William Edward Maxwell

Sir William Edward Maxwell KCMG
Governor of the Gold Coast
In office 7 April 1895 – 6 December 1897
Monarch	Queen Victoria
Preceded by	William Brandford Griffith
Succeeded by	Frederick Mitchell Hodgson
Acting Governor of the Straits Settlements
In office 30 August 1893 – 1 February 1894
Monarch	Queen Victoria
Preceded by	Sir Cecil Clementi Smith
Succeeded by	Sir Charles Mitchell
6th Colonial Secretary of the Straits Settlements
In office 9 March 1892 – 1895
Monarch	Queen Victoria
Governor	Sir Cecil Clementi Smith Sir Charles Mitchell
Preceded by	Sir John Frederick Dickson Arthur Philip Talbot (Acting)
Succeeded by	James Alexander Swettenham
British Resident of Selangor
In office 1889–1892
Preceded by	Frank Athelstane Swettenham John Pickersgill Rodger (Acting)
Succeeded by	William Hood Treacher
Personal details
Born	5 August 1846
Died	10 December 1897(1897-12-10) (aged 51) sea off Grand Canary[1]
Spouse(s)	Lillias Grant Aberigh-Mackay ​ ​ (m. 1870)​
Children	Sir William George Maxwell
Mother	Frances Dorothea
Father	Sir Peter Benson Maxwell
Occupation	Colonial administrator

Sir William Edward Maxwell, KCMG (5 August 1846 – 14 December 1897)^[1] was a British colonial official who served as Colonial Secretary of the Straits Settlements and Governor of the Gold Coast, then a British colony.

Early days[]

Born on 5 August 1846, William Edward Maxwell was the son of Sir Peter Benson Maxwell, the Chief Justice of the Straits Settlements.

Career[]

Straits Settlements[]

Maxwell followed his father into the legal profession, and also served in the courts of the Straits Settlements.^[1]

In 1883, Maxwell was appointed the Commissioner of Land Titles in the Straits Settlements, to be a Member of the Executive and Legislative Councils of those Settlements.^[2] In 1889, he was appointed the Resident of Selangor. He became the Colonial Secretary of the Straits Settlements in 1892,^[3] and was acting governor from 30 August 1893 to 1 February 1894.

Anglo-Ashanti War[]

In 1895, Maxwell was promoted to the governorship of the Gold Coast (now Ghana).^[4] Under his governorship the British declared war on the Asante Empire, the fourth Anglo-Ashanti War, known as the "Second Ashanti Expedition" in 1895.^{[citation needed]}

An earlier Treaty signed by the Asantes in 1874, but whose terms were widely considered as absurd and unenforcable, was invoked by Maxwell. When the Asante King, Asantehene Agyeman Prempeh, could not meet the terms, Maxwell had him arrested, together with his mother, father, brother, uncles and a dozen advisors.^[5] They were later exiled to the Seychelles, not returning to the Gold Coast (now Ghana) until the 1920s.^{[citation needed]}

Death and Legacy[]

Suffering malaria, Maxwell died at sea off the Canary Islands and was buried at sea. He had married Lillias Grant Aberigh-Mackay in 1870, and left issue. At the Holy Trinity Cathedral, Accra in Ghana (formerly the Gold Coast) a memorial tablet to him exists. It reads:

"To the glory of God in memory of Sir William Maxwell KCMG Governor of the Gold Coast Colony, who sacrificed his life to his unselfish devotion to duty. Under his rule the Kingdom of Ashanti was brought under British control. In impaired health he undertook an expedition to the northern territories of the colony to extend peace and protection to slave raided tribes and contracted fever of which to the undying regret of all who knew him died on the voyage home. Born 5th August 1846. Died 14th December 1897. 'Neither count I my life dear unto myself so that I might finish my course.'"^[6]

Under the terms of his last will, he requested his niece to burn his private letters and diaries without examination, which was undertaken.^[7]

Awards and honours[]

Maxwell was invested with Companion of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George (CMG) in 1885^[8] and Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George (KCMG) in 1896.^[9]

See also[]

• Maxwell, William Edward

References[]