<P> The overthrow began on January 17, 1893 . A policeman was shot and wounded while trying to stop a wagon carrying weapons to the Honolulu Rifles, the paramilitary wing of the Committee of Safety . The Committee feared the shooting would bring government forces to rout the conspirators and stop the coup before it could begin . The Committee of Safety initiated the overthrow by organizing the Honolulu Rifles made of about 1,500 armed local (non-native) men . The Rifles garrisoned Ali'iolani Hale across the street from ʻIolani Palace and waited for the Queen's response . </P> <P> As these events were unfolding, the Committee of Safety expressed concern for the safety and property of American residents in Honolulu . </P> <P> The coup efforts were supported by U.S. Government Minister John L. Stevens . The coup left the queen under house arrest at Iolani Palace . The Kingdom briefly became the Republic of Hawaii, before annexation by the United States in 1898 . Advised about supposed threats to non-combatant American lives and property by the Committee of Safety, Stevens summoned a company of uniformed U.S. Marines from the USS Boston and two companies of U.S. sailors to take up positions at the U.S. Legation, Consulate and Arion Hall on the afternoon of January 16, 1893 . 162 armed sailors and Marines aboard the USS Boston in Honolulu Harbor came ashore under orders of neutrality . The sailors and Marines did not enter the Palace grounds or take over any buildings, and never fired a shot, but their presence intimidated royalist defenders . Historian William Russ states, "the injunction to prevent fighting of any kind made it impossible for the monarchy to protect itself ." </P> <Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section is empty . You can help by adding to it . (September 2016) </Td> </Tr> </Table>

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