Sir Alfred Claud Hollis (12 May 1874 – 22 November 1961) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

colonial administrator who served as British

Resident Resident may refer to: People and functions * Resident minister, a representative of a government in a foreign country * Resident (medicine), a stage of postgraduate medical training * Resident (pharmacy), a stage of postgraduate pharmaceut ...

to the Sultan of

Zanzibar Zanzibar is a Tanzanian archipelago off the coast of East Africa. It is located in the Indian Ocean, and consists of many small Island, islands and two large ones: Unguja (the main island, referred to informally as Zanzibar) and Pemba Island. ...

between 1923 and 1929 and Governor of

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

between 1930 and 1936 and author of a historical account of Spanish Trinidad.

Education and career

Hollis was born in

Highgate Highgate is a suburban area of N postcode area, north London in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden, London Borough of Islington, Islington and London Borough of Haringey, Haringey. The area is at the north-eastern corner ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, and was privately educated in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. He worked for a commercial company in

German East Africa German East Africa (GEA; ) was a German colonial empire, German colony in the African Great Lakes region, which included present-day Burundi, Rwanda, the Tanzania mainland, and the Kionga Triangle, a small region later incorporated into Portugu ...

(1893–1996) and in 1897 was appointed assistant collector in the

British East Africa Protectorate East Africa Protectorate (also known as British East Africa) was a British protectorate in the African Great Lakes, occupying roughly the same area as present-day Kenya, from the Indian Ocean inland to the border with Uganda in the west. Contr ...

.G. H. Mungeam
"Hollis, Sir (Alfred) Claud (1874–1961)"
''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...

'',

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, 2004, accessed 22 February 2015. He wrote pioneering works on the

Maasai Maasai may refer to: *Maasai people *Maasai language *Maasai mythology * MAASAI (band) See also * Masai (disambiguation) Masai may refer to: *Masai, Johor, a town in Malaysia * Masai Plateau, a plateau in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India *Maasai peopl ...

(1905) and the

Nandi people The Nandi are part of the Kalenjin, an ethnic community living in East Africa. The Nandi ethnic group live in close association and relation with the Kipsigis tribe. They traditionally have lived and still form the majority in the highland are ...

(1908). During his time in East Africa, he took part in numerous expeditions including the Uganda Mutiny (1897–98) and the Jubaland Expedition (1900–01).Robert M. Maxon, Thomas P. Ofcansky, Historical Dictionary of Kenya, Rowman & Littlefield, 9 Sep 2014, p.75 Between 1901 and 1907, he worked as Secretary to the East Africa Protectorate administration, and he was Secretary for Native Affairs between 1907 and 1913. In 1913, Hollis took up the post of colonial secretary in

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

and in 1920, he was appointed chief secretary in Tanganyika. In 1924 he became British

Resident Minister A resident minister, or resident for short, is a government official required to take up permanent residence in another country. A representative of his government, he officially has diplomatic functions which are often seen as a form of ind ...

. In 1930 Hollis was made governor of Trinidad qand held that post until his retirement in 1936. He came into conflict with

Arthur Andrew Cipriani Captain Arthur Andrew Cipriani (31 January 1875 – 18 April 1945) was a Trinidad and Tobago labour leader and politician. He served as mayor of Port of Spain, elected member of the Legislative Council, leader of the Trinidad Workingmen's Associa ...

over the transfer of the electric works to the authority of the

Port of Spain Port of Spain ( ; Trinidadian and Tobagonian English, Trinidadian English: ''Port ah Spain'' ) is the capital and chief port of Trinidad and Tobago. With a municipal population of 49,867 (2017), an urban population of 81,142 and a transient dail ...

City Corporation. Hollis died at the age of 87 in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

Pitt Rivers Museum controversy

In 2017, the

activist Samwel Nangiria discovered that many Maasai objects donated by Hollis to the

Pitt Rivers Museum Pitt Rivers Museum is a museum displaying the archaeological and anthropological collections of the University of Oxford in England. The museum is located to the east of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, and can only be accessed ...

had been mislabelled and likely either stolen and taken by the Maasai under coercion. After the discovery, the museum's director Laura Van Broekhoven worked in collaboration with Maasai activists and academics to relabel and recontextualise the Pitt River's Maasai collections. He also stole the Ngaji sacred drum of the Pokomo tribe and donated it to the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hollis, Alfred Claud Governors of Trinidad and Tobago Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Ambassadors to Zanzibar 1874 births 1961 deaths Resident ministers of the Sultanate of Zanzibar British Kenya people