Sovereignty Restoration Day

Sovereignty Restoration Day
Kamehameha III, King of the Hawaiian Islands from 1825 to 1854
Official name	Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea
Also called	Hawaiian Restoration Day
Observed by	Hawaii
Significance	Restoration of the sovereignty of Hawaiian Kingdom following British occupation during the Paulet Affair (1843)
Date	July 31
Next time	July 31, 2025 (2025-07-31)
Frequency	annual
First time	1843
Related to	Hawaiian Independence Day

Part of a series on the
Hawaiian sovereignty movement
The inverted Hawaiian flag represents the Hawaiian Kingdom in distress and is the main symbol of the Hawaiian sovereignty movement.
Main issues
Overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom Opposition to the overthrow Legal status of Hawaii US federal recognition of Native Hawaiians
Governments
Chiefdom Kingdom Provisional Government Government in Exile Republic Territory State
Historical conflicts
Hawaiian rebellions (1887–1895) Wilcox rebellion of 1889 Leper War on Kauaʻi Black Week (Hawaii) 1895 Wilcox rebellion
Modern events
Hawaiian Renaissance 2008 occupation of Iolani Palace 125th anniversary of the overthrow
Parties and organizations
Aloha ʻĀina Party Home Rule Party of Hawaii Office of Hawaiian Affairs
Documents and ideas
Sovereignty Restoration Day Blount Report Morgan Report Bayonet Constitution Proposed 1893 Constitution Kūʻē Petitions Newlands Resolution Hawaiian Organic Act Apology Resolution Akaka Bill
Books
Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen Kaua Kuloko 1895[1]
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Sovereignty Restoration Day (Hawaiian: Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea) is a national holiday of the former Hawaiian Kingdom celebrated on July 31 and still commemorated by Native Hawaiians in the state of Hawaii. It honors the restoration of sovereignty to the kingdom, following the occupation of Hawaiʻi by the United Kingdom during the 1843 Paulet Affair, by British Rear-Admiral Richard Darton Thomas and when King Kamehameha III uttered the phrase: Ua Mau ke Ea o ka ʻĀina i ka Pono ('The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness').

During the monarchy, the holiday was observed annually by the native and foreign communities in Hawaii. King Kamehameha V, who deemed the holiday inappropriate, officially dropped it as a national holiday in 1867 and replaced with Kamehameha Day (on June 11). It was briefly revived as a national holiday from 1891 until the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom in 1893. During the ensuing years of the 1890s, the holiday continued to be observed privately by loyalists of the monarchy as a form of opposition and resistance. It is still celebrated by proponents of the Hawaiian sovereignty movement as a day of resistance against what sovereignty advocates consider an ongoing American occupation of Hawaiʻi. In 2022, the day was recognized by the State of Hawaii as a special day of remembrance.