Administrator of Tristan da Cunha
Encyclopedia
Governor of Saint Helena
The Governor of Saint Helena is the representative of the British monarch in the United Kingdom's overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha...
in Tristan da Cunha
Tristan da Cunha
Tristan da Cunha is a remote volcanic group of islands in the south Atlantic Ocean and the main island of that group. It is the most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, lying from the nearest land, South Africa, and from South America...
. The role of the Administrator is to chair the territory's Island council which consists of 8 elected members and 3 appointed members. As a part of the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union consisting of the islands of Saint Helena, Ascension Island and the Tristan da Cunha group...
, the head of state is Elizabeth II, with the Governor of Saint Helena appointed by the British government to act as her local representative. However, as Tristan da Cunha is over 1,350 miles away from Saint Helena, an Administrator is appointed as the Governor's representative on the Island. Previously the Administrator also acted as the local Magistrate
Magistrate
A magistrate is an officer of the state; in modern usage the term usually refers to a judge or prosecutor. This was not always the case; in ancient Rome, a magistratus was one of the highest government officers and possessed both judicial and executive powers. Today, in common law systems, a...
, but the appointment is to be transferred to a non-member of the executive or legislative branches of government.
The current Administrator is Sean Burns, who took up the office in September 2010.
The first Administrator during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
was the head of the 16-man British naval garrison on the Island, watching for German submarines. The first Colonial Office appointee as Administrator was Hugh Elliott
Hugh Elliott
Sir Hugh Francis Ivo Elliott, 3rd Baronet was an eminent British ornithologist and administrator of Tristan da Cunha . He attended University College, Oxford, was editor of the Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club and was president of the British Ornithologists' Union from 1975 to 1979...
in about 1949 when commercial development began of the local crayfish catch, for export markets. There was then no currency on Tristan da Cunha: local trade was by barter. Mr. Elliott's activities included the island's first postal service and discovery of a new species of flea, which he named for his wife Elizabeth.
The Administrator has his own flag, a Union Jack with the addition of the territory's coat of arms in the centre of the flag.