author
Sir Henry Arthur Blake
1840–1918
An Irish-born colonial administrator, he governed a remarkable string of British territories across the Caribbean, Asia, and the Indian Ocean. His career stretched from policing in Ireland to senior imperial office in places including Hong Kong and Ceylon.
1 Audiobook
China
by Sir Henry Arthur Blake
About the author
Born in Limerick on January 8, 1840, he began working life in modest circumstances before joining the Irish constabulary and later serving as a resident magistrate. That early experience in law and administration helped launch a long career in imperial government.
Over the following decades, he held a series of governorships across the British Empire, including the Bahamas, Newfoundland, Jamaica, Hong Kong, and Ceylon. He is remembered as one of those globe-spanning officials whose work connected very different colonies during the high noon of the British Empire.
He died on February 23, 1918. Today, he is chiefly of historical interest for the breadth of his postings and for the role he played in colonial administration at a time when British rule shaped public life across several continents.