King Kalakaua of Hawaii

In this photograph, we see King Kalakaua surrounded by Japanese dignitaries and staff. Seated from left to right is Prince Yoshiaki, King Kalakaua, and Yoshie Sano Tsunetani, (Japanese minister of finance). Standing left to right be Col. Charles H. Judd, Jugai Tokuno Riyosaki (Japanese 1st secretary of finance), and William N. Armstrong (Hawaiian immigration commissioner).

Previously in 1868, approximately 150 Japanese workers were sent to Hawaii to work on sugar plantations marking the beginning of Japanese emigration. However, news spread that the Japanese were receiving “slave-like” treatment and thus the Meiji government banned the emigration of laborers from 1868-1885.[1] Things changed in 1881 when Hawaiian King Kalakaua (r. 1874-1891) was the first head of state to visit the Meiji Emperor in Japan. On March 4, 1881, Kalakaua was greeted with a 21 gun-salute and a military band playing the Hawaiian National Anthem as they landed in Edo Bay.[2] Both leaders understood the importance of global relations and thus signed an agreement in 1885 allowing Japanese laborers to travel to Hawaii for work, establishing a new Japanese-Hawaiian relationship.[3] It was this new connection that aided to the large movement of the Japanese to this new land. I anticipate finding in further research that this large influx of Japanese immigrants also helped boost the Hawaiian economy. But why else was Hawaii so appealing to Japanese workers?