Thomas Square
Encyclopedia
Thomas Square is a park in Honolulu, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

 named for Admiral Richard Darton Thomas
Richard Darton Thomas
Admiral Richard Darton Thomas was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Pacific Station.-Naval career:...

.

Hawaii

In February 1843 Lord George Paulet
Lord George Paulet
Admiral Lord George Paulet CB was a officer of the Royal Navy.He entered the navy shortly after the end of the Napoleonic Wars and after some years obtained his own command. He served off the Iberian Peninsula during the Portuguese Liberal Wars and the Spanish First Carlist War, protecting British...

 on seized and occupied the Kingdom of Hawaii
Kingdom of Hawaii
The Kingdom of Hawaii was established during the years 1795 to 1810 with the subjugation of the smaller independent chiefdoms of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lānai, Kauai and Niihau by the chiefdom of Hawaii into one unified government...

, establishing the Provisional Cession of the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands
Provisional Cession of the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands
The Provisional Cession of the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands, the Provisional Cession of the Hawaiian Islands or the Provisional Cession of the Sandwich Islands, short form Provisional Cession was an occupational government formed by Lord George Paulet while attempting to annex Hawaii to the United...

.

On July 26 Admiral Richard Darton Thomas
Richard Darton Thomas
Admiral Richard Darton Thomas was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Pacific Station.-Naval career:...

 sailed into Honolulu harbor on his flagship . He became Local Representative of the British Commission (the government of the Provisional Cession) by out-ranking Paulet. His intention was to end the occupation. On July 31, he handed the islands back to King Kamehameha III
Kamehameha III
Kamehameha III was the King of Hawaii from 1825 to 1854. His full Hawaiian name was Keaweaweula Kiwalao Kauikeaouli Kaleiopapa and then lengthened to Keaweaweula Kiwalao Kauikeaouli Kaleiopapa Kalani Waiakua Kalanikau Iokikilo Kiwalao i ke kapu Kamehameha when he ascended the throne.Under his...

 who said the words Ua Mau ke Ea o ka Āina i ka Pono in a speech during a ceremony to mark his restoration. Roughly translated from the Hawaiian language
Hawaiian language
The Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...

 it means "The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness" and has become the state motto of Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

, incorporated into the Seal of Hawaii
Seal of Hawaii
The Great Seal of the State of Hawaii was designated officially by Act 272 of the 1959 Territorial Legislature and is based on the territorial seal. Modifications to the territorial seal included the use of the words "State of Hawaii" at the top and "1959" within the circle...

.

Kamehameha III named the place where the ceremony was held in Downtown Honolulu
Downtown Honolulu
Downtown Honolulu is the current historic, economic, governmental, and central part of Honolulu—bounded by Nuuanu Stream to the west, Ward Avenue to the east, Vineyard Boulevard to the north, and Honolulu Harbor to the south—situated within the larger Honolulu District...

  21°18′9"N 157°50′56"W Thomas Square in his honor. In 1925 it was made into a park managed by the City and County of Honolulu.

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places listings in Oahu
National Register of Historic Places listings in Oahu
This is a list of properties and districts on the Hawaiian island of Oahu that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Oahu is the only major island in Honolulu County. The location of the city of Honolulu, Oahu is the most populous island in the state. There are 149 properties and...

 on April 25, 1972.
It is state historic site 80-14-9990.

July 31 is celebrated as Lā Ho'iho'i Ea or Restoration Day holiday. The pathways in the park are shaped in the form of the British flag. A fountain is in the center of the square, surrounded by trees. Across the street is the Honolulu Academy of Arts
Honolulu Academy of Arts
The Honolulu Academy of Arts is an art museum in Honolulu in the state of Hawaii. Since its founding in 1922 by Anna Rice Cooke and opening April 8, 1927, its collections have grown to over 40,000 works of art.-Description:...

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