kingdom to maintain their rule locally, mainly to ward off international criticism, which is also East Africa’s intention.

Six o’clock in the evening.

Lihu’e.

”You are Kumari, the governor of Kauai, rumored to be a descendant of King Kauai?”

Gladstone easily led his men into the Governor’s Mansion of Lihu’e, capturing Kumari, the Kauai governor appointed by the Hawaiian Kingdom.

”Next, we’ll tell you what to say and do…” Gladstone wasted no words on the already terrified Kumari, directly instructing him to establish a puppet government and announce secession from the Hawaiian Kingdom, restoring Kauai’s regime.

Meanwhile, the unrest on the island naturally caught the Americans’ attention. But witnessing the fiercely determined East African Defense Army soldiers, they didn’t dare utter a word.

An observant British merchant even exclaimed first upon recognizing the East African Defense Army’s uniforms, ”My God, what are these damned East African brutes doing here!”

Fortunately, the East African soldiers didn’t understand English, or they might have responded with a rifle butt.

On this day, March 13, 1892, an iconic painting of the world emerged in the Hawaiian Islands, with East Africa and the United States launching coups on the same day in the islands.

The unified Hawaiian Kingdom completely collapsed, establishing two puppet regimes, one supported by the U.S. as the Hawaii Republic, the other by East Africa as the North Hawaii Kingdom (Kauai).

The changes in the islands quickly drew the attention of England, France, Japan, and other nations with interests on the islands, who could only watch as the U.S. and East Africa ”split the spoils,” temporarily unable to stop it.