Last modified: 2022-02-05 by rob raeside
Keywords: anguilla | st kitts nevis and anguilla | associate state |
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Nozomi Kariyasu and Jaume Ollé, 10 July 1999, and Christopher Southworth, 16 July 2005
There were English settlers in Anguilla in 1650, but it was not recognised as
a British possession until the Treaty of Utrech in 1713. It was relatively
remote from any of the other British West Indian islands and received little
formal administration until 1825 when it was linked with the two islands of St
Christopher (St Kitts) and Nevis. Nevis and St Kitts are only three miles apart
but Anguilla is sixty miles north of them. St Kitts-Nevis, which included
Anguilla, was made a presidency within the federal colony of the Leeward Islands
in 1882.
In 1956 the Leeward Island federation was dissolved and St Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla
became a separate colony with the capital in St Kitts. The colony became an
Associated State of the United Kingdom on 27 February 1967, but within three
months, Anguilla had repudiated government from St Kitts, and effectively became
a British Overseas Dependency when a Commissioner was appointed in 1969, with
Britain becoming directly responsible for administration in 1971. A separate
constitution was instituted in 1976, but formal separation from St Kitts-Nevis
did not take place until 19 December 1980.
A revised constitution, which included provision for a Governor, was introduced
in 1982.
It is probably reasonable to say that the Union Jack was the official flag "on
the island", but perhaps not "of the island", from 1969 until 1990 ? It is
rather obscure, which was why I quoted his exact words, but I am sure that it
means that the design on the shield was enlarged to fill the whole of the
circular space within the garland, as in the Governor's Flag on the Anguilla web
page.
Incidentally Admiralty and Colonial Office papers of the late 19th century
sometimes refer to the circular space within the garland on a governor's flag as
"a shield".
David Prothero, 20 July 2005