Edward H.M. Davis
Admiral Edward Henry Meggs Davis CMG OBE JP (18 August 1846, in Galway – 6 October 1929) was a Royal Navy captain, then admiral, who served in the Pacific Islands.[1]
Edward H.M. Davis CMG OBE JP | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 18, 1846 Galway |
| Died | October 6, 1929 (aged 83) |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Royal Navy | |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands held | HMS Daring HMS Medusa HMS Colossus HMS Royalist HMS Royal Sovereign HMS Trafalgar HMS Howe Commodore-in-Charge, Jamaica Division |
He established the British protectorate on the Gilbert Islands while commanding HMS Royalist.
Under the command of Captain Edward H.M. Davis, Royalist conducted a survey in 1891–92, visiting: New Hebrides and New Caledonia (10 December 1889 to 18 June 1891); Territory of Papua and British Solomon Islands (18 June 1891 to 9 April 1892); and Gilbert Islands, Marshall Islands and Ellice Islands[2] (14 April 1892 to 30 August 1892).[3]
In September 1891, the Royalist punished a village of the Kalikoqu tribe of in the Roviana Lagoon, southern side of New Georgia in the Solomon Islands, following a murder of a trader; the sailors shot some of the men who were believed to be the leaders, set fire to the village and destroyed canoes.[4] On 27 May 1892, Captain Davis proclaimed the Gilbert Islands to be a British Protectorate,[2] and in 1894, he received the C.M.G. "for services connected with certain islands in the Western Pacific."
References
- Resture, Jane. "TUVALU HISTORY – 'The Davis Diaries' (HMS Royalist, 1892 visit to Ellice Islands under Captain Davis)". Retrieved 20 September 2011.
- "Admiral Edward H M Davis (Biographical details)". The British Museum. 2019.
- Nolden, Sascha (29 March 2016). "Surveying in the South Pacific". National Library of New Zealand.
- "Admiral E. H. M. Davis" (Obituaries). The Times. Monday, 7 October 1929. Issue 45327, col B, p. 16.