Colony of Vancouver Island

British crown colony (1849–1866)

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
Find sources: "Colony of Vancouver Island" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (January 2018) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

Island of Vancouver and its Dependencies

1849–1866

Flag

Anthem: God Save the Queen

Status| British colony
Capital| Victoria
Common languages| English
Religion

| Christianity
Government| Constitutional monarchy
Sovereign|

• 1849-1866

| Victoria
Historical era| British Era

• Established

| 13 January 1849

• Merged with Colony of British Columbia (1858–66) to form Colony of British Columbia (1866–71)

| November 1866

| Succeeded by

|

|  | Colony of British Columbia (1866–71) |

|

The Colony of Vancouver Island, officially known as the Island of Vancouver and its Dependencies, was a Crown colony of British North America from 1849 to 1866, after which it was united with the mainland to form the Colony of British Columbia. The united colony joined Canadian Confederation, thus becoming part of Canada, in 1871. The colony comprised Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands of the Strait of Georgia.

## Settlement of the island

[edit]

Captain James Cook was the first European to set foot on the Island at Nootka Sound in 1778, during his third voyage. He spent a month in the area, claiming the territory for Great Britain. Fur trader John Meares arrived in 1786 and set up a single-building trading post near the native village of Yuquot (Friendly Cove), at the entrance to Nootka Sound in 1788.[1] The fur trade began expanding across the island; this would eventually lead to permanent settlement.[2]

### Sovereignty dispute

[edit]

The Spanish Empire also explored the area. Commandant Esteban José Martínez built a fort at Friendly Cove on Vancouver Island in 1789 and seized some British ships, claiming sovereignty. The fort was re-established in 1790 by Francisco de Eliza and a small community was built around it. Ownership of the island remained in dispute between Spain and Britain.

In 1792 Captain George Vancouver arrived to meet with Spanish Comdt. Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra but their lengthy negotiations failed to produce a decision on the competing claims of ownership. The two countries nearly began a war over the issue; the confrontation became known as the Nootka Crisis. That was averted when both agreed to recognize the other's rights to the area in the first Nootka Convention in 1790, a first step to peace.[3] Finally, the two countries signed the second Nootka Convention in 1793 and the third Convention in 1794. As per that final agreement, the Spanish dismantled their fort at Nootka and left the area, giving the British sovereignty over Vancouver Island and the adjoining islands (including the Gulf Islands).[4]

### Early British settlement

[edit]

It was not until 1843 that Britain – under the auspices of the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) – established a settlement on Vancouver Island. In March of that year, James Douglas of the Hudson's Bay Company and a missionary had arrived and selected an area for settlement. Construction of the fort began in June of that year.[5] This settlement was a fur trading post originally named Fort Albert (afterward Fort Victoria). The fort was located at the Songhees settlement of Camosack (Camosun), 200 metres northwest of the present-day Empress Hotel on Victoria's Inner Harbour.

In 1846, the Oregon Treaty was signed by the British and the U.S. to settle the question of the U.S. Oregon Territory borders.[6] The Treaty made the 49th parallel latitude north the official border between the two countries. In order to ensure that Britain retained all of Vancouver Island and the southern Gulf Islands, however, it was agreed that the border would swing south around that area.[7]

### Colony

[edit]

In 1849, the Colony of Vancouver Island was established. The colony was leased to the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) for ten years, at an annual fee of seven shillings. Thus in 1849, HBC moved its western headquarters from Fort Vancouver on the Columbia River (present day Vancouver, Washington) to Fort Victoria. Chief Factor James Douglas was relocated from Fort Vancouver to Fort Victoria to oversee the company's operations west of the Rockies.[8]

The British colonial office designated the territory a Crown colony on 13 January 1849. Douglas was charged with encouraging British settlement. Richard Blanshard was named the colony's governor. Blanshard discovered that the hold of the HBC over the affairs of the new colony was all but absolute, and that it was Douglas who held all practical authority in the territory. There was no civil service, no police, no militia, and virtually every British colonist was an employee of the HBC. Frustrated, Blanshard abandoned his post a year later, returning to England. In 1851, his resignation was finalized, and the colonial office appointed Douglas as governor.

The Great Seal of the Island of Vancouver and its Dependencies was designed by Benjamin Wyon, Chief Engraver of Her Majesty's Seals, c. 1849. The badge he designed is the basis for the unofficial flag of Vancouver Island that debuted in 1988.[9] The flag of Vancouver Island was authorized in 1865 (colonies could place their badges upon the fly of a blue ensign). This flag uses the Colonial Seal of Vancouver Island from 1849. The flag was probably never actually flown in colonial times but is used today as an unofficial representative flag.[10]

## Douglas governorship

[edit]

Sir James Douglas, second Governor of Vancouver Island

Douglas's situation as both the local chief executive of the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) as well as the civil governor of the colony from whom the company had leased all rights, was barely tenable from the outset. Initially, Douglas performed the delicate balancing act well, raising a domestic militia and encouraging settlement. By the mid-1850s, the colony's non-aboriginal population was approaching 500, and sawmill and coal mining operations had been established at Fort Nanaimo and Fort Rupert (near present-day Port Hardy). Douglas also assisted the British government in establishing a naval base at present-day Esquimalt to check Russian and American expansionism.

Douglas's efforts at encouraging settlement were hampered by colonial officials in London, who gave preference to settlers who would bring out labourers with them to work the landholdings. The result was that emigration was slow, and the landless labourers frequently fled the colony either to obtain free land grants in the United States, or work the newly discovered goldfields of California. A secondary result was the replication of the British class system, with the attendant resistance to non-parochial education, land reform, and representative government.

At the time of the establishment of the colony, Vancouver Island had a large and varied First Nations population of upwards of 30,000. Douglas completed fourteen separate treaties with the various nations, or tribes. Under the terms of these treaties, known today as the Douglas Treaties, the nations were obliged to surrender title to all land within a designated area, with the exception of villages and cultivated areas, in perpetuity. They were also given permission to hunt and fish over unoccupied territories. For these concessions, the nations were given a one-time cash payment of a few shillings each.

As settlement accelerated, resentment towards the HBC's monopoly – both economic and civil – over the colony swelled. A series of petitions were sent to the colonial office, one of which resulted in the establishment of the Legislative Assembly of Vancouver Island in 1855. At first, little changed, given that only a few dozen men met the voting requirement of holding twenty or more acres. Moreover, the majority of the representatives were employees of the HBC. However, as time went on, the franchise was gradually extended, and the assembly began to assert demands for more control over colonial affairs and criticised Douglas's inherent conflict of interest.

Amor De Cosmos, editor of the Daily Colonist, was an ardent opponent of the "family-company compact" of Bay men and Douglas associates who controlled the colony.

By 1857, Americans and British colonists were beginning to respond to rumours of gold in the Thompson River area. Almost overnight, some ten to twenty thousand men moved into the interior of New Caledonia (mainland British Columbia), and Victoria was transformed into a tent-city of prospectors, merchants, land-agents, and speculators. Douglas – who had no legal authority over New Caledonia – stationed a gunboat at the entrance of the Fraser River to exert British authority by collecting licences from boats attempting to make their way upstream. To exert its legal authority, and undercut any HBC claims to the resource wealth of the mainland, the district was converted to a Crown colony on 2 August 1858, and given the name British Columbia. Douglas was offered the governorship of the new colony, on condition that he sever his relationship with the HBC. Douglas accepted these conditions, and a knighthood, and for the next six years would govern both colonies from Victoria.

The remainder of Douglas's term as Vancouver Island governor (until 1864) was marked by increased expansion of the economy and settlement, and greater agitation for both union of the two colonies and for the introduction of fully responsible government. It was also marked by occasional boundary disputes with the United States, the most significant of which was the San Juan Boundary Dispute in 1859. This resulted in a sometimes tense, twelve-year military standoff as the two countries garrisoned troops on San Juan Island. There was a second gold rush – the Cariboo Gold Rush – and again Victoria experienced an economic boom as the staging point for the prospectors.

The increased conflicts between Douglas and the reformers, such as Amor De Cosmos, along with the growing desire of colonists in British Columbia to have a resident governor in their capital of New Westminster resulted in the colonial office easing Douglas into retirement in 1864.

## Union of Vancouver Island and British Columbia

[edit]

Sir Arthur Kennedy, third and last Governor of Vancouver Island

Douglas was succeeded as governor in 1864 by Sir Arthur Edward Kennedy, a career colonial administrator who had previously served as governor of Sierra Leone and Western Australia. There was popular acclaim for the appointment of a governor free from ties with the HBC. The company had leased the island from Britain during 1849–1859 and still exerted a great deal of influence because the previous Governor, James Douglas was the executive officer of HBC.[11]

After Arthur Kennedy was appointed Governor, his rule was initially met with suspicion and opposition by the colonial assembly, which feared the loss of Vancouver Island's status vis-à-vis the growing power of the mainland colony. It resisted the colonial office's request for the permanent appropriation for the civil list in return for control of the extensive Crown lands of the colony, and temporarily withheld salary and housing to Kennedy until they had achieved their aim. Kennedy met with further opposition by some in the assembly over the plan for the colony to unite with British Columbia. It was only when opponents were persuaded that such union would boost the colony's ailing economy that passage of the proposal was assured by the assembly.

Kennedy achieved some progress in breaking down the longstanding social barriers established over years of HBC hegemony. In 1865, the Common Schools Act funded public education.[12] Kennedy also reformed the civil service, introduced auditing of the colonial budget, and improved revenue collection. Nonetheless, he continued to fail in his efforts to persuade the assembly to introduce the vote of a civil list, as well as enforcing various measures to protect the rights and well-being of the increasingly pressured aboriginal population. Despite his sympathy for the plight of neighbouring Indian peoples, Kennedy authorised naval bombardment of the Ahousahts of Clayoquot Sound in 1864 in reprisal for the murder of the crew of a trading vessel. Nine Ahousaht villages were destroyed, and thirteen people killed.[13]

Fort Victoria became the City of Victoria in 1862 with Thomas Harris elected Mayor.[14] With the colony's budget collapsing by 1865, and the assembly unwilling and unable to introduce proposals for raising revenue, Kennedy was barely able to keep the administration afloat.[15] Pressure grew for amalgamation with the mainland Colony of British Columbia (which had been established in 1858).

The two colonies were merged in 1866 into the united Colony of British Columbia by the Act for the Union of the colonies, passed by the Imperial Parliament.[16] Kennedy was appointed governor of the united entity. (He would leave office in 1866 and later became Governor of the West African Settlements, British West Africa.)[17] Victoria became the capital but the legislative assembly was located in New Westminster on the Lower Mainland. The capital was moved to Victoria in 1868.[18]

### Confederation

[edit]

By 1867, Canadian Confederation was accomplished by the British North America Act, and the united colonies joined Canada on 20 July 1871. Victoria was named the capital of the province of British Columbia. Three delegates were appointed to the federal government.[19][20]

## Governors of Vancouver Island

[edit]

* Richard Blanshard, 1849–1851
* Sir James Douglas, 1851–1864
* Sir Arthur Kennedy, 1864–1866

## Elections to the Legislative Assembly of Vancouver Island

[edit]

* 1856 Vancouver Island Election
* 1860 Vancouver Island Election
* 1863 Vancouver Island Election

## See also

[edit]

* Canada portal
* History portal
* British Empire portal

* Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866)
* Colony of British Columbia (1866–1871)
* Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands
* Former colonies and territories in Canada
* History of British Columbia
* List of governors of Vancouver Island and British Columbia
* Postage stamps and postal history of British Columbia
* Pugets Sound Agricultural Company
* Territorial evolution of Canada after 1867

## Further reading

[edit]

* Representative Government Established chapter, A History of British Columbia, R. Gosnell & E.O.S. Scholefield, British Columbia Historical Association (Vancouver 1913) pp. 115–128[dead link]
* Union and Confederation chapter, A History of British Columbia, R. Gosnell & E.O.S. Scholefield, British Columbia Historical Association (Vancouver 1913) pp. 193–210 – detailed account of issues and deliberations on colonial union and entry to Confederation[dead link]
* The Colony of Vancouver Island: 1849 to 1855. Bob Reid, The Scrivener, October 2003.

49°38′N 125°42′W﻿ / ﻿49.633°N 125.700°W﻿ / 49.633; -125.700

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Early European Exploration in Nootka Sound". Get West. 19 March 2011. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
2. ^ "History of Victoria". City of Victoria. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
3. ^ "Vancouver Island History". Discover Vancouver Island. 15 October 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
4. ^ "Early European Exploration in Nootka Sound". Get West. 19 March 2011. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
5. ^ "History of Victoria". City of Victoria. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
6. ^ "Places". Our History. Hbc Heritage. Archived from the original on 6 December 2004. Retrieved 8 March 2008.
7. ^ "Britain and the United States agree on the 49th parallel as the main Pacific Northwest boundary in the Treaty of Oregon on June 15, 1846". History Link. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
8. ^ "History of Victoria". City of Victoria. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
9. ^ Swan, Conrad (1977). Canada, Symbols of Sovereignty: An Investigation of the Arms and Seals Borne and Used from the Earliest Times to the Present in Connection with Public Authority in and over Canada, Along with Consideration of Some Connected Flags. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 9780802053466.
10. ^ "The Flags of Canada by Alistair B. Fraser". Fraser.cc. Archived from the original on 17 November 2011. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
11. ^ "Vancouver Island History timeline". Tourism Vancouver Island. 11 July 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
12. ^ "A Highlight History of British Columbia Schools" (PDF). Royal BC Museum. 15 March 2011. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
13. ^ "KENNEDY, Sir ARTHUR EDWARD". Dictionary of Canadian Biography. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
14. ^ "History of Victoria". City of Victoria. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
15. ^ "KENNEDY, Sir ARTHUR EDWARD". Dictionary of Canadian Biography. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
16. ^ "History of Victoria". City of Victoria. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
17. ^ "KENNEDY, Sir ARTHUR EDWARD". Dictionary of Canadian Biography. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
18. ^ "History of Victoria". City of Victoria. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
19. ^ "Vancouver Island History timeline". Tourism Vancouver Island. 11 July 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
20. ^ "History of Victoria". City of Victoria. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2020.

* v
* t
* e

Former colonies and territories in Canada

Norse|

Named territories
Vinland
Sites:
L'Anse aux Meadows

French|

Claims
New France

Acadia
Isle St-Jean
Île Royale
Canada
Domaine du roy
Louisiana
Pays d'en Haut
Terre Neuve

Important sites
Port Royal (Annapolis Royal)
Quebec
Trois-Rivières
Montreal
Louisbourg
Plaisance
List of towns
List of forts

Spanish|

Claims
New Spain
Important sites
Fort San Miguel, Nootka Sound
Expeditions
Newfoundland
Pacific Northwest

Scottish|

Claims
Nova Scotia (1621)
Sites
Port Royal Colony

Russian|

Claims
Russian America

American|

Claims
Oregon Country

Danish|

Claims
Nova Dania

English and
British|

Claims
Newfoundland (1583)
British Arctic Territories
New Albion (?)
New Britain
New Yorkshire
Rupert's Land
Nova Scotia (1710)
Quebec
Lower and Upper Canada
New Brunswick
Prince Edward Island
Cape Breton
United Canada
New Caledonia
Columbia District
Queen Charlotte Islands
Vancouver Island
British Columbia (1858–1866)
British Columbia (1866–1871)
Stickeen
North-Western Territory (districts)
Red River
Important sites
Cuper's Cove
Avalon (1620)
York Factory
Halifax
Victoria
Fort Langley

Norwegian|

Claims
Sverdrup Islands

Related|

* Territorial evolution after 1867
* Areas disputed by Canada and the United States
* Proposed provinces and territories of Canada
* Population of Canada

* Category
* Canada portal

* v
* t
* e

Former British Empire and Current British Overseas Territories

Legend
Former territory
Current territory
*Current Commonwealth realm
†Current member of the Commonwealth of Nations

Europe

* Akrotiri and Dhekelia since 1960 (before as part of Cyprus)
* Corsica 1794–1796
* †Cyprus 1878–1960
* Gibraltar since 1713
* Heligoland 1807–1890
* Ionian Islands 1809–1864
* Lordship of Ireland 1177–1542
* Kingdom of Ireland 1542–1800 (integrated into the UK)
* Free State 1921–1931
* †Malta
* Protectorate 1800–1813
* Colony 1813–1964
* Minorca 1708–1757, 1763–1782 and 1798–1802

Africa

* Basutoland (†Lesotho) 1868–1966
* Bechuanaland (†Botswana) 1884–1966
* Cameroons13 1919–1961
* Cape Colony 1795–1803
* Cape of Good Hope 1806–1910
* Central Africa 1891–1907
* East Africa 1895–1920
* Egypt 1882–1922
* †The Gambia 1816–1965
* Gold Coast (†Ghana) 1874–1957
* †Kenya 1920–1963
* Lagos 1862–1906
* Madeira 1807–1808
* †Mauritius 1810–1968
* Natal 1856–1910
* Niger Coast 1884–1900
* †Nigeria 1914–1960
* Northern Nigeria 1900–1914
* Northern Rhodesia15 1924–1964
* Nyasaland 1891–1964
* Orange River 1900–1910
* †Seychelles 1903–1976
* †Sierra Leone 1792–1961
* Somaliland 1884–1960
* †South Africa 1910–1931
* South-West Africa12 1915–1931
* Southern Rhodesia14 1923–1965 and 1979–1980
* Southern Nigeria 1900–1914
* †Swaziland 1893–1968
* Sudan 1899–1956
* Tanganyika13 1922–1961
* Transvaal 1900–1910
* †Uganda 1890–1962
* Zanzibar 1890–1963
* Zululand 1887–1897

* 12Now †Namibia
* 13League of Nations mandate. British Cameroons is now part of †Cameroon and Nigeria, while Tanganyika is part of †Tanzania.
* 14Self-governing Southern Rhodesia unilaterally declared independence in 1965 (as Rhodesia) and continued as an unrecognised state until the 1979 Lancaster House Agreement. After recognised independence in 1980, Zimbabwe was a member of the Commonwealth until it withdrew in 2003.
* 15Now †Zambia

Asia

* Aden Colony 1839–1967
* Afghanistan 1839–1842
* Protectorate 1879–1919
* Bencoolen 1685–1824
* Banka and Billiton 1812–1824
* Bengal 1757–1947
* Bhutan (protectorate) 1907–1949
* Borneo 1874–1963
* British Indian Ocean Territory since 1965 (before as part of Mauritius and Seychelles)26
* Burma 1824–1948
* †Brunei 1888–1984
* †Ceylon 1795–1948
* †Cyprus 1878–1960
* Hong Kong 1841–1997
* †India18 1858–1947
* Java 1811–1816
* Kuwait 1918–1961
* Labuan 1848–1946
* Malaya 1819–1826
* Federated States 1895–1946
* Unfederated States 1885–1946
* Union 1946–1948
* Federation 1948–1957
* Malacca 1824–1946
* Crown Colony 1946–1957
* †Maldives 1796–1965
* Manila and Cavite 1762–1764
* Mesopotamia19 1920–1932
* Muscat and Oman 1891–1971
* North Borneo 1882–1963
* Crown Colony 1946–1963
* Padang 1781–1784 and 1795–1819
* Palestine19 1923–1948
* Penang 1786–1946
* Crown Colony 1946–1957
* Pulo Condore 1702–1705
* Sarawak 1841–1946
* Crown Colony 1946–1963
* †Singapore 1946–1963
* South Vietnam 1945–1946
* Straits Settlements 1826–1946
* Transjordan 1921–1946
* Trucial States 1892–1971
* Weihai 1898–1930

* 18Now †India, †Pakistan and †Bangladesh
* 19League of Nations mandate. Iraq's mandate was not enacted and replaced by the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty
* 26Legitimacy of territorial establishment disputed

North America

* Anguilla since 1650
* *Antigua 1632–1860
* *Antigua and Barbuda 1860–1981
* †*Bahamas 1670–1973
* †Barbados 1624–1966
* Bay Islands 1643–1860
* †*Belize 1871–1981
* Bermuda since 1619
* British Arctic Territories 16th c.–1880
* British Columbia 1858–1866
* 1866–1871
* Cape Breton Island 1754–1820
* †Dominica 1763–1978
* East Florida 1763–1783
* †*Grenada 1762–1974
* †*Canada
* Lower 1791–1841
* Upper 1791–1841
* Province 1841–1867
* Dominion 1867–1931
* Carolina 1663–1712
* Cayman Islands since 1670
* Columbia District/Oregon Country 1818–1846
* Connecticut 1636–1776
* Delaware 1701–1776
* East Jersey 1674–1702
* Georgia 1733–1776
* †*Jamaica 1655–1962
* Leeward Islands 1671–1816, 1833–1960
* Massachusetts Bay 1629–1691
* Province, 1691–1776
* Maryland 1632–1776
* Montserrat since 1632
* Mosquito Coast 1655–1860
* Nevis 1628–1983
* New Albion 1579
* New Brunswick 1784–1867
* New England 1686–1689
* New Hampshire 1680–1776
* New Haven 1637–1662
* New Jersey 1665–1674 and 1702–1776
* New York 1664–1776
* Newfoundland 1907–1949
* Newfoundland and Labrador 1583–1907
* North Carolina 1712–1776
* North-Western Territory 1859–1870
* Nova Scotia 1713–1867
* Paulet affair 1843
* Prince Edward Island 1763–1873
* Pennsylvania 1681–1776
* Plymouth 1620–1691
* Quebec 1763–1791* Queen Charlotte Islands 1853–1863
* Rhode Island 1636–1776
* Rupert's Land 1670–1870
* Saint Croix 1625–1650
* Saint Kitts 1623–1983
* †*Saint Kitts and Nevis 1882–1983
* †*Saint Lucia 1605–1979
* †*Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1627–1979
* Saybrook 1635–1644
* South Carolina 1712–1776
* Stickeen 1862–1863
* †Trinidad and Tobago 1889–1962
* Turks and Caicos Islands since 1799
* Vancouver Island 1849–1866
* Virgin Islands since 1666
* Virginia 1607–1776
* West Florida 1763–1783
* West Indies Federation 1958–1962
* Associated States 1967–1983
* West Jersey 1674–1702
* Windward Islands 1833–1960

South America

* Providence Island 1631–1641
* Willoughbyland 1651–1667
* Saint Andrew and Providence Islands4 1670–1688
* †Guiana 1831–1966

* 4Now a department of Colombia

Oceania

* New South Wales 1788–1901
* Van Diemen's Land/Tasmania 1803–1901
* Auckland Islands20 1807–1863
* New Hebrides21 1824–1980
* Queensland 1824–1901
* Swan River/Western Australia 1829–1901
* South Australia 1836–1901
* Pitcairn Islands since 1838
* New Zealand 1841–1907
* North Australia 1846–1847
* Victoria 1851–1901
* †Fiji 1874–1970
* Western Pacific Territories 1877–1976
* Papua 1884–1902
* Rarotonga/Cook Islands20 1888–1901
* Union Islands20 1889–1948
* Gilbert and Ellice Islands22 1892–1979
* †*Solomon Islands 1893–1978
* †Tonga 1900–1970
* Niue20 1900–1974
* †*Australia 1901–1942
* †*New Zealand 1907–1947
* †Samoa 1914–1962
* †Nauru 1919–1942 and 1945–1968

* 20Now part of the †Realm of New Zealand
* 21Now †Vanuatu
* 22Now †Kiribati and †*Tuvalu

Antarctica and the South Atlantic

* Saint Helena23 since 1658
* Ascension Island23 since 1815
* Tristan da Cunha23 since 1816
* Falkland Islands5 since 1833
* †Australian Antarctic Territory (transferred to the Commonwealth of Australia) 1841–1933
* †Ross Dependency (transferred to the Realm of New Zealand) 1841–1947
* British Antarctic Territory24 since 1908
* South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands25 since 1908

* 5Occupied by Argentina during the Falklands War of April–June 1982.
* 23Since 2009 part of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha; Ascension Island (1922–) and Tristan da Cunha (1938–) were previously dependencies of Saint Helena.
* 24Claimed in 1908; territory formed 1962; overlaps portions of Argentine and Chilean claims, borders not enforced but claim not renounced under the Antarctic Treaty.
* 25Claimed in 1908; territory formed 1985

* Historical flags of the British Empire
* Anglosphere culture
* Category
* Portal

Authority control databases |

* VIAF

|

*[c.]: circa
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template