AHC: Make Hawaii part of Canada

[Unknown]

Here's your challenge, should you choose to accept it: with a PoD after the Treaty of Ghent in 1815, have Hawaii become a Canadian province. Bonus points if the US-Canadian borders on the mainland remain unchanged...

 

[jerseyguy]

Getting the British Empire to acquire Hawaii and making it the Islands a Canadian Province during decolonization are two separate questions. As far the former question goes, maybe the US has a much worse relationship with Great Britain in the post-civil war period, or London doesn't get the Anglo-Japanese alliance to contain Russia at the same time as OTL, and Hawaii becomes a key way-station for the Royal Navy.

I could only see a Canadian Hawaii happening in some scenario where decolonization essentially means splitting up the colonies among the Dominions as subordinate territories or protectorates (like South Africa ruling Namibia in OTL), and Canada gets an extremely far-flung territory instead of Australia and New Zealand. If Hawaii ended up under British rule, the most plausible endgame is honestly some form of indirect colonial rule from London, and then Hawaiian independence. Why wouldn't London just keep the Hawaiian monarchy around as as part of an indirectly ruled protectorate kingdom (like Botswana or Lesotho) that eventually regains its independence?

 

[Blue cat]

Getting the British Empire to acquire Hawaii and making it the Islands a Canadian Province during decolonization are two separate questions. As far the former question goes, maybe the US has a much worse relationship with Great Britain in the post-civil war period, or London doesn't get the Anglo-Japanese alliance to contain Russia at the same time as OTL, and Hawaii becomes a key way-station for the Royal Navy.

I could only see a Canadian Hawaii happening in some scenario where decolonization essentially means splitting up the colonies among the Dominions as subordinate territories or protectorates (like South Africa ruling Namibia in OTL), and Canada gets an extremely far-flung territory instead of Australia and New Zealand. If Hawaii ended up under British rule, the most plausible endgame is honestly some form of indirect colonial rule from London, and then Hawaiian independence. Why wouldn't London just keep the Hawaiian monarchy around as as part of an indirectly ruled protectorate kingdom (like Botswana or Lesotho) that eventually regains its independence?

My $.02 worth. A UK owned Hawaii probably gets caught up in the various processes that defined the boundaries between what is now the Western portion of Canada and the US. Assuming the UK still retains Hawaii by the time Canada is a country handing it over to Canada makes sense from the perspective of handing on going issues that are likely to arise with the US vis a vis Hawaii over to Canada as well. Asking Canada to provide bases for RN forces tasked with re enforcing Hawaii in the event of conflict with the US might also present "issues" for Canada vis a vis their relations with the US.

 

[twovultures]

Hawaiians say "eh" a lot IOTL, I'm sure they'd integrate well with Canada based on that.

EDIT: OK, maybe a more valuable contribution/question: What happens to the Royal Family? The Brits were pro-royal IOTL, seeing the Hawaiian royal family as legitimate rulers. How could a monarchy work with the Canadian provinces? I could see the British monarch taking the title "Protector" rather than "King/Queen" of Hawaii, and the Governor-General (and therefore government) of Canada having authority over Hawaii based on that title, with the monarchy and Hawaiian nobility still owning what would be "crown land" in mainland Canada.