Some official representatives of European colonial powers, while in theory diplomats, in practice exercised a degree of
indirect control. Some such residents were former military officers, rather than career diplomats, who resided in smaller self-governing
protectorates and
tributary states and acted as political advisors to the ruler. A trusted resident could even become the
de facto prime minister to a native ruler. In other respects, they acted as an ambassador of the government of the country they were posted to, but at a lower level, since they were protectorates or tributaries of Western nations. Instead of being a representative to a single ruler, a resident could be posted to more than one native state, or to a grouping of states which the European power decided for its convenience. This could create an artificial geographical unit, as in
Residency X in some parts of the
Indian Empire. Similar positions could carry alternative titles, such as
political agent and
resident commissioner. in the 1930s. In some cases, the intertwining of the European power with the traditional native establishment went so far that members of the native princely houses became residents, either in other states or even within their state, provided that they were unlikely ever to succeed as rulers of the state. A resident's real role varied enormously, depending upon the underlying relationship between the two parties and even upon the personalities of the Resident and the ruler. Some residents were little more than observers and diplomats, others were seen as unwanted interlopers and were treated with hostility, while some won enough trust from the ruler that they were able to exercise great influence. In French protectorates, such as those of Morocco and Tunisia, the resident or resident general was the effective ruler of the territory. In 1887, when both
Boers and gold prospectors of all nationalities were overrunning his country, the Swazi
paramount chief Umbandine asked for a British resident, seeing this as a desirable and effective form of protection. His request was refused.
British and dominion residents The residents of the governments of the
United Kingdom and the
dominions to a variety of protectorates include:
Residents in Africa • In the Sultanate of
Zanzibar, the second 'homeland' of the Omani dynasty, since 1913. From 1913 to 1961 the Residents were also the Sultan's
vizier. There were Consuls and Consuls-general until 1963. • In present-day
Kenya, in the Sultanate of
Witu, after the British took over the protectorate from the
German Empire, which had itself posted a Resident. • In
British Cameroon (part of the former German Kamerun), since 1916, in 1949 restyled
Special Resident (superior to the new two provinces) for Edward John Gibbons (b. 1906 – d. 1990), who stayed on in October 1954 as the first Commissioner when it became an autonomous part of
Nigeria. • in Southern Africa: • when the military party sent from Cape Colony to occupy Port Natal on behalf of Great Britain was recalled in 1839, a British Resident was appointed among the
Fingo and other tribes in
Kaffraria until the definite establishment of British rule in Natal and its 1845 organization as an administrative entity, when the incumbent Shepstone was made Agent for the native tribes. • In
KwaZulu, which since 1843 was under a British protectorate, after it became the Zulu "Native" Reserve or Zululand Province on 1 September 1879: two British Residents (William Douglas Wheelwright, 8 September 1879 to January 1880, then Sir Melmoth Osborn until 22 December 1882). Thereafter there were Resident Commissioners until Zululand was incorporated into the
crown colony of
Natal as British Zululand on 1 December 1897. • in 1845 the resident 'north of the Orange River chose his residency at
Bloemfontein, which became the capital of the
Orange River Sovereignty in 1848. In 1854 the British abandoned the Sovereignty, and the independent Boer republic of the
Orange Free State was established • in the
Boer Republic of
Transvaal at Pretoria • with the
Matabele chief at
Bulawayo • in
Ghana, with the rulers of the
Asanteman Confederation (established in 1701), since it became 1896 a British protectorate; on 23 June 1900 the Confederation was dissolved by UK protectorate authority, and on 26 September 1901 turned into
Ashanti Colony, so since 1902 his place was taken by a
Chief Commissioner at
Kumasi • in various parts of the
Northern Nigeria Protectorate,
and Southern Nigeria Protectorate and after their joining Nigeria protectorate, notably in
Edo state at
Benin City (first to the British-installed ruling council of chiefs, later to the restored Oba), with the Emir of and in
Bauchi, to the jointly ruling
bale and Balogun of
Ibadan (a vassal state in
Yorubaland), with the Emir of
Illorin, with the Emir of and in
Muri (Nigeria), with the Emir of
Nupe Residents in Asia with his son in the Nawab's
Durbar with British Resident, Sir
John Hadley receives Dutch Minister-Resident
Dirk de Graeff van Polsbroek and French Minister-Resident
Léon Roches as the first European envoys ever in 1868 British residents were posted in various
princely states – in major states or groups of states—in the days of
British India. Often they were appointed to a single state, as with the
Resident in
Lucknow, the capital of
Oudh; to the Maharaja Gaekwad of
Baroda; to the Maharaja Sindhia of
Gwalior; to the Nizam al-Mulk of
Hyderabad; to the Maharaja of
Jhalawar; to the restored Maharaja of
Mysore, after the fall of
Tipu Sultan; to the Maharaja Sena Sahib Subah of the Mahratta state of
Nagpur; to the (Maha)Raja of
Manipur; to the (Maha)Raja of
Travancore; to the Maharana of
Mewar in Udaipur. Even when
Lord Lake had broken the
Maratha power in 1803, and the
Mughal emperor was taken under the protection of the
East India Company, the districts of
Delhi and
Hisar were assigned for the maintenance of the royal family, and were administered by a British Resident, until in 1832 the whole area was annexed to British Residents were also posted in major states considered to be connected with India, neighbouring or on the sea route to it, notably: • in
Aden was the first British Resident to the King of independent
Burma (October 1796 – July 1797), and there were more discontinuous postings to that court, in the 19th century, never satisfactory to either party; after the
Third Anglo-Burmese War there were two separate British Residents in a border zone of that country: in the
Northern Shan States and the
Southern Shan States (each several tribal states, usually ruled by a
Saopha=
Sawbwa) in 1945–1948 (each group had been under a Superintendent from 1887/88 till 1922, then both jointly under a Resident Commissioner till the 1942 Japanese occupation) • after five military governors since the East India Company started chasing the Dutch out of
Ceylon in August 1795 and occupying the island (completed on 16 February 1796), their only Resident there was Robert Andrews, 12 February 1796 – 12 October 1798, who was subordinate to the
presidency of Madras (see British India), afterward the
HEIC appointed Governors as it was made a separate colony • to the Sultan of the
Maldives archipelago since he formally accepted British protection on 16 December 1887 (informally since 1796, after the British took over Ceylon from the Dutch), but this office was filled
ex officio by the colonial Governors until 4 February 1948, abolished on 26 July 1965 • in
Nepal since 1802, accredited to the
Hindu kings (title
Maharajadhiraja), since 15 March 1816 exercising a de facto protectorate—the last staying on 1920 as
Envoy till the 1923 emancipation • with the Imam/Sultan of
Oman, 1800–1804, 1805–1810, and 1840 (so twice interrupted by vacancy), then located with the African branch of the dynasty on the island of Unguja, since 1862 his role was handed over to a Political Agent And elsewhere: • in
Transjordan (present Jordan) from April 1921 – 17 June 1946 four incumbents accredited to the Hashemite Emir/King Even in overseas territories occupied ('preventively' or conquered) to keep the French out of strategic trade and waters, residencies could be established, e.g. at
Laye on
Sumatra, an island returned to the
Dutch East Indies Residents in (British) European protectorates Since on 5 November 1815, the
United States of the Ionian Islands became a federal republic of seven islands (Corfu, Cephalonia, Zante, Santa Maura, Ithaca, Cerigo, and Paxos), as a protectorate (nominally of the allied Powers; in practice a UK protectorate; the highest office was the always-British
Lord High Commissioner), until its 1 June 1864 incorporation into independent Greece, there were British residents, each posted with a local Prefect, on seven individual islands, notably:
Cephalonia (Kephalonia),
Cerigo (Kythira),
Ithaca,
Paxos,
Santa Maura (Leucada/Lefkada) and
Zante (Zakynthos)
Residents on (British and dominion) ocean island states reads the
Cook Islands annexation proclamation to
Queen Makea, with the British Resident
Walter Gudgeon watching, on 7 October 1900. • in the period before British sovereignty was declared over
New Zealand and a lieutenant-governor was appointed,
James Busby from 10 May 1833 till 28 January 1840. • at
Rarotonga since the 1888 establishment of the British protectorate over the
Cook Islands; the third and last incumbent stayed on as first Resident Commissioner since 1901, at the incorporation in the
British Western Pacific Territories (under a single High Commissioner, till its 1976 dissolution, in Suva or Honiara), until the abolition of the post at the 1965 self-government grant as a territory in free association with New Zealand, having its cabinet (still under the British Crown, which after 1976 appoints a special King's/Queen's Representative, as well as a High Commissioner).
Residents in protectorates of decolonised Commonwealth states •
Sikkim, where the
Maharaja had been under a British protectorate (1861 – 15 August 1947; the crown representative was styled Political Agent), became immediately afterward a protectorate of newly independent
India (formally from 5 December 1950; in the meantime, the Indian representative was again styled Political Agent, the first incumbent being the former British Political Agent—India was a
dominion, still under the British crown, till 26 January 1950) until 16 May 1975, it was annexed as a constituent state of India.
Dutch colonial residents c. 1905 In the
Dutch East Indies, Dutch residents and lower ranks such as assistant residents were posted alongside a number of the many native princes in present Indonesia, compared
to Regentschap. For example, in
Sumatra, there were Dutch residents at
Palembang, at
Medan in
Deli sultanate; another was posted with the Sultan of and on
Ternate, and one in
Bali.
French colonial residents France also maintained residents, the French word being
résident. However the 'Jacobin' tradition of strict state authority didn't agree well with indirect rule, so often direct rule was preferred. Many were part of a white colonial hierarchy, rather than truly posted with a native ruler or chieftain.
Style résident • A single post of resident was also created in ''Côte d'Ivoire'', i.e.
Ivory Coast (from 1881 subordinated to the Superior Commandant of
Gabon and the Gulf of Guinea Settlements; from 1886 subordinated to the Lieutenant Governors of
Guinea), where in 1842 France had declared protectorates over the Kingdoms of
Nzima and
Sanwi (posts at Assinié 1843–1870, and Grand Bassam, Fort Dabou 1853–1872, part of the Colony of Gorée and Dependencies in Senegal]): • 1871–1885 Arthur Verdier (to 1878 Warden of the French Flag) (b. 1835 – d. 1898) • 1885–1886 Charles Bour -Commandant-particular • 1886 – 9 March 1890 Marcel Treich Leplène (b. 1860 – d. 1890) • 9 March 1890 – 14 June 1890 Jean Joseph Étienne Octave Péan (acting) • 14 June 1890 – 1892 Jean Auguste Henri Desailles • 1892 Éloi Bricard (acting) • 1892 – 12 November 1892 Julien Voisin (acting) • 12 November 1892 – 10 March 1893 Paul Alphonse Frédéric Heckman; thereafter it had its Governors • On the
Comoros, in the Indian Ocean, several Residents were posted with the various native
sultanates on major islands; they were all three subordinated to the French
administrators of
the Mayotte island protectorate (itself constituting the native
Maore or Mawuti sultanate): • On Ngazidja (
Grande Comore island, divided into eleven sultanates, some of which on occasion had the superior title of
Sultani tribe): November 1886 – 1912 • On Ndzuwani (
Anjouan island) with the
Phany (sole Sultan): only two incumbents 188x–189x • On Mwali (
Mohéli island) from 1886; then 1889–1912 filled by the above residents of Anjouan • On
Wallis and Futuna, after a single French Representative styled
chargé de mission (7 April 1887 – 26 June 1888, Maurice Antoine Chauvot), there was a long list of Residents from 7 April 1887; since 3 October 1961, when both islands were joined as the Wallis & Futuna overseas territory, their successors were styled
Administrateur supérieur 'Administrator-superior', but the native dynasties remain; they represented the French government by the protectorate treaties with the
Tui (ruler) of
'Uvea (Wallis island, 5 April 1887; 27 November 1887 administratively attached to
New Caledonia) and on 16 February 1888 with the two kingdoms on Futuna—
Tu`a (also called Alo) and
Sigave Résident supérieur This French title, meaning "Superior" (i.e. Senior) Resident, indicates that he had junior Residents under him. • In
Upper Volta (present Burkina Faso), which has had its own Lieutenant governor (before) or Governor (after) and intermediately has been part of one or (carved up) more neighbouring French colonies, there has been one Résident-Superieur of "Upper Ivory Coast", 1 January 1938 – 29 July 1940, while it was part of the
Ivory Coast colony: Edmond Louveau • In
Cambodia, where the local royal government was theoretically maintained, the resident at Phnom-Penh was the Resident-Superior, over the various Residents posted throughout Cambodia. The Resident-Superior of Cambodia answered to the Governor-General of Indochina, however.
German colonial residents In the German colonies, the title was also Resident; the post was called
Residentur. • in
Wituland: Ahmed ibn Fumo Bakari, the first
mfalume (sultan) of Witu (on the Kenyan coast), ceded of territory on 8 April 1885 to the brothers Clemens and Gustav Denhardt's "Tana Company", and the remainder of the Wituland became the German
Schutzgebiet (Protectorate) of
Wituland (
Deutsch-Witu) on 27 May 1885. The Reich was represented there by the German Residents: Gustav Denhardt (b. 1856 – d. 1917; in office 8 April 1885 – 1 July 1890) and his deputy Clemens Andreas Denhardt (b. 1852 – d. 1928) until 1 July 1890 imperial Germany renounces its protectorate, ceding the Wituland to Great Britain which had on 18 June 1890 declared it a British protectorate). • in
German East Africa • A resident of
Ruanda: 1906 – 15 November 1907 Werner von Grawert (d. 1918), formerly the last military district commander of Usumbura (the other district being Ujiji) • A resident of
Urundi (present Burundi): 15 November 1907 – June 1916, starting with the same as above; formally accredited to the native Mwami (King; on 8 October 1905 the Germans recognized the already ruling Mwezi IV Gisabo as "Sultan" of Burundi and its only supreme authority) • A resident of
Bukoba west of
Lake Victoria overseeing an area of 32,200 km2; • in
German Kamerun • A resident of
Garua • A resident of
Mora • A resident of
Ngaundere • in
German South-West Africa (present Namibia) • A resident of
Schuckmannsburg for the
Caprivi Strip.
Portuguese colonial residents • In
Cabinda (in present
Angola), five incumbents from 1885 (18 July 1885 Portuguese Congo district created after 14 February 1885 confirmation by the Berlin Conference of the 1883 Portuguese protectorate over "Portuguese Congo") to 1899 (end of autonomy under the Governors of Congo district which had its seat in Cabinda since 1887) • In the
Fort of São João Baptista de Ajudá (in present
Benin), a country that was named
Dahomey until 1975, civil residents served from 1911 (withdrawal of the Portuguese military garrison) until 31 July 1961 (invasion of the fort by the Dahomey military forces) ==Residents-general (and their subordinate residents)==