page_title: George Lycurgus
section_title: Political miscalculation
hierarchical_section_title: George Lycurgus / Political miscalculation
caption_attribution_description: English: A beachfront resort that opened in 1884, the Sans Souci Hotel offered private cottages for families and bathing facilities. It gained some fame, after it hosted writer Robert Louis Stevenson, who wrote about staying there for five weeks in 1893 and did some of his best literary works there. He wrote in the guest book: "If anyone desires such old-fashioned things as lovely scenery, quiet, pure air, clean sea water, good food, and heavenly sunsets hung out before their eyes over the Pacific and the distant hills of Waianae, I recommend him cordially to the Sans Souci." With "Sans Souci" meaning "without a care" in French, the Sans Souci Hotel was also where conspirators against the Provisional Government met to discuss restoring the Hawaiian Monarchy. The hotel owner, George Lycurgus, supported the Hawaiian Monarchy. The Sans Souci Hotel went out of business years ago, and the New Otani Kaimana Beach Hotel is currently in its place. However, the ancient hau trees that Robert Louis Stevenson sat under are still there, now providing shade to the guests at the Hau Tree Lanai restaurant, and many people still call the nearby beach Sans Souci Beach. Ad text: "Sans Souci Hotel Waikiki, Honolulu. First-Class Accommodation for Tourists and Island Guests. Superior Bathing Facilities. Private Cottages for Families. T. A. Simpson, Manager. cct9" Hawaii holomua = Progress, November 15, 1893, Image 3 http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82016410/1893-11-15/ed-1/seq-3/ Read about the Sans Souci Hotel and Hawaii Holomua's roles in the Hawaii counter-revolution: https://sites.google.com/a/hawaii.edu/ndnp-hawaii/Home/historical-feature-articles/hawaii-holomua-s-role-in-the-1895-counter-revolution-of-hawaii From the University of Hawaii at Manoa Library: https://www.flickr.com/photos/uhmlibrary/6422084105
context_page_description: George Lycurgus was a Greek American businessman who played an influential role in the early tourist industry of Hawaii. He ran afoul of the government of the Republic of Hawaii and was accused of treason. Later he was instrumental in the development of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.
context_section_description: Lycurgus leased the small guest house of Allen Herbert in 1893 on Waikīkī beach in Honolulu. He expanded it and renamed it the "Sans Souci" (French for "without care") for the Sanssouci Palace in Potsdam. It became one of the first beach resorts and the area at coordinates 21°15′49″N 157°49′17″W is still called "Sans Souci Beach". Celebrities such as Robert Louis Stevenson stayed there on his second trip later that year, and it became a popular destination for tourists from the mainland.
  In 1894 Lycurgus made his first trip to the Kīlauea volcano with Admiral Royal R. Ingersoll, sailing to Hilo aboard the USS Philadelphia. The volcano impressed him and he took note of the future possible business opportunities.
  A friendship had evolved between Lycurgus and the Hawaiian royal Kalākaua family, who were regulars at his resorts. This earned him the nickname "Duke of Sparta", a title borne by the Crown Prince of Greece. Despite being a commoner, he felt more comfortable with monarchy than the Americans.
  In 1893, after the death of Kalākaua, Thurston and other Americans led the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii and declared a Republic of Hawaii, hoping to join the United States of America. The new government, controlled by conservative missionaries, fined Lycurgus for selling liquor at his resort. Lycurgus hired a band of Hawaiians who played music honoring Queen Liliʻuokalani instead of "The Star-Spangled Banner".
  After the failed 1895 counter-revolution, he was accused of smuggling guns to the Royalists. Several leaders had meetings in the Sans Souci hotel. By January 20 the leaders were all captured. Lycurgus was arrested, charged with treason, spent 52 days in jail, but was never tried.
  By 1898, the Spanish–American War had increased American interest in the Pacific. He entertained press correspondents on their way to the Philippines at his Sans Souci hotel.  Hawaii was annexed as a territory of the United States that year and the practical Lycurgus applied for American citizenship.
  He opened a restaurant called the Union Grill in Honolulu in 1901 and would hold "Jailbirds of 1895" nights which were not popular with the new government. He phased out of the politics of Honolulu over the next few years. Lycurgus invested in a logging venture in 1907, and bought the Hilo Hotel from John D. Spreckels in 1908.
  In 1903, when he returned to Greece to visit his mother, he met and married Athina Gerassimos from Sparta, the second of nine children. She was probably the first Greek woman in Hawaii.
caption: An 1893 advertisement that appeared in the Hawaii Holomua
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