Hawaii: Today in History 5/31

5-31-1875 Reciprocity Treaty between US & Hawaii ratified

Reciprocity Treaty of 1875, free-trade agreement between the United States and the Hawaiian kingdom that guaranteed a duty-free market for Hawaiian sugar in exchange for special economic privileges for the United States that were denied to other countries. The treaty helped establish the groundwork for the Hawaiian islands’ eventual annexation.

Throughout the early and mid-19th century, the sovereignty of the Hawaiian islands was threatened by the imperial advances of Great Britain, France, and the United States. Of particular interest to those powers was Hawaii’s burgeoning sugar industry. As a result of the American Civil War, sugar prices rose dramatically in the United States (much of the sugar production in the United States had occurred in the southern states that seceded from the Union, particularly Louisiana), a situation that helped galvanize efforts by members of the U.S. government and the Hawaiian planter class to establish a treaty of reciprocity between the United States and Hawaii. After several failed treaty attempts, the Reciprocity Treaty of 1875 was signed; it entered into force on Sept. 9, 1876. When the treaty was renewed in 1887, the United States received exclusive rights to enter and establish a naval base at Pearl Harbor.

LEARN MORE in these related Britannica articles:
The islands of Hawaii, constituting a united kingdom by 1810, flew a British Union Jack received from a British explorer as their unofficial flag until 1816. In that year the first Hawaiian ship to travel abroad visited China and flew its own flag. Thefl
Hawaii: Establishment of U.S. dominance
…in the signing of the Reciprocity Treaty of 1875, essentially a free-trade agreement between the United States and Hawaii in which the former guaranteed a duty-free market for Hawaiian sugar and the latter gave the United States special economic privileges that were denied to other countries. (When the treaty was…
Liliuokalani
Liliuokalani
…clear by opposing the renewed Reciprocity Treaty of 1887, signed by Kalakaua, granting privileged commercial concessions to the United States and ceding to them the port of Pearl Harbor. This attitude forever alienated her from Hawaii’s haole—foreign businessmen—who, after her accession, tried to abrogate her authority.…
The islands of Hawaii, constituting a united kingdom by 1810, flew a British Union Jack received from a British explorer as their unofficial flag until 1816. In that year the first Hawaiian ship to travel abroad visited China and flew its own flag. Thefl
Hawaii
Hawaii, constituent state of the United States of America. Hawaii (Hawaiian: Hawai‘i) became the 50th U.S. state on August 21, 1959. Hawaii is a group of volcanic islands in the central Pacific Ocean. The islands lie 2,397 miles (3,857 km) from San Francisco, California, to the east and 5,293 miles…
Inspection and Sale of a Negro
American Civil War
American Civil War, four-year war (1861–65) between the United States and 11 Southern states that seceded from the Union and formed the Confederate States of America.…
Treaty
Treaty, a binding formal agreement, contract, or other written instrument that establishes obligations between two or more subjects of international law (primarily states and international organizations). The rules concerning treaties between states are contained in the Vienna Convention on the Law…
newsletter icon
HISTORY AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
Sign up here to see what happened On This Day, every day in your inbox!
Email address
By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Notice.
MORE ABOUT Reciprocity Treaty of 1875
2 REFERENCES FOUND IN BRITANNICA ARTICLES
Assorted References
history of Hawaii
In Hawaii: Establishment of U.S. dominance
opposition of Liliuokalani
In Liliuokalani
FEEDBACK
Corrections? Updates? Help us improve this article!
Contact our editors with your feedback.
Eath’s To-Do List