GERMAN NEW GUINEA




PROTECTORATE OF GERMAN NEW GUINEA

The Protectorate of German New Guinea (Schutzgebiet Deutsch-Neuguinea) was founded
in 1884.
Originally it only included the northeastern part of the island of New Guinea and
the neighbouring Bismarck archipelago, but later it was extended to include a large
number of other archipelagos and islands in the Western Pacific. (1)
In 1885 the administration of the territory was entrusted to the German New Guinea
Company (Deutsche Neu-Guinea Compagnie). This situation lasted until 1899 when the
charter was abolished and the Protectorate was placed directly under the Imperial
Government (as it had already been from 1889 to 1892).

(1) Since 1899 the Protectorate was divided into two zones :

  - the so-called "Old Protectorate" (Alte Schutzgebiet) covering the German
    possessions on the island of New Guinea and its neighbouing islands.

  - the so-called "Island Protectorate" (Insel Schutzgebiet) encompassing the
    German possessions in Micronesia

    This area originally only included the Caroline Islands, the Mariana and
    the Palau, but in 1906 it was extended to include the Marshalls and Nauru,
    till then separate German possessions.
__________________________________________________________________________________ 
  

GERMAN CHIEF ADMINISTRATORS

Imperial Commissioner
Kaiserlicher Kommissar

1885 - 1887   Gustav von Oertzen

Landeshauptleute (for the Neu-Guinea Compagnie)

1886 - 1888   Adm. Georg Emil Gustav 
              Freiherr von Schleinitz                        1834 - 1910   
1888 - 1889   Reinhold Kraetke                               1845 - 1934

Imperial Commissioner
Kaiserlicher Kommissar

1889 - 1892   Fritz Rose                                     1858 -

Landeshauptleute (for the Neu-Guinea Compagnie)

1892 - 1895   Georg Schmiele                                 1855 - 1895
1895 - 1896   Hugo Rüdiger
1896 - 1897   Kurt von Hagen*                                1859 - 1897
1897          Albert Hahl*                                   1868 - 1945
1897 - 1899   Hugo Skopnik*

Governors
Gouverneure

1899 - 1901   Rudolf von Bennigsen                           1860 - 1912
1901 - 1914   Albert Hahl                                    s.a.
1914          Johann Karl Emil Eduard Haber*                 1866 -

In 1914 the protectorate was conquered by Australian and Japanese troops and de
facto divided into two military zones :

- an British (or rather Australian) zone covering :

  - the "Old Protectorate",
  - Nauru

- a Japanese zone covering all other territories.

By the Treaty of Versailles of 1919, Germany formally ceded the territories to the
Allies. 


HOME
INDEX

1