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British protectorate

Territory over which the British government exercised limited jurisdiction

Territory over which the British government exercised limited jurisdiction

British protectorates were protectorates under the jurisdiction of the British government. Many territories which became British protectorates already had local rulers with whom the Crown negotiated through treaty, acknowledging their status whilst simultaneously offering protection. British protectorates were therefore governed by indirect rule. In most cases, the local ruler, as well as the subjects of the ruler, were not British subjects, but rather British protected persons. British protected states represented a more loose form of British suzerainty, where the local rulers retained absolute control over the states' internal affairs and the British exercised control over defence and foreign affairs.

History

Implementation

When the British took over Cephalonia in 1809, they proclaimed, "We present ourselves to you, Inhabitants of Cephalonia, not as invaders, with views of conquest, but as allies who hold forth to you the advantages of British protection." When the British continued to occupy the Ionian Islands after the Napoleonic Wars, they did not formally annex the islands but described them as a protectorate. The islands were constituted by the Treaty of Paris in 1815 as the independent United States of the Ionian Islands under British protection. Similarly, Malta was a British protectorate between the capitulation of the French in 1800 and the Treaty of Paris of 1814.

The princely states of India was another example of indirect rule during the time of Empire. So too were many of the West African holdings.

Other British protectorates followed. In the Pacific Ocean the sixteen islands of the Gilbert Islands (now Kiribati) were declared a British protectorate by Captain Davis R.N., of between 27 May and 17 June 1892. The Royalist also visited each of the Ellice Islands, and Captain Davis was requested by islanders to raise the British flag, but he did not have instructions to declare the Ellice Islands as a protectorate. The nine islands of the Ellice Group (now Tuvalu) were declared a British protectorate by Captain Gibson R.N., of , between 9 and 16 October of the same year. Britain defined its area of interest in the Solomon Islands in June 1893, when Captain Gibson R.N., of , declared the southern Solomon Islands as a British protectorate with the proclamation of the British Solomon Islands Protectorate.

In 1894, Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone's government officially announced that Uganda, where Muslim and Christian strife had attracted international attention, was to become a British protectorate. The British administration installed carefully selected local kings under a programme of indirect rule through the local oligarchy, creating a network of British-controlled civil service. Most British protectorates were overseen by a Commissioner or a High Commissioner, under the Foreign Office, rather than a Governor under the Colonial Office.

British law made a distinction between a protectorate and a protected state. Constitutionally the two were of similar status, in which Britain provided controlled defence and external relations. However, a protectorate had an internal government established, while a protected state established a form of local internal self-government based on the already existing one.

Persons connected with a former British protectorate, protected state, mandated territory or trust territory may remain British Protected Persons if they did not acquire the nationality of the country at independence.

The last British protectorate proper was the British Solomon Islands, now Solomon Islands, which gained independence in 1978; the last British protected state was Brunei, which gained full independence in 1984.

List of former British protectorates

Americas

  • [[File:Flag of Barbados (1870–1966).svg|24x24px]] Barbados (1627–1652) (as a proprietary colony under William Courteen, followed by James Hay I)
  • Mosquito Coast (1638–1860) (over Central America's Mosquito people)

Arab world

  • [[File:Flag of Aden (1937–1963).svg|24px]] Aden Protectorate (1872–1963); precursor state of South Yemen
    • Eastern Protectorate States (mostly in Haudhramaut); later the Protectorate of South Arabia (1963–1967)
      • [[File:Kathiri flag.svg|24px]] Kathiri
      • [[File:Flag of the Mahra Sultanate.svg|24px]] Mahra
      • [[File:Flag of the Qu'aiti Sultanate from 1939 until 1967.svg|24px]] Qu'aiti
      • [[File:Flag of the State of Upper Yafa.svg|24px]] Upper Yafa (consisted of five Sheikhdoms: Al-Busi, Al-Dhubi, Hadrami, Maflahi, and Mawsata)
      • No flag.svg Hawra
      • No flag.svg Irqa
    • Western Protectorate States; later the Federation of South Arabia (1959/1962-1967), including Aden Colony
      • [[File:Flag of Wahidi Balhaf.svg|24px]] Wahidi Sultanates (these included: Balhaf, Azzan, Bir Ali, and Habban)
      • [[File:Flag of Beihan.svg|24px]] Beihan
      • [[File:Flag of Dhala.svg|24px]] Dhala and Qutaibi
      • [[File:Flag of the Sultanate of Fadhli.svg|24px]] Fadhli
      • [[File:Flag of the Sultanate of Lahej.svg|24px]] Lahej
      • [[File:Flag of Lower Yafa.svg|24px]] Lower Yafa
      • No flag.svg Audhali
      • No flag.svg Haushabi
      • No flag.svg Upper Aulaqi Sheikhdom
      • No flag.svg Upper Aulaqi Sultanate
      • No flag.svg Lower Aulaqi
      • No flag.svg Alawi
      • No flag.svg Aqrabi
      • No flag.svg Dathina
      • No flag.svg Shaib
  • EGY Sultanate of Egypt (1914–1922)
  • UK EGY Anglo-Egyptian Sudan (1899–1956) (condominium with Egypt)

Asia

  • North Borneo British North Borneo (1888–1946)
  • Various British Raj Princely States (1845-1947) – The princely states were lower in status than protectorates as the British reserved the right to interfere in internal matters under the principle of British Paramountcy.
  • [[File:Flag of the Maldives 1953.svg|24x24px]] Sultanate of Maldives (1887–1948) – Became a protected state after 1948.
  • [[File:Flag_of_Sikkim_(1914-1962).svg|24px]] Kingdom of Sikkim (1861-1947)– The Kingdom of Sikkim became a protectorate of the British Government under the Treaty of Tumlong. After 1947, Sikkim became an Indian protectorate until 1975, when the Sikkimese monarchy was abolished as Sikkim became a full state of India.

Europe

  • [[File:Flag of Cyprus (1881-1922).svg|24x24px]] British Cyprus (1878–1914) (put under British military administration 1914–22 then proclaimed a Crown colony 1922–60)
  • UK Two Sicilies Malta Protectorate (1800–1813); Malta Crown Colony of Malta proclaimed in 1813) (de jure part of the Kingdom of Sicily but under British protection)
  • [[File:Flag of the United States of the Ionian Islands.svg|24x24px]] Ionian islands (1815–1864) (a Greek state and amical protectorate of Great Britain between 1815 and 1864)

Sub-Saharan Africa

  • Barotseland Protectorate (1900–1964)
  • United Kingdom Bechuanaland Protectorate (1885–1966)
  • British Somaliland (1884–1960)
  • [[File:Flag of Kenya (1895–1921).svg|24x24px]] East Africa Protectorate (1895–1920)
  • [[File:Flag of The Gambia (1889–1965).svg|24x24px]] Gambia Colony and Protectorate* (1894–1965)
  • [[File:Flag of Kenya (1921–1963).svg|24x24px]] Kenya Protectorate* (1920–1963)
  • Nigeria Nigeria* (1914-1960)
  • [[File:Flag of the Northern Nigeria Protectorate (1900–1914).svg|24x24px]] Northern Nigeria Protectorate (1900–1914)
  • Northern Rhodesia (1924–1964)
  • United Kingdom Northern Territories of the Gold Coast (British protectorate) (1901–1957)
  • Nyasaland Nyasaland Protectorate (1893–1964) ([[File:Flag of British Central Africa Protectorate.svg|24x24px]] British Central Africa Protectorate until 1907)
  • [[File:Flag of Sierra Leone 1916-1961.gif|24x24px]] Sierra Leone Protectorate* (1896–1961)
  • [[File:Flag of the Southern Nigeria Protectorate (1900–1914).svg|24x24px]] Southern Nigeria Protectorate (1900–1914)
  • No flag.svg Swaziland (1903–1968)
  • [[File:Flag of the Uganda Protectorate.svg|24x24px]] Uganda Protectorate (1894–1962)
  • No flag.svg Walvis Bay (1878–1884)
  • Sultanate of Zanzibar (1890–1963) *protectorates that existed alongside a colony of the same name

Oceania

  • Territory of Papua (1884–1888)
  • [[File:Flag of the Solomon Islands (1906–1947).svg|24x24px]] British Solomon Islands (1893–1978)
  • [[File:Flag of the Cook Islands Federation.svg|24x24px]] Cook Islands (1888–1901)
  • Gilbert and Ellice Islands (1892–1916)
  • No flag.svg Niue (1900–1901)
  • No flag.svg Tokelau (1877–1947)

List of former British protected states

As protected states, the following states were never officially part of the British Empire and retained near-total control over internal affairs; however, the British controlled their foreign policy. Their status was rarely advertised while it was in effect, it becoming clear only after it was lifted.

  • Emirate of Afghanistan (1879–1919)
  • Brunei (1888–1984)
  • Bhutan (1910–1947)
  • Flag of the Emirate of Nejd and Hasa.svg Emirate of Nejd (1915-1921)
  • Flag of the Sultanate of Nejd.svg Sultanate of Nejd (1921-1926)
  • Flag of the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd.svg Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd (1926-1927)
  • Kingdom of Nepal (1816–1923)
  • Kingdom of Egypt (1922–1936)
  • Malaya Federation of Malaya (1948–1957)
    • Federated Malay States (1895–1946)
      • Negeri Sembilan (1888–1895)
        • [[File:Flag of Sungei Ujong.svg|24x24px]] Sungai Ujong (1874–1888)
        • No flag.svg Jelebu (1886–1895)
      • Pahang (1888–1895)
      • Perak (1874–1895)
      • Selangor (1874–1895)
    • No flag.svg Unfederated Malay States (1904/09–1946)
      • Johor (1914–1946)
        • Johor Muar (1897–1909)
      • Kedah (1909–1946)
      • Kelantan (1909–1946)
      • Perlis (1909–1946)
      • Terengganu (1919–1946)
  • Tonga (1900–1970)
  • Flag of the British East India Company (1801).svg British Residency of the Persian Gulf (1822–1971); headquarters based at Bushehr, Persia
    • [[File:State flag of Persia (1907–1933).svg|23px]] Persia (1919–1921)
    • [[File:Flag of Bahrain (1820–1932).svg|23px]][[File:Flag of Bahrain (1932–1972).svg|23px]] Bahrain (1783–1971)
    • [[File:Flag of Kuwait 1940-1961.png|23px]] Sheikhdom of Kuwait (1899–1961)
    • [[File:Flag of Qatar (1936-1949).svg|24px|border]] Qatar (1916–1971)
    • Trucial States; precursor state of the UAE (1820–1971)
      • [[File:Flag of Abu Dhabi.svg|24px]] Abu Dhabi (1820–1971)
      • [[File:Flag of Ajman.svg|24px]] Ajman (1820–1971)
      • [[File:Flag of Dubai.svg|24px]] Dubai (1835–1971)
      • [[File:Flag of Fujairah (1952–1972).svg|24px]] Fujairah (1952–1971)
      • [[File:Flag of Sharjah.svg|24px]] Ras Al Khaimah (1820–1971)
      • [[File:Flag of Sharjah.svg|24px]] Sharjah (1820–1971)
        • [[File:Flag of Sharjah.svg|24px]] Kalba (1936–1951)
      • [[File:Flag of Umm al-Qaiwain.svg|24px]] Umm al-Qaiwain (1820–1971)
    • Muscat and Oman (1891–1970)
  • Kingdom of Sarawak (1888–1946)
  • [[File:Flag of the Maldives 1953.svg|24x24px]] Sultanate of Maldives (1948-1965)
  • No flag.svg Swaziland (1967–1968)

Notes

References

Bibliography

References

  1. (1816). "Accounts and Papers of the House of Commons". Great Britain, Parliament, House of Commons.
  2. Lakshmi Iyer, "Direct versus indirect colonial rule in India: Long-term consequences." ''The Review of Economics and Statistics'' (2010) 92#4 pp. 693–713 [http://www.people.hbs.edu/liyer/Iyer_Colonial_REStat.pdf online] {{webarchive. link. (3 September 2014)
  3. Adiele Eberechukwu Afigbo, ''The Warrant Chiefs: indirect rule in southeastern Nigeria, 1891–1929'' (London: Longman, 1972)
  4. Resture, Jane. "''TUVALU HISTORY'' – 'The Davis Diaries' (''H.M.S. Royalist'', 1892 visit to Ellice Islands under Captain Davis)".
  5. (1983). "Tuvalu: A History". University of the South Pacific/Government of Tuvalu.
  6. ''Commonwealth and Colonial Law'' by [[Kenneth Roberts-Wray]], London, Stevens, 1966. P. 897
  7. "Brunei - History | Britannica".
  8. "Timeline – Story of Independence".
  9. "Histories of the Modern Middle East".
  10. Francis Carey Owtram. (1999). "Oman and the West: State Formation in Oman since 1920". University of London.
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