Formation 13 August 1877 | ||
Style His Excellency The Right Honourable Residence Suva, Fiji (1877-1952)
Honiara, British Solomon Islands (1953-1976) Appointer King/Queen of the United Kingdom First holder The Rt Hon. Sir Arthur Hamilton-Gordon Final holder The Rt Hon. Sir Donald Luddington | ||
The High Commissioner for the Western Pacific was the chief executive officer of the British Western Pacific Territories, a British colonial entity, which existed from 1877 through 1976. Numerous colonial possessions were attached to the Territories at different times, the most durable constituent colonies being Fiji (1877 — 1952) and the Solomon Islands (1893 — 1976).
The office of High Commissioner never existed independently, but was always filled ex officio by the Governor of one of the constitutive British islands colonies. The High Commissioners were concurrently Governor of Fiji from 1877 to the end of 1952, although the office was suspended from 1942 through 1945, with most of the islands under British military rule and others, namely the Solomon Islands, Gilbert Islands and Phoenix Islands, under Japanese occupation. From 1 January 1953 to 1976, when the office was abolished, the Governor of the Solomon Islands doubled as High Commissioner. They administered from Suva and Honiara, respectively.