kids encyclopedia robot

List of colonial governors and administrators of Kenya facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Not to be confused with Governors of Kenyan Counties.

This article tells you about the important people who led Kenya when it was under British rule. These leaders were called chairmen, administrators, commissioners, and governors. They were in charge of the area that later became Kenya.

After Kenya gained its independence in 1963, the role of Governor changed to Governor-General. Then, in 1964, Kenya became a republic, and the country started to be led by a President. To learn about Kenya's leaders after independence, you can check out the List of heads of state of Kenya.

Early Leaders: Imperial British East Africa Company

Before Kenya became a British colony, a company called the Imperial British East Africa Company managed the area. This company had leaders called Chairmen and Administrators. They were among the first British officials to govern parts of East Africa.

# Name Started role Left role Key events
Chairmen
1 Sir William Mackinnon 3 Sep 1888 1889
Administrators
1 George Mackenzie 3 Sep 1889 May 1890
2 Francis de Winton May 1890 Feb 1891 *Rules were made about land dealings.
- George Mackenzie Feb 1891 Jun 1891 *Temporary Administrator
3 Ernest Berkeley Jun 1891 Sep 1891
4 Lloyd Mathews Sep 1891 Feb 1892
5 Sir Gerald Portal Feb 1892 May 1893 *Control of Buganda (part of Uganda) moved to the British Foreign Office.
6 John Pigott 1893 Jul 1895

Leaders of the East Africa Protectorate and Kenya Colony

The East Africa Protectorate was the name for the British-controlled area that would become Kenya. Later, it was officially named the Kenya Colony. These leaders were called Commissioners and then Governors.

# Name Started role Left role Key events
Commissioners and Governors of the East Africa Protectorate
7 Sir Arthur Henry Hardinge 1 Jul 1895 7 Oct 1900 *The British government took over from the company.
8 Trevor Ternan 7 Oct 1900 30 Dec 1900 *Temporary Commissioner
9 Sir Charles Eliot 30 Dec 1900 20 May 1904 *Uganda gave its eastern part to the Protectorate.
  • Cities like Kericho, Nakuru, and Nyeri were founded.
  • A newspaper, The African Standard, was started.
  • A hospital for local people was built.
10 Frederick John Jackson 20 May 1904 1 Aug 1904 *Temporary Commissioner
11 Sir Donald William Stewart 1 Aug 1904 1 Oct 1905 *The first treaty with the Maasai people was signed.
  • Control moved from the Foreign Office to the Colonial Office.
10 Frederick John Jackson 1 Oct 1905 12 Dec 1905 *Commissioner
12 Sir James Hayes Sadler 12 Dec 1905 12 Apr 1909 *The Government House (now State House) was built.
  • The role of Commissioner changed to Governor.
  • A council was set up to make laws.
  • Nairobi became the capital instead of Mombasa.
13 Sir Charles Calvert Bowring 12 Apr 1909 16 Sep 1909
14 Sir Percy Girouard 16 Sep 1909 17 Jul 1912 *The second Maasai Treaty was signed.
13 Sir Charles Calvert Bowring 17 Jul 1912 3 Oct 1912 *Temporary Governor
15 Sir Henry Conway Belfield 3 Oct 1912 14 Apr 1917 *The city of Eldoret was founded.
  • World War I fighting began in East Africa.
13 Sir Charles Calvert Bowring 14 Apr 1917 1 Feb 1919 *Temporary Governor
16 Sir Edward Northey 1 Feb 1919 11 Jun 1920 *European women were allowed to vote.
  • The first general election was held.
Governors of The Colony and Protectorate of Kenya
16 Sir Edward Northey 11 Jun 1920 28 Aug 1922 *The East Africa Protectorate was renamed The Colony and Protectorate of Kenya.
  • A 10-mile strip along the coast became a Protectorate under the Sultan of Zanzibar.
17 Sir Robert Coryndon 31 Aug 1922 10 Feb 1925 *People of Indian and Arab descent were allowed to vote.
18 Edward Brandis Denham 10 Feb 1925 3 Oct 1925 *Temporary Governor
  • The Jubaland area was given to Italian Somaliland.
19 Edward Grigg 3 Oct 1925 27 Sep 1930 *The Coryndon Museum opened.
  • Healthcare was set up for all people.
20 Sir Henry Monck-Mason Moore 27 Sep 1930 13 Feb 1931 *Governor
21 Sir Joseph Byrne 13 Feb 1931 22 Dec 1936
22 Sir Armigel Wade 22 Dec 1936 6 Apr 1937 *Governor
23 Sir Robert Brooke-Popham 6 Apr 1937 9 Jan 1940
24 Walter Harragin 30 Sep 1939 9 Jan 1940 *Temporary Governor
20 Sir Henry Monck-Mason Moore 9 Jan 1940 25 Oct 1944 *The Kenya African Union was founded.
25 Sir Philip Mitchell 11 Dec 1944 21 Jun 1952 *Nairobi National Park was created.
26 Henry Steven Potter 21 Jun 1952 29 Sept 1952 *Temporary Governor
27 Sir Evelyn Baring 30 Sept 1952 4 Oct 1959 *The Mau Mau Uprising began (a fight for independence).
28 Walter Coutts 4 Oct 1959 23 Oct 1959 *Temporary Governor
29 Sir Patrick Muir Renison 23 Oct 1959 17 Nov 1962 *The Mau Mau Uprising ended.
  • The Kenya African National Union and Kenya African Democratic Union political parties were founded.
30 Sir Eric Griffith-Jones 17 Nov 1962 4 Jan 1963 *Temporary Governor
31 Malcolm MacDonald 4 Jan 1963 12 Dec 1964 *Kenya became an independent country within the Commonwealth.
  • MacDonald became the only Governor-General of Kenya.
  • Jomo Kenyatta became the first Prime Minister of Kenya.
  • The Sultan of Zanzibar gave the 10-mile coastal strip to Kenya.
  • Kenya became a republic, and Jomo Kenyatta became the first President of Kenya.

See also

kids search engine
All content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:
List of colonial governors and administrators of Kenya Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.