British support expands Hawaiian seapower and coaling trade

A naval station needs stores management and a dependable flow of supplies, creating infrastructure that the Hawaiian government could study and use. The kingdom already had a converted schooner, and British support might encourage it to seek a larger vessel or develop its naval capability. Warships on station would attract British merchants who could serve both the base and the local economy. A coaling port would give ships crossing the Pacific a commercial reason to stop in Hawaii. The combined naval and mercantile presence would counter American missionary influence without placing the kingdom under direct British rule.