DOMINIS-GOSPODNETICH
FASANA
It
came about, that one year after the death of Dominis, the Austrian Warship "Fasana” arrived at the Sandwich
(Hawaiian) Islands and the widowed Queen Lydia Liluiokalani requested the
commander to ascertain on his return to Austria whether there existed any relatives of her deceased husband for the
distribution, it appears, of a presumed inheritance. The commander, immediately
on his arrival at Pula, made a detailed report to the Ministry of War.
The
report of the Commander of the corvette Fasana
to the War Ministry in Vienna: The Kriegsarchiv answered that they did not have
the inquiry by Queen Lilluokalani nor the report of the commander of the
Fasana. However, there was a 1ist of several enlisted men named Dominis, among
them Girolamo Dominis, born in Jelsa, island of Hvar, Dalmatia. He was enrolled
in 1860 for eight years, but deserted on November 1, 1861; was arrested on
December 8, 1861 and on December 10. 1863 he again deserted from Venice (which
was now under Austrian sovereignty). The Staatsarchiv did have information
of several documents in a special fascicle labeled "Researches
regarding the alleged relatives 'of John Dominis, Queen Liliuokalani's
husband." There was also the report
of the commander of the Fasana to the War Ministry in Vienna, dated August 5,
1892, from Yokohama. The report looks quite different from that described by
the newspapers. The commander wrote that on the occasion of the dinner offered
on June 22, 1892 in honor of the officers of the Fasana, the Queen requested
him to ask the authorities of the imperial navy to help her in her search for
the relatives of her late Prince Consort who might still live in Austria. The commander also repeated
the information contained in Robertson's letter and added that the Queen
purposely omitted to mention the high position of her husband in order to avoid
sensational comments in the daily press. The War Ministry passed the entire
question on to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This office learned that there were
some people named Dominis in Dalmatia and wrote to the Governor of Dalmatia in
Zadar. It wasn't until February 8, 1893 that the office of the Governor
answered that there was a Dominis family in Rab and another in Zadar. The letter continued:
A
member of this family by name Jerolim (Girolamo) Dominis many years ago
emigrated to San Francisco and on
his voyage allegedly often touched the Sandwich Islands, as emerges from the
enclosed note of the imperial-royal office of the District of Zadar, dated January
27, 1893. The letter further stated that according to the known data it was
impossible to conclude whether Girolamo was identical with Sir John Owen
Dominis or with his father Captain John Dominis, but it recommended further
research in Galveston, Texas where peopled lived who might give further
information about him. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on February 2, 1893
advised the consul in Honolulu, Mr. Glade, about the results of the
investigation and added that it was quite possible that Girolamo changed his
first name to John or Hermann. It ordered the consul to notify the Queen about
the results of the inquiry and to return her husband's photo which she had
handed over to the commander of the Fasana. Emilia de Dominis, married name
Soavi, now widow, born at Venice of Dalmatian origin (Castel Puciochie, 1sle of
Brazza) claimed to be a relative of the defunct sovereign. It goes on that the
Italian and Austrian government's were not interested in Queen Liluiokalani's
case about her husband's relatives.
Badovinac,
R