New Hebrides

New Hebrides Condominium

Condominium des Nouvelles-Hébrides

1906–1980

Flag

New Hebrides

Capital

Port Vila

Languages

English, French, Bislama

Political structure

Special territory

History

•

Established

1906

•

Independence

30 July 1980

Area

•

1976

12,189 km² (4,706 sq mi)

Population

•

1976 est.

100,000

Density

8/km² (21/sq mi)

Currency

New Hebrides franc

Preceded by

Succeeded by

Anglo-French Joint Naval Commission

Vanuatu

Map of the New Hebrides, 1905

New Hebrides, officially the New Hebrides Condominium (French: Condominium des Nouvelles-Hébrides lit. "Condominium of the New Hebrides") and named for the Hebrides Scottish archipelago, was the colonial name for the island group in the South Pacific Ocean that now is the nation of Vanuatu. Native people had inhabited the islands for three thousand years before the first Europeans arrived in 1606 from a Spanish expedition led by Pedro Fernandes de Queirós. The islands were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century, shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands.

The two countries eventually signed an agreement making the islands an Anglo-French condominium, which divided the New Hebrides into two separate communities: one Anglophone and one Francophone. This divide continues even after independence, with schools teaching in either one language or the other, and with different political parties. The condominium lasted from 1906 until 1980, when the New Hebrides gained their independence as Vanuatu.

Politics and economy

The New Hebrides was a rare form of colonial territory in which sovereignty was shared by two powers, Britain and France, instead of just one. Under the Condominium there were three separate governments – one French, one British, and one joint administration that was partially elected after 1975.

The French and British governments were called residencies, each headed by a resident appointed by the metropolitan government. The residency structure greatly emphasized dualism, with both consisting of an equal number of French and British representatives, bureaucrats and administrators. Every member of one residency always had an exact mirror opposite number on the other side who they could consult. The symmetry between the two residencies was almost exact.

The joint government consisted of both local and European officials. It had jurisdiction over the postal service, public radio station, public works, infrastructure, and censuses, among other things. The two main cities of Luganville and Port Vila also had city councils, but these did not have a great deal of authority.

While initial settlers were predominantly British living in Australia, the late 19th century saw an influx of French. Within a few decades, there were twice as many French on the islands as there were British, prompting a multitude of petitions to cede power to either the French or the British. Despite this, the two nations came together to form a condominium, a specialized form government where both nations would have all of their own administrations and jointly rule the islands. The only place they came together was in the Joint Court. As Mander describes, “The Joint Court was the key to the situation and much was to depend upon it….Three judges–one British, one French, and the third nominated by the King of Spain–were to comprise the court.”^[1] This meant convictions in court were chosen based on either British or French law, depending on the circumstances.

Other than the Joint Court, everything existed in pairs. “Cynics called the Condominium ‘the Pandemonium', as the dual administration produced amazing duplication. There were two police forces with their own laws, including road laws, two health services, two education systems, two currencies, and two prison systems.”^[2] Additionally, there were separate British and French governments, which meant two immigration policies, two courts (outside of the Joint Court), two corporation laws, and inhabitants of the islands were given the choice as to which government they wanted to go under. For instance, if you were convicted, you could choose whether to be convicted under British or French law. As Miles put it, “The result was an inevitable clash of foreign policy and colonial mentality.”^[3]

The Condominium was not beneficial for Ni-Vanuatuans, as they were “...officially stateless. [For instance,] To travel abroad, they needed an identifying document signed by both the British and the French resident commissioners.”^[2] Inevitably, this led to revolt across the islands, with a multitude of revolutionary groups forming to attempt to create agency and self-government for themselves. It wasn’t until 1980 that Vanuatu gained independence and dropped the nomenclature of the New Hebrides.

Local people could choose whether to be tried under the British common law or the French civil law. Visitors could choose which immigration rules to enter under. Nationals of one country could set up corporations under the laws of the other. In addition to these two legal systems, a third Native Court existed to handle cases involving Melanesian customary law. There was also a Joint Court, composed of British and French judges. The President of the Joint Court was appointed by the King of Spain until 1939 when the post was abolished after the retirement of the last President, partly due to the abolition of the Spanish monarchy in 1931.^[4]

There were two prison systems to complement the two court systems. The police force was technically unified but consisted of two chiefs and two equal groups of officers wearing two different uniforms. Each group alternated duties and assignments.

Language was a serious barrier to the operation of this naturally inefficient system, as all documents had to be translated once to be understood by one side, then the response translated again to be understood by the other, though Bislama creole represented an informal bridge between the British and the French camps.

References

Notes

↑ Mander 1944, p. 152
1 2 Harewood et al. 2006
↑ Miles 1994, p. 201
↑ Woodward, Keith. "A Political Memoir of the Anglo-French Condominium of the New Hebrides". Australian National University. Retrieved 15 March 2015.

Sources

Harewood, J.; Chinula, T.; Talbot, V.; Carillet, J.-B.; Sorokin, M. (2006). Vanuatu and New Caledonia (1st ed.). Singapore: Lonely Planet.
Mander, L. A. (1944). "The New Hebrides Condominium". Pacific Historical Review. 13 (2): 151–167. JSTOR 3634610. doi:10.2307/3634610.
Miles, W. F. (1994). "Anachronistic Antagonisms: France Versus Britain in the New Hebrides, 1966-1977". Proceedings of the Meeting of the French Colonial Historical Society. Michigan State University Press. 19: 200–215. JSTOR 43007776.
Peck, John G.; Gregory, Robert J. (2005). "A Brief Overview of the Old New Hebrides" (PDF). Palmerston North, New Zealand: School of Psychology, Massey University. Retrieved 2008-02-05.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to History of Vanuatu.

Wikisource has the text of The New Student's Reference Work article New Hebrides.

Pandemonium Reigns in New Hebrides, The Times-News - May 10, 1973
A Political Memoir of the Anglo-French Condominium of the New Hebrides

Society

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Book
Category
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British Empire

Legend: Current territory; Former territory; * Now a Commonwealth realm; Now a member of the Commonwealth of Nations; Historical flags of the British Empire

Europe
1542–1800 Ireland (integrated into UK) 1708–1757, 1763–1782 and 1798–1802 Minorca Since 1713 Gibraltar 1800–1813 Malta (Protectorate) 1813–1964 Malta (Colony) 1807–1890 Heligoland 1809–1864 Ionian Islands 1878–1960 Cyprus 1921–1937 Irish Free State

North America

17th century and before		18th century	19th and 20th century
1579 New Albion 1583–1907 Newfoundland 1605–1979 *Saint Lucia 1607–1776 Virginia Since 1619 Bermuda 1620–1691 Plymouth 1623–1883 Saint Kitts 1624–1966 *Barbados 1625–1650 Saint Croix 1627–1979 *Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1628–1883 Nevis 1629–1691 Massachusetts Bay 1632–1776 Maryland since 1632 Montserrat 1632–1860 Antigua 1636–1776 Connecticut 1636–1776 Rhode Island 1637–1662 New Haven	1643–1860 Bay Islands Since 1650 Anguilla 1655–1850 Mosquito Coast 1655–1962 *Jamaica 1663–1712 Carolina 1664–1776 New York 1665–1674 and 1702–1776 New Jersey Since 1666 Virgin Islands Since 1670 Cayman Islands 1670–1973 *Bahamas 1670–1870 Rupert's Land 1671–1816 Leeward Islands 1674–1702 East Jersey 1674–1702 West Jersey 1680–1776 New Hampshire 1681–1776 Pennsylvania 1686–1689 New England 1691–1776 Massachusetts Bay	1701–1776 Delaware 1712–1776 North Carolina 1712–1776 South Carolina 1713–1867 Nova Scotia 1733–1776 Georgia 1754–1820 Cape Breton Island 1762–1974 *Grenada 1763–1978 Dominica 1763–1873 Prince Edward Island 1763–1791 Quebec 1763–1783 East Florida 1763–1783 West Florida 1784–1867 New Brunswick 1791–1841 Lower Canada 1791–1841 Upper Canada Since 1799 Turks and Caicos Islands	1818–1846 Columbia District/Oregon Country¹ 1833–1960 Windward Islands 1833–1960 Leeward Islands 1841–1867 Canada 1849–1866 Vancouver Island 1853–1863 Queen Charlotte Islands 1858–1866 British Columbia 1859–1870 North-Western Territory 1860–1981 *British Antigua and Barbuda 1862–1863 Stickeen 1866–1871 British Columbia 1867–1931 *Dominion of Canada² 1871–1964 Honduras 1882–1983 *Saint Kitts and Nevis 1889–1962 Trinidad and Tobago 1907–1949 Newfoundland³ 1958–1962 West Indies Federation

1. Occupied jointly with the United States.
2. In 1931, Canada and other British dominions obtained self-government through the Statute of Westminster. See Name of Canada.
3. Gave up self-rule in 1934, but remained a de jure Dominion until it joined Canada in 1949.

South America
1631–1641 Providence Island 1651–1667 Willoughbyland 1670–1688 Saint Andrew and Providence Islands⁴ 1831–1966 Guiana Since 1833 Falkland Islands⁵ Since 1908 South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands⁵
4. Now a department of Colombia. 5. Occupied by Argentina during the Falklands War of April–June 1982.

Africa

17th and 18th centuries	19th century		20th century
Since 1658 Saint Helena¹⁴ 1792–1961 Sierra Leone 1795–1803 Cape Colony	Since 1815 Ascension Island¹⁴ Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha¹⁴ 1806–1910 Cape of Good Hope 1807–1808 Madeira 1810–1968 Mauritius 1816–1965 The Gambia 1856–1910 Natal 1862–1906 Lagos 1868–1966 Basutoland 1874–1957 Gold Coast 1882–1922 Egypt	1884–1900 Niger Coast 1884–1966 Bechuanaland 1884–1960 Somaliland 1887–1897 Zululand 1890–1962 Uganda 1890–1963 Zanzibar 1891–1964 Nyasaland 1891–1907 Central Africa 1893–1968 Swaziland 1895–1920 East Africa 1899–1956 Sudan	1900–1914 Northern Nigeria 1900–1914 Southern Nigeria 1900–1910 Orange River 1900–1910 Transvaal 1903–1976 Seychelles 1910–1931 South Africa 1914–1960 Nigeria 1915–1931 South-West Africa 1919–1961 Cameroons⁶ 1920–1963 Kenya 1922–1961 Tanganyika⁶ 1923–1965 and 1979–1980 Southern Rhodesia⁷ 1924–1964 Northern Rhodesia

6. League of Nations mandate.
7. Self-governing Southern Rhodesia unilaterally declared independence in 1965 (as Rhodesia) and continued as an unrecognised state until the 1979 Lancaster House Agreement. After recognised independence in 1980, Zimbabwe was a member of the Commonwealth until it withdrew in 2003.

Asia

17th and 18th century	19th century		20th century
1685–1824 Bencoolen 1702–1705 Pulo Condore 1757–1947 Bengal 1762–1764 Manila and Cavite 1781–1784 and 1795–1819 Padang 1786–1946 Penang 1795–1948 Ceylon 1796–1965 Maldives	1812–1824 Banka and Billiton 1819–1826 Malaya 1826–1946 Straits Settlements 1839–1967 Aden 1839–1842 Afghanistan 1841–1997 Hong Kong 1841–1946 Sarawak 1848–1946 Labuan 1858–1947 India 1874–1963 Borneo	1879–1919 Afghanistan (protectorate) 1882–1963 North Borneo 1885–1946 Unfederated Malay States 1888–1984 Brunei 1891–1971 Muscat and Oman 1892–1971 Trucial States 1895–1946 Federated Malay States 1898–1930 Weihai 1878–1960 Cyprus	1907–1949 Bhutan (protectorate) 1918–1961 Kuwait 1920–1932 Mesopotamia⁸ 1921–1946 Transjordan⁸ 1923–1948 Palestine⁸ 1945–1946 South Vietnam 1946–1963 North Borneo 1946–1963 Sarawak 1946–1963 Singapore 1946–1948 Malayan Union 1948–1957 Federation of Malaya Since 1960 Akrotiri and Dhekelia (before as part of Cyprus) Since 1965 British Indian Ocean Territory (before as part of Mauritius and the Seychelles)

⁸ League of Nations mandate. Iraq's mandate was not enacted and replaced by the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty

Oceania

18th and 19th centuries		20th century
1788–1901 New South Wales 1803–1901 Van Diemen's Land/Tasmania 1807–1863 Auckland Islands⁹ 1824–1980 New Hebrides 1824–1901 Queensland 1829–1901 Swan River/Western Australia 1836–1901 South Australia since 1838 Pitcairn Islands	1841–1907 New Zealand 1851–1901 Victoria 1874–1970 Fiji¹⁰ 1877–1976 Western Pacific Territories 1884–1949 Papua 1888–1901 Rarotonga/Cook Islands⁹ 1889–1948 Union Islands⁹ 1892–1979 Gilbert and Ellice Islands¹¹ 1893–1978 Solomon Islands¹²	1900–1970 Tonga 1900–1974 Niue⁹ 1901–1942 *Australia 1907–1953 *New Zealand 1919–1942 and 1945–1968 Nauru 1919–1949 New Guinea 1949–1975 Papua and New Guinea¹³

9. Now part of the *Realm of New Zealand.
10. Suspended member.
11. Now Kiribati and *Tuvalu.
12. Now the *Solomon Islands.
13. Now *Papua New Guinea.

Antarctica and South Atlantic
Since 1658 Saint Helena¹⁴ Since 1815 Ascension Island¹⁴ Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha¹⁴ Since 1908 British Antarctic Territory¹⁵ 1841–1933 Australian Antarctic Territory (transferred to the Commonwealth of Australia) 1841–1947 Ross Dependency (transferred to the Realm of New Zealand)
14. Since 2009 part of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha; Ascension Island (1922–) and Tristan da Cunha (1938–) were previously dependencies of Saint Helena. 15. Both claimed in 1908; territories formed in 1962 (British Antarctic Territory) and 1985 (South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands).

French overseas empire

Former

Former French colonies in Africa and the Indian Ocean
French North Africa	Algeria Morocco Tunisia
French West Africa	Côte d'Ivoire Dahomey French Sudan Guinea Mauritania Arguin Island Niger Senegal Upper Volta
	French Togoland James Island Albreda
French Equatorial Africa	Chad Gabon Middle Congo Ubangi-Shari French Cameroons
French Comoros	Anjouan Grande Comore Mohéli
	French Somaliland (Djibouti) Madagascar Isle de France

Former French colonies in the Americas
New France	Acadia Louisiana Canada Terre Neuve
French Caribbean	Dominica Grenada The Grenadines Saint-Domingue Haïti, Dominican Republic Saint Kitts & Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent Tobago Virgin Islands
Equinoctial France	Berbice France Antarctique Inini
French colonization of the Americas French West India Company

Former French colonies in Asia and Oceania
French India	Chandernagor Coromandel Coast Madras Mahé Pondichéry Karaikal Yanaon
Indochinese Union	Cambodia Laos Vietnam Cochinchina Annam Tonkin Kouang-Tchéou-Wan, China
French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon	State of Syria Aleppo Damascus Alawite State Greater Lebanon Jabal al-Druze Sanjak of Alexandretta
Oceania	New Hebrides Vanuatu Port Louis-Philippe (Akaroa)
France–Asia relations French East India Company

Present

Overseas France

Inhabited areas

Overseas departments¹	French Guiana Guadeloupe Martinique Mayotte² Réunion
Overseas collectivities	French Polynesia St. Barthélemy St. Martin St. Pierre and Miquelon Wallis and Futuna
Sui generis collectivity	New Caledonia

Uninhabited areas

Pacific Ocean

Clipperton Island

Overseas territory (French
Southern and Antarctic Lands)

Île Amsterdam Île Saint-Paul Crozet Islands Kerguelen Islands Adélie Land
Scattered islands in the Indian Ocean	Bassas da India³ Europa Island³ Glorioso Islands^2, 3 Juan de Nova Island³ Tromelin Island⁴

¹ Also known as overseas regions
² Claimed by Comoros
³ Claimed by Madagascar
⁴ Claimed by Mauritius

Coordinates: 16°38′S 168°01′E / 16.633°S 168.017°E / -16.633; 168.017

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New Hebrides

Politics and economy

See also

References

External links