This is alist of governors ofThe Bahamas. The first English settlement in the Bahamas was onEleuthera. In 1670, the king granted the Bahamas to thelords proprietors of theProvince of Carolina, but the islands were left to themselves. The local pirates ruled ade facto 'Privateers' Republic' for several years; in 1717 the Bahamas became a British crown colony, and the pirates were driven out.
During theAmerican War of Independence, the Bahamas were briefly occupied by both American and Spanish forces. In 1964, the Bahamas achieved self-governance, and, in 1973, full independence.
Part ofa series on the |
|---|
| History ofthe Bahamas |
 |
| Pre-Columbian Bahamas |
| Lucayan people Columbus' voyage toGuanahani |
| Spanish Bahamas |
| Eleutheran Adventurers |
| British Bahamas |
| Raid on Charles Town Raid on Nassau Republic of Pirates Battle of Nassau Raid of Nassau 1782 Capture of the Bahamas |
| Spanish Bahamas |
| 1783 Capture of the Bahamas |
| British Bahamas |
| 1783 Peace of Paris Abaco Slave Revolt Slavery Abolition Act 1833 Creole case American Civil War |
| Independent Bahamas |
| Abaco Independence Movement Hurricane Dorian COVID-19 pandemic |
 Caribbean portal |
| Image | Governor | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| Governors of Eleuthera (1648–1657): | |||
| William Sayle | 1648 | 1657 | |
| Proprietary governors of the Bahama Islands (1670–1706): | |||
| Hugh Wentworth | 1671 | December 1671 | |
| John Wentworth | December 1671 | 1676 | |
| Charles Chillingworth | 1676 | 1677 | |
| Robert Clarke | 1677 | 1682 | |
| Richard Lilburne | 1682 | 1684 | |
| British rule temporarily disrupted due to joint Spanish and French raid on Charlestown | |||
| Thomas Bridges | 1686 | 1690 | |
| Cadwallader Jones | 1690 | 1694 | |
| Nicholas Trott | 1694 | 1697 | |
| Nicholas Webb | 1697 | 1699 | |
| Read Elding (acting) | 1699 | 1701 | |
| Elias Haskett | 1701 | 1701 | |
| Ellis Lightfoot | 1701 | 1703 | |
| Edward Birch | 1704 | 1704 | |
| Privateer's Republic (1706–1718) | |||
| Royal governors of the Bahama Islands (1718–1776) | |||
 | Woodes Rogers | 26 July 1718 | 1721 |
| George Phenney | 1721 | 1728 | |
| Woodes Rogers | August 1729 | 16 July 1732 |
| Richard Fitzwilliam (acting) | 1734 | 1738 | |
| John Tinker | 1741 | 1758[1] | |
| John Gambier (acting) | 1758 | 1760 | |
 | William Shirley | 1760[2] | 1775 |
| Montfort Browne | 1775 | 3 March 1776 | |
| Commandant of the Bahama Islands (during American occupation, 1776) | |||
 | Samuel Nicholas | 3 March 1776 | 17 March 1776 |
| Royal governors of the Bahama Islands (1776–1782) | |||
| John Gambier (acting) | 1776 | 1778 | |
| John Robert Maxwell | 1780 | 8 May 1782 | |
| Governors of Louisiana (during Spanish occupation) | |||
 | Bernardo de Gálvez y Madrid, Count of Gálvez | 8 May 1782 | 19 April 1783 |
| Royal governors of the Bahama Islands (1783–1969) | |||
| Andrew Deveaux(acting) | 19 April 1783 | 1783 | |
| John Robert Maxwell | 1783 | 1784 | |
| James Edward Powell (Lieutenant-governor) | 1784 | 1786 | |
| John Brown (acting) | 1786 | 1787 | |
 | John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore | 1787 | 1796 |
| Robert Hunt (acting) | 1796 | 14 February 1797 | |
| John Forbes (Lieutenant-governor) | 14 February 1797 | June 1797 | |
| Lieutenant-GeneralWilliam Dowdeswell | 20 November 1797 | 1801 | |
| John Halkett | 1801 | 1804 | |
| Charles Cameron | 8 May 1804 | 1820 | |
| Lewis Grant | 1821 | 1829 | |
 | Sir James Carmichael Smyth, 1st Baronet | 1829 | 1833 |
| Blayney Townley Balfour | 1833 | 1835 | |
| William MacBean George Colebrooke | 1835 | 1837 | |
| SirFrancis Cockburn | 1837 | 1844 | |
| George Benvenuto Mathew | 1844 | 1849 | |
| John Gregory | 1849 | 1854 | |
 | SirAlexander Bannerman | 1854 | 1857 |
| Charles John Bayley | 1857 | 1864 | |
| Rawson William Rawson | 1864 | 1869 | |
| Sir James Walker | 1869 | 1871 | |
 | SirGeorge Cumine Strahan | 1871 | 1873 |
 | SirJohn Pope Hennessy | 13 March 1873[3] | 1874 |
 | SirWilliam Robinson | 1874 | 1880 |
| Jeremiah Thomas Fitzgerald Callaghan | 1880 | 1881 | |
| SirCharles Cameron Lees | 1882[4] | January 1884 | |
 | SirHenry Arthur Blake | 4 January 1884 | 1887 |
 | SirAmbrose Shea | 1887[4] | 1895 |
| SirWilliam Frederick Haynes Smith | 1895[4] | 1898 | |
 | SirGilbert Thomas Carter | 1898[4] | 1904 |
| SirWilliam Grey-Wilson | 29 November 1904 | 1912 | |
| SirGeorge Basil Haddon-Smith | 29 October 1912 | 1914 | |
 | SirWilliam Allardyce | 15 June 1914 | 1920 |
| SirHarry Edward Spiller Cordeaux | 8 December 1920 | 1926 | |
| Major SirCharles Orr | December 1926 | January 1932 | |
 | 10 January 1932 | 23 July 1937 | |
| SirCharles Dundas | 27 November 1937[5] | 1940 | |
.jpg) | 18 August 1940 | 30 April 1945 | |
| SirWilliam Lindsay Murphy | 28 July 1945 | 21 July 1949[7] | |
| F. A. Evans (Acting Governor) | 22 July 1949[7] | 31 December 1949[7] | |
| SirGeorge Sandford | 17 February 1950[8] | 15 September 1950[8] | |
| Major General | 6 December 1950 | 1953 | |
| Daniel Knox, 6th Earl of Ranfurly | 21 December 1953 | 19 December 1956[9] | |
 | SirRaynor Arthur | 1 April 1957[9] | 14 June 1960[10] |
| SirRobert Stapledon | 18 July 1960[10] | April 1964[11] | |
| Ralph Grey, Baron Grey of Naunton | 3 June 1964 | 1 November 1968 | |
| SirFrancis Hovell-Thurlow-Cumming-Bruce | 1 November 1968 | 1969 | |
| Governors of the Commonwealth of the Bahama Islands (1969–1973) | |||
| Francis Hovell-Thurlow-Cumming-Bruce, 8th Baron Thurlow | 1969 | 1972 | |
| SirJohn Paul | 14 May 1972 | 10 July 1973 | |
| On 10 July 1973 the Bahamas gained full independence from theUnited Kingdom and theviceroy became theGovernor-General of theBahamian Monarch. | |||
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)Monday: Farewelling the people of the Bahamas in a three-minute broadcast, the Duke of Windsor assured them "you have not seen the last of us".
the Earl of Ranfurly, K. C. M. G., Governor of the Bahamas, left the colony on leave on the 19th December, 1956 on the completion of his tenure in office. He was succeeded on 1st April, 1957 by Sir Raynor Arthur, K. C. M. G., C. V. O.
.svg)
