The title director has been used in colonial administrations not only as a bureaucratic rank and for the members of a board of directors, but also specifically, as in this article, for the head of the colonial administration of a territory (e.g.

protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its int ...

) under

indirect rule Indirect rule was a system of governance used by the British and others to control parts of their colonial empires, particularly in Africa and Asia, which was done through pre-existing indigenous power structures. Indirect rule was used by vario ...

by a

chartered company A chartered company is an association with investors or shareholders that is incorporated and granted rights (often exclusive rights) by royal charter (or similar instrument of government) for the purpose of trade, exploration, and/or coloni ...

, functionally equivalent to a

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

. Elsewhere, the same function went by the - in principle higher - title

director-general A director general or director-general (plural: ''directors general'', ''directors-general'', ''director generals'' or ''director-generals'' ) or general director is a senior executive officer, often the chief executive officer, within a governmen ...

, as in Demerara-Essequibo (Dutch Guyana).

British colonies

* From 5 June 1885 the Niger Districts Protectorate (under the United African Company) was administered by Sir George Goldie (1846–1925), until it became on, 10 July 1886, the Niger River Delta Protectorate (under the

Royal Niger Company The Royal Niger Company was a mercantile company chartered by the British government in the nineteenth century. It was formed in 1879 as the ''United African Company '' and renamed to ''National African Company'' in 1881 and to ''Royal Niger C ...

, which appointed two consecutive

s, the second being the same Sir George Goldie). * The short-lived (1613–1623) English trading post at

Hirado is a city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. The part historically named Hirado is located on Hirado Island. With recent mergers, the city's boundaries have expanded, and Hirado now occupies parts of the main island of Kyushu. The component ...

(Japan) had a single director: Richard Cocks

Other colonial powers

Director, or rather its equivalent in the colonizer's language, was similarly used elsewhere: * ''Directeur'', in Caribbean possessions under Dutch WIC ( West India Company) administration: ** Aruba 1833–1848 only three incumbents, the first having been the last

commandeur Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

, the last becoming the first

gezaghebber Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

** Curaçao 1634–1792 and once more 1828–1833 (Isaäk Johannes Rammelman Elsevier), at other times various other titles were in use, mostly governor * ''Directeur'' of

Dutch Bengal Bengal was a directorate of the Dutch East India Company in Mughal Bengal between 1610 until the company's liquidation in 1800. It then became a colony of the Kingdom of the Netherlands until 1825, when it was relinquished to the British accor ...

(a few factories in

Dutch India Dutch India consisted of the settlements and trading posts of the Dutch East India Company on the Indian subcontinent. It is only used as a geographical definition, as there was never a political authority ruling all Dutch India. Instead, Dutc ...

), from 1635 (until 1655, however, filled by the governors of

Coromandel Coromandel may refer to: Places India *Coromandel Coast, India **Presidency of Coromandel and Bengal Settlements ** Dutch Coromandel *Coromandel, KGF, Karnataka, India New Zealand *Coromandel, New Zealand, a town on the Coromandel Peninsula *Coro ...

) until the 1795 annexation to British India

Sources and references

World Statesmen- see each present nation
Gubernatorial titles {{gov-job-stub