Fourteen Years in the Sandwich Islands, 1855–1868 / Charles De Varigny.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Varigny, Charles De, Author.

Contributor:

Korn, Alfons L.

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource (317 p.)

Place of Publication:

Honolulu : University of Hawaii Press, [2021]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

The reminiscences of Charles de Varigny, a Frenchman who in 1865 at the age of thirty-six became prime minister of the Hawaiian Kingdom, are unique among records of life in Pacific-island societies during the nineteenth century. Published in Paris in 1874 and written primarily for French audience of the time, Varigny’s account of his sojourn is an engrossing one, especially because of the novel manner in which he chose to tell his story. Varigny’s book is an ingenious blend of travelogue, flashback Hawaiian history, and professional autobiography in the form of a political memoir. Part One, reflecting Varigny’s earliest years as secretary (chancelier) of the French Consulate in Honolulu, focuses on following the visits of Cook and Vancouver that resulted in the political unification of the Hawaiian Islands by King Kamehameha the Great and the establishment of the royal dynasty identified historically by his name. Part Two covers the years of systematic political reassessment and major constitutional reform when Charles de Varigny served in the government of Kamehameha V, young grandson of the conqueror, as finance minister and finally as minister of foreign affairs. Although the ventral importance of Varigny’s memoir is its value as a political document, Varigny as writer and one-time statesman never loses sight of Hawaii’s spectacular Oceanic setting and landscape. Thus his book may be read not only for the sake of its pictorial charm but also for its penetrating understanding of Hawaiian geography and of the young country’s great potential.

Contents:

Frontmatter

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Translator's Introduction

Preface: Paris, January 20, 1874

PART ONE: SECRETARY, THE FRENCH CONSULATE, HONOLULU, 1855-1863

1. My Arrival in the Islands, 1855

2. Kamehameha the Founder

3. Missionaries and Other Agents of Change

4. Birth of Constitutional Government

5. The "New Era "of Kamehameha IV

6. Excursion to the Island of Hawaii

7. Perils of an Island Economy

8. Idyll on Kauai

PART TWO: CABINET MINISTER, THE HAWAIIAN KINGDOM, 1863-1870

9. Appointment as Minister of Finance

10. The Governmental System of Kamehameha V

11. A Plan for Constitutional Reform

12. The Royal Coup d'Etat

13. Figures and forecasts

14. Appointment as Minister of Foreign Affairs

15. Ministerial Forebodings

16. Kilauea Erupts, 1868

17. Scenes of Disaster

18. More Scenes of Disaster

19. My Leave of Absence, 1868-1870

Epilogue: Paris, January 20, 1874

A. A Chronological Resume

B. Excerpts from the ''Memoires'' of Louise de Varigny

Index

Notes:

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 26. Mai 2021)

ISBN:

0-8248-8611-9

OCLC:

1253313410