List of colonial governors of Papua New Guinea
New Guinea
In 1945, the Territory of New Guinea was merged with the Territory of Papua to form the Territory of Papua and New Guinea.

List of colonial governors of Papua New Guinea

Section Title: New Guinea
Table Section Text: In 1945, the Territory of New Guinea was merged with the Territory of Papua to form the Territory of Papua and New Guinea.

Tenure	Portrait	Incumbent	Notes

Commissioner of German New Guinea (1885–1887)

1885 to January 1887	-	Gustav von Oertzen (governor) [de]

Landeshauptleute of the German New Guinea Company (1886–1889)

10 June 1886 to 1 March 1888	-	Georg Freiherr von Schleinitz

1 March 1888 to 31 October 1889	-	Reinhold Kraetke [de]

Commissioner of German New Guinea (1889–1892)

1 November 1889 to 31 August 1892	-	Fritz Rose (governor) [de]	Acting to 30 September 1890

Landeshauptleute of the German New Guinea Company (1892–1899)

1 September 1892 to 3 March 1895	-	Georg Schmiele [de]

3 March 1895 to 17 August 1896	-	Hugo Rüdiger

22 September 1896 to 13 August 1897	Curt von Hagen.JPG	Curt von Hagen [de]	Died in office

15 August 1897 to 11 September 1897	-	Albert Hahl	First time, acting

11 September 1897 to 31 March 1899	-	Hugo Skopnik

In 1899, following the German–Spanish Treaty, the German Empire assumed direct control of the colony from the German New Guinea Company, appointing a governor.

Governors of German New Guinea (1899–1914)

1 April 1899 to 10 July 1901	-	Rudolf von Bennigsen (governor) [de]

10 July 1901 to 13 April 1914	-	Albert Hahl	Second time, acting to 10 November 1902

13 April 1914 to 17 October 1914	-	Eduard Haber	Acting

In 1914, as part of the Asian and Pacific theatre of World War I, an expeditionary force from Australia called the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force (AN&MEF) captured and occupied the territory following the Battle of Bita Paka and the Siege of Toma.

Military Administrators of the Territory of New Guinea (1914–1921)

11 November 1914 to 8 January 1915	-	Colonel William Holmes	Killed in the Battle of Messines (1917)

8 January 1915 to 21 October 1917	-	Colonel Samuel Augustus Pethbridge

21 October 1917 to 21 April 1918	-	Seaforth Simpson Mackenzie	Acting

21 April 1918 to 1 May 1920	-	George Johnston

1 May 1920 to 21 March 1921	-	Thomas Griffiths	First time

Administrators of the Territory of New Guinea (1921–1942)

21 May 1921 to 13 June 1933	-	Evan Wisdom

13 June 1933 to 12 September 1934	-	Thomas Griffiths	Second time, acting

12 September 1934 to December 1942	-	Walter McNicoll	From 14 December 1937, Sir Walter Ramsay McNicoll; in Australia from 24 January 1942

24 January 1942 to 12 February 1942	-	Kenneth Carlyle McMullen	Acting for McNicoll

Japanese Commanders of occupied New Guinea (1942–1945)

21 January 1942 to 1942	-	Tomitarō Horii

9 November 1942 to 13 September 1945	-	Hatazō Adachi	Commander of the 18th Army

9 November 1942 to 6 September 1945	-	Hitoshi Imamura	Commander of the 8th Area Army, based at Rabaul, in charge of New Guinea islands

U.S. Military Commanders (1943–1944)

June 1943 to September 1944	-	Walter Krueger	Commander of the 6th Army

September 1944 to December 1944	-	Robert L. Eichelberger	Commander of the 8th Army

Heads of the New Guinea Administrative Unit (1942)

14 February 1942 to 15 February 1942	-	George Wilfred Lambert Townsend	Based in Port Moresby

15 February 1942 to 10 April 1942	-	Kenneth Carlyle McMullen	Based in Port Moresby

Sentence(s)

Haber became the last Governor of German New Guinea.

final_sentence: Haber became the last Governor of German New Guinea.