Governor of Pitcairn

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Politics of the Pitcairn Islands
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The Governor of Pitcairn[1] is the representative of the British monarch in the Pitcairn Islands, the last remaining British Overseas Territory in the Pacific Ocean. Pitcairn has considerable local autonomy, but is under the authority of the colonial governor.

Because of the dependency's small population (it peaked at 233 in the 1930s, and has since dwindled to 50), the British never considered it worthwhile to station a resident governor on Pitcairn. Instead, the Governor of Fiji doubled as governor of Pitcairn from 1898 onward. When Fiji became independent in 1970, the governorship of Pitcairn was transferred to the British high commissioner to New Zealand. The office is currently held by Laura Clarke.

Throughout most of its history, the authority of the British governor was, in practice, nominal. However, Richard Fell, Governor of the Pitcairn Islands between 2001 and 2006, used the authority vested in him to dismiss the mayor Steve Christian, involved in the Pitcairn rape trial of 2004.

List of governors since 1970[]

Pitcairn Islands
No. Name
(Birth–Death) 		Title Portrait Tenure Notes Monarch
From Until
1 Sir Arthur Norman Galsworthy
(1916-1986) 		Governor of Pitcairn Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg October 1970 January 1973 Queen Elizabeth II in March 2015.jpg
Elizabeth II
2 Sir David Aubrey Scott
(1919–2010) 		Governor of Pitcairn Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg January 1973 1975 [2]
3 Sir Harold Smedley
(1920–2004) 		Governor of Pitcairn Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg February 1976 1980 [3]
4
(?–?) 		Governor of Pitcairn Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg September 1980 1984 [4]
5
(?–?) 		Governor of Pitcairn Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg July 1984 1987
6 Robin Byatt
(1930–2019) 		Governor of Pitcairn Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg December 1987 1990
7 David Moss
(born 1938) 		Governor of Pitcairn Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg September 1990 1994
8 Robert John Alston
(born 1938) 		Governor of Pitcairn Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg August 1994 10 February 1998
9 Martin Williams
(born 1941) 		Governor of Pitcairn Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg April 1998 2001
10 Richard Fell
(born 1948) 		Governor of Pitcairn Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg 10 December 2001 April 2006
11 George Fergusson
(born 1955) 		Governor of Pitcairn George Fergusson.jpg 2 May 2006 18 May 2010
–
(?–?) 		Acting
Governor of Pitcairn 		Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg 19 May 2010 3 June 2010
12 Victoria "Vicki" Treadell
(born 1959) 		Governor of Pitcairn Vickitreadell.jpg 3 June 2010 July 2014
13 Jonathan Sinclair
(born 1970) 		Governor of Pitcairn Jonathan Sinclair (diplomat).jpeg 15 August 2014 9 December 2017
–
(?–?) 		Acting
Governor of Pitcairn 		Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands.svg 9 December 2017 January 2018
14 Laura Clarke
(born 1978) 		Governor of Pitcairn Laura Clarke 2018 (cropped).jpg January 2018 Incumbent

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ While the territory is commonly called 'Pitcairn Islands', the official title of the office of her governor is 'Governor of Pitcairn' under section 27(1) of the Pitcairn Constitution Order, 2010 Archived 10 September 2016 at the Wayback Machine.
  2. ^ From 1 January 1974, Sir David Aubrey Scott.
  3. ^ From 31 December 1977, Sir Harold Smedley.
  4. ^ From 1982, Sir Richard Stratton.
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