After a failed uprising by Royalists in 1896, Queen Lili‘uokalani served eight months under house arrest in the ‘Iolani Palace before she was moved to a second location, Washington Place. She was granted freedom to travel within the island of O‘ahu on February 6, 1897. After serving twenty-one months of the five-year sentence, the Republic’s executive council granted her a full pardon. Lili‘uokalani soon left on the first of several trips to Washington, D.C., hoping to enlist support to restore her monarchy. 

In 1908, Queen Lili‘uokalani again traveled to the U.S. capital to appear before the House Committee on Claims and request that the Crown Lands of Hawai‘i be returned to her. Asserting that these lands, which had been seized by the U.S. government, previously had brought her an annual income of $50,000, she sought $200,000 as reparation. Her appeal, however, was denied. This photograph was taken at Harris & Ewing Studio in Washington, D.C., which was known for photographing the local elite.