Edward Preston (17 February 1831 – 17 January 1890) was a lawyer and judge originally from England who served in the

Kingdom of Hawaii The Hawaiian Kingdom, also known as the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ɛ ɐwˈpuni həˈvɐjʔi, was an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country from 1795 to 1893, which eventually encompassed all of the inhabited Hawaii ...

Early life

Edward Preston was born 17 February 1831 in London, England. In 1852 he sailed to

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Australia, and then practised law in

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, New Zealand in the firm Wynn Williams & Co.

Hawaiian citizenship

He married in 1852, and came to the

Hawaiian Islands The Hawaiian Islands () are an archipelago of eight major volcanic islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the Pacific Ocean, North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the Hawaii (island), island of Hawaii in the south to nort ...

with his wife in 1870. He became a citizen of the

on 1 April 1871, and was admitted to the bar 5 April 1871. He worked in the offices of Richard H. Stanley in 1875. He was awarded the Royal Order of Kapiolani with rank of grand officer.

Political career

He was appointed

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

on 3 July 1878 by King

Kalākaua Kalākaua (David Laʻamea Kamanakapuʻu Māhinulani Nālaʻiaʻehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua; November 16, 1836 – January 20, 1891), was the last king and penultimate monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, reigning from February 12, 1874, u ...

, and served until 14 August 1880. He replaced Alfred S. Hartwell. In the 1878, 1880, and 1882 sessions he was in the

legislature of the Hawaiian Kingdom The Legislature of the Hawaiian Kingdom () was the bicameral (later unicameral) legislature of the Hawaiian Kingdom. A royal legislature was first provided by the 1840 Constitution and the 1852 Constitution was the first to use the term Legi ...

in the House of Nobles. Working as a clerk for the judge in the legislature was John Mahiʻai Kāneakua who would sign the memorial from the Hawaiian Patriotic league to restore the monarchy in 1893. He was appointed again on 19 May 1882, in the cabinet headed by controversial Walter M. Gibson. Gibson was widely known to be funded by sugar trader

Claus Spreckels Claus Spreckels (July 9, 1828 – December 26, 1908) was a German-born American industrialist in California and Hawaii, during the Kingdom of Hawaii, kingdom and Republic of Hawaii, republican periods of the islands' history. He founded or was i ...

, who also had many personal loans to Kalākaua. The cabinet approved giving Spreckels a large tract of land on

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to settle his claim on the crown lands, and an expensive coronation ceremony for Kalākaua. Gibson became acting attorney general even though he had no law training, on 14 May 1883.

Supreme Court

On 7 July 1885 Preston was appointed to the supreme court of the kingdom under chief justice Albert Francis Judd. One incident that led to the downfall of Gibson was a Chinese planter T. Aki who said he had made a "gift" to Kalākaua expecting to receive a license for

opium Opium (also known as poppy tears, or Lachryma papaveris) is the dried latex obtained from the seed Capsule (fruit), capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid mor ...

trading. When the license was given to someone else who paid more, Aki wanted to get his money back. This scandal and the other debts of Kalākaua resulted in the

1887 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii Events January * January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti- rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher. * January 20 ** The United States Senate allows the United States Navy to lease Pearl H ...

which took away much of the king's power, and a trustee to pay off debts. Preston ruled that Aki had a valid claim, and he should be paid back with the other creditors. Preston served on the supreme court until he died 17 January 1890. His funeral was at the St. Andrews Cathedral.

References

External links

* :"A List of All the Cabinet Ministers Who Have Held Office in the Hawaiian Kingdom" * :Includes a list of Attorneys General for the Kingdom of Hawaii, their salaries and budgets {{DEFAULTSORT:Preston, Edward Hawaii attorneys general 1831 births 1890 deaths Hawaiian Kingdom politicians Members of the Hawaiian Kingdom House of Representatives Members of the Hawaiian Kingdom House of Nobles Members of the Hawaiian Kingdom Privy Council Hawaiian Kingdom attorneys general Hawaiian Kingdom judges Recipients of the Royal Order of Kapiolani Justices of the Supreme Court of Hawaii 19th-century American judges