protectorate · North America and Oceania

British Solomon Islands Protectorate

1893 CE – 1978 CE · capital Tulagi; later Honiara

A British protectorate in the Solomon Islands for 85 years, scene of the Guadalcanal campaign and of the Maasina Rule movement, now the Solomon Islands.

Origins

To control the labour recruitment trade to Queensland and Fiji, and in competition with German New Guinea, Britain declared a protectorate over the southern Solomons in 1893. It was extended in 1898 and 1899, and in 1900 Germany transferred Santa Isabel, Choiseul and other northern islands to Britain. Charles Woodford became the first Resident Commissioner at Tulagi in 1896.

Rule and society

The administration was tiny and relied on head taxes and on plantation companies such as Lever's Pacific Plantations to develop copra. Christian missions spread widely. Resistance continued, notably on Malaita, where Kwaio warriors killed the district officer William Bell in 1927. Japan invaded in 1942, and the Guadalcanal campaign of 1942 and 1943 turned the war in the Pacific. After the war the Maasina Rule movement on Malaita challenged British authority.

Decline and legacy

The capital moved to Honiara, built on the wartime American base. A legislative council and self-government followed, and the islands became independent as Solomon Islands on 7 July 1978, with Peter Kenilorea as prime minister.

Connections (3)

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). British Solomon Islands Protectorate. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/british-solomon-islands-protectorate
MLA
“British Solomon Islands Protectorate.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/british-solomon-islands-protectorate. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “British Solomon Islands Protectorate.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/british-solomon-islands-protectorate.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘British Solomon Islands Protectorate’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/british-solomon-islands-protectorate (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻