Geoffrey Francis Archer
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Sir Geoffrey Francis Archer (4 July 1882 – 1 May 1964) was an English ornithologist, big game hunter and colonial official. He was Commissioner and then Governor of
British Somaliland British Somaliland, officially the Somaliland Protectorate (), was a protectorate of the United Kingdom in modern Somaliland. It was bordered by Italian Somalia, French Somali Coast and Ethiopian Empire, Abyssinia (Italian Ethiopia from 1936 ...
between 1913 and 1922, and was responsible for finally quelling the twenty-year-long
Dervish Dervish, Darvesh, or Darwīsh (from ) in Islam can refer broadly to members of a Sufi fraternity (''tariqah''), or more narrowly to a religious mendicant, who chose or accepted material poverty. The latter usage is found particularly in Persi ...
resistance. From 1922 to 1925, Archer was appointed Governor of
Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...
. He later served as Governor-General of the
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan Anglo-Egyptian Sudan ( ') was a condominium (international law), condominium of the United Kingdom and Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt between 1899 and 1956, corresponding mostly to the territory of present-day South Sudan and Sudan. Legally, sovereig ...
between 1925 and 1926. In the
Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
, Archer paid a formal but friendly visit to
Abd al-Rahman al-Mahdi Sir Sayyid Abdul Rahman al-Mahdi, Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire, KBE (; June 1885 – 24 March 1959) was a Sudanese politician and prominent religious leader. He was one of the leading religious and political figures duri ...
, son of the self-proclaimed Mahdi
Muhammad Ahmad Muhammad Ahmad bin Abdullah bin Fahal (; 12 August 1843 – 21 June 1885) was a Sudanese religious and political leader. In 1881, he claimed to be the Mahdi and led a war against Egyptian rule in Sudan, which culminated in a remarkable vi ...
, whose forces had killed General Gordon in 1885. Abd al-Rahman was leader of the neo-Mahdists in Sudan. Archer was eventually forced to resign due to the resultant flap, and spent the remainder of his career organising salt works in
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
.


Early career

In 1901, the nineteen-year-old Archer joined his uncle
Frederick John Jackson Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Given name Nobility = Anhalt-Harzgerode = *Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) = Austria = * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from ...
, the acting high commissioner in Uganda. His uncle sent him on an ornithological collecting trip the next year. He visited Lake Albert, the Semliki valley and the
Rwenzori Mountains The Rwenzori (also known as the Ruwenzori, Rwenzururu or Rwenjura) are a range of mountains in eastern equatorial Africa, located on the border between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The highest peak of the Ruwenzori reaches ...
, discovering over twenty species and subspecies that had been previously unknown to science. He went to Baringo in 1904 where he conducted extensive surveys. Archer was almost tempted to become a professional
big game hunter Big-game hunting is the hunting of large game animals for Trophy hunting, trophies, taxidermy, meat, and commercially valuable animal product, animal by-products (such as horn (anatomy), horns, antlers, tusks, bones, fur, body fat, or special o ...
. On the basis of his survey work, Archer was appointed District Commissioner of the Northern Frontier district in Kenya. The district was treated as a closed zone with little contact with the rest of Kenya. It was basically a buffer against the Ethiopians, and was not considered to have any other value. In 1920, Archer said of northern Kenya: "There is only one way to treat the northern territories and that was to give them whatever protection one can under the British flag and otherwise leave them to their own customs. Anything else is certainly uneconomic". Archer was able to supplement his District Commissioner salary by money earned from an annual elephant hunt. An official in his position was allowed to take two elephants per year, and the sale of their tusks could be worth several hundred pounds. Much later, when he introduced hunting stories into an address to the
Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...
, Archer was informed by the President that "gentlemen hunt only with the camera".


British Somaliland


Background

In 1913, Archer was appointed Acting Commissioner in
British Somaliland British Somaliland, officially the Somaliland Protectorate (), was a protectorate of the United Kingdom in modern Somaliland. It was bordered by Italian Somalia, French Somali Coast and Ethiopian Empire, Abyssinia (Italian Ethiopia from 1936 ...
, later becoming Governor from 1919 to 1922. He was also Commander in Chief of the forces in British Somaliland. The Darawiish proclamation of independence letter posits a
triumvirate A triumvirate () or a triarchy is a political institution ruled or dominated by three individuals, known as triumvirs (). The arrangement can be formal or informal. Though the three leaders in a triumvirate are notionally equal, the actual distr ...
with an emir, a Dhulbahante sultan and government. The emir was Muhammad Abdullah Hassan whilst Dhulbahante head was Diiriye Guure, and the government was called haroun.Official History of the Operations in Somaliland, 1901-04, page 319, year 1907 "The instructions to Kenna were "to endeavour by every means to locate the position of the Haroun, and having done so, to try and surprise it by long-distance marching with his mounted troops"" This triumvirate and their Darawiish forces had managed to successfully resist British troops in four consecutive expeditions sent out against them over a period of two decades. In 1919, the British government decided on a final push to quell the insurgency. However, the army was reluctant to undertake yet another drawn-out campaign. Archer proposed using air power as a way to reduce the cost of ground troops, a suggestion that was greeted with scorn by the military. However, in January 1920, a flight of RAF bombers attacked the Haroun's headquarters and nearby
Dhulbahante garesa Taleh (, ) is a historical town in Sool region of Somalia. The town served as the capital of the pre-independence Dervish movement.Laurence, p.47. The Dalyare fort and the Taleh complex built between 1909 and 1910 are among the least disfigure ...
s in
Taleh Taleh (, ) is a historical town in Sool region of Somalia. The town served as the capital of the pre-independence Dervish movement.Laurence, p.47. The Dalyare fort and the Taleh complex built between 1909 and 1910 are among the least disfigur ...
. By mid-February,
Somaliland Camel Corps The Somaliland Camel Corps (SCC) was a British Colonial Auxiliary Forces unit which was raised in British Somaliland. It existed from 1914 until 1944. Beginnings and the Dervish rebellion In 1888, after signing successive treaties with the the ...
troops, assisted by the
King's African Rifles The King's African Rifles (KAR) was a British Colonial Auxiliary Forces regiment raised from Britain's East African colonies in 1902. It primarily carried out internal security duties within these colonies along with military service elsewher ...
, rounded up the remaining Dervish forces. Abdullah Hassan retreated to the
Ogaden Ogaden (pronounced and often spelled ''Ogadēn''; , ) is one of the historical names used for the modern Somali Region. It is also natively referred to as Soomaali Galbeed (). The region forms the eastern portion of Ethiopia and borders Somalia ...
region where he attempted to regroup for yet another counter-expedition. However, he died of
influenza Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These sympto ...
a few months later, effectively ending the insurgency. On 5 June 1920, Archer was appointed
Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...
. While in British Somaliland, Archer collected 3,000 skins and 1,000 clutches of eggs. He discovered three new bird species and several new races. His collection and observations were basis for a later book on the birds of the region co-authored with Miss Eva Godman. In 1921, the Colonial Secretary Sir
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...
called a conference in
Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...
attended by experts on the Middle East. Sir Geoffrey Archer brought along two young lions who were being sent to the London Zoo. They broke loose at a reception held at the British residency and almost caught the pet stork that belonged to General
Edmund Allenby Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Edmund Henry Hynman Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby, (23 April 1861 – 14 May 1936) was a senior British Army Officer (armed forces), officer and imperial governor. He fought in the Second Boer ...
, the high commissioner.


Taxation disconcertment

In early 1922 the
Protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a State (polity), state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over ...
authorities announced that they would impose a heavy tax on the people of Burao and initiate a programme of disarmament. This policy was proposed to raise much needed revenues to run the Somaliland Protectorate which was a net drain on
Colonial Office The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created in 1768 from the Southern Department to deal with colonial affairs in North America (particularly the Thirteen Colo ...
coffers. As well to enhance British control in the interior of
Somaliland Somaliland, officially the Republic of Somaliland, is an List of states with limited recognition, unrecognised country in the Horn of Africa. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden and bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, E ...
after the Dervish War. As a result the people of Burao revolted and clashed with the British in opposition to the tax and this led to targeting of British government officials. In the ensuing disturbances a shootout between the British and Burao residents broke out, Captain Allan Gibb, a
Somaliland Campaign The Somaliland campaign, also called the Anglo-Somali War or the Dervish rebellion, was a series of military expeditions that took place between 1900 and 1920 in modern-day Somaliland. The British were assisted in their offensives by the Ethiop ...
veteran and district commissioner, was shot and killed after the Camel Corps refused to fire on the rioters. After the incendiary bombardment and destruction of Burao, the leaders of the rebellion acquiesced, agreeing to pay a fine in livestock for Gibbs death but refused to identify and apprehend the individuals guilty. Most of the men responsible for Gibb's murder would evade capture. In light of the failure to peacefully implement taxation Governor Archer abandoned the policy altogether being a victory for the Somalis in the Protectorate.Correspondence between Governor of British Somaliland and Secretary of State for the Colonies. Colonial Office, 26 March 1922. Governor Archer would soon be replaced after this blunder and policy in British Somaliland would be revised in light of this resistance.


1916 important members of haroun list

The 1916 British Intelligence Report diary from the Berbera colonial office of Geoffrey Archer, published a list of the most notable members of the Dervish haroun (government), the list being revised in 1917 and 1918. The list details two scores of names, including their position, their tribe, as well as a short annotation with miscellaneous information. Geoffrey Archer subdivides the majority of these Dervish leaders into advisors, natively called ''khusuusi'', and commanders, natively called ''amaanduule''. A small minority have other positions including governors, a logistics coordinator, and arbitrators natively called ''muqaddim''. The two score of Dervish personalities listed by Archer rejects the notion that these Dervish leaders have a rank over one another, but rather that the position of one ''khusuusi'' was egalitarian to another ''khusuusi'', and that of a ''muqaddim'' egalitarian to another Dervish ''muqaddim''.


Generals


Statesmen


Miscellaneous


Uganda

Archer was appointed Governor of Uganda in 1923, and made his first priority the control of 19,000 highly destructive elephants in the colony. He took an interest in education of the native people, asking for advice on the curriculum, buildings, organization and so on, although he was limited in what he could achieve by shortage of funds. Where he was deemed successful was in training Africans to replace European bureaucrats in several parts of the protectorate. Large portions of the governors staff were switched from British bureaucrats imported to do tasks to mission-educated Africans trained to do the same tasks. These became some of the most sought-after jobs in the Protectorate. Archer founded a department of education in Uganda and appointed a director. However, due to doubts that the local Ugandans could handle higher education the establishment at Makerere Hill in
Kampala Kampala (, ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,875,834 (2024) and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kampala, Kawempe Division, Kawempe, Makindy ...
only gave training for low-level clerical work. Archer himself wanted the locals to gain the higher education needed for senior positions so the administration would have to depend less on Indians. Archer's theories of education were typical of the British colonial administration. He wrote: "For Native Administration the qualities of scholarship and academic attainment are not to be prized so highly as the leadership of men. Brilliance in debate can hardly equal the initial advantage gained in youth by having led in the field a body of well trained and disciplined young men of similar age". Archer disagreed with the idea that Africans were incapable of learning or doing certain jobs, he believed such views were "naive and bigoted." However, he also believed what the immediate economic concerns were could only be addressed with more specified job training to fill certain placements in the economy.Cotton-growing in Sudan and Uganda: Sir Geoffrey Archer's Important Review of Developments by Sir Geoffrey F. Archer


Governor-General of Sudan

Aged 42, Archer was selected for the post of Governor-General of Sudan in December 1924, the first time a civilian had held this office. He replaced Sir Lee Stack, who had been murdered. Archer travelled overland from Uganda to Sudan to take up his new appointment, walking from
Nimule Nimule is a city in the southern part of South Sudan in Magwi County, Eastern Equatoria. It lies approximately , by road, southeast of Juba, the capital of South Sudan and largest city in the country. The town also lies approximately , by road, n ...
to Rejaf and then travelling by steamer down the Bahr al Jabal to
Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum is the capital city of Sudan as well as Khartoum State. With an estimated population of 7.1 million people, Greater Khartoum is the largest urban area in Sudan. Khartoum is located at the confluence of the White Nile – flo ...
. Ceremonial etiquette was in flux. In Uganda Archer had travelled up-country by car informally dressed. In one district that he had not visited before the locals saluted his chauffeur, the only person in uniform. When Archer reached Khartoum in January 1925 he landed in frogged uniform, with sword and plumes, to be greeted on the quay by the members of his council in business suits. In 1924, there had been a crisis in Egypt when a government hostile to the British was elected. Egyptian army units in Sudan, bound by their oath to the Egyptian king, refused to obey British orders and mutinied. The British violently suppressed the mutiny, removed the Egyptian army from the Sudan and purged the administration of Egyptian officials. One of Archer's early decisions was to initiate the formation of the Sudan Defence Force, with a command completely separate from the Egyptian army. He dropped the Egyptian title "Sirdar" for the supreme commander, and did not wear the Egyptian tarboush. He made it very clear that he was commander in chief of a purely Sudanese army, while reassuring Sudanese officers who had served in the Egyptian army that they would be retained if they had not taken part in the mutiny. In the aftermath of the upheaval the British saw educated Sudanese as potential propagators of "dangerous" nationalist ideas imported from Egypt. During Archer's tenure the main concern of the government was to reduce the power of the local intelligentsia and to transfer greater authority to traditional rulers. Archer did little about the issue of whether southern administration should be "Arabicized" or given a more English and Christian flavour. However, he deferred to Lord Lloyd, the British High Commissioner for Egypt and the Sudan, who stated in a memo to the Foreign Office that "on political, educational, religious, and administrative grounds it is desirable that Arabic ''as a general language'' should disappear from the Southern provinces". Archer was enthusiastic about the massive scheme to dam the
Blue Nile The Blue Nile is a river originating at Lake Tana in Ethiopia. It travels for approximately through Ethiopia and Sudan. Along with the White Nile, it is one of the two major Tributary, tributaries of the Nile and supplies about 85.6% of the wa ...
at
Sennar Sennar ( ') is a city on the Blue Nile in Sudan and possibly the capital of the state of Sennar. For several centuries it was the capital of the Funj Kingdom of Sennar and until at least 2011, Sennar was the capital of Sennar State. Histo ...
so as to irrigate the Gezira plain for cotton cultivation. He described the plan as the application of "western science to native economic conditions". In March 1926, Archer ignored the advice of the Sudan Political Service and made an official visit to the Sayyid
Abd al-Rahman al-Mahdi Sir Sayyid Abdul Rahman al-Mahdi, Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire, KBE (; June 1885 – 24 March 1959) was a Sudanese politician and prominent religious leader. He was one of the leading religious and political figures duri ...
on
Aba Island Aba Island is an island on the White Nile to the south of Khartoum, Sudan. It is the original home of the Mahdi in Sudan and the spiritual base of the Umma Party. History Aba Island was the birthplace of the Mahdiyya, first declared on Ju ...
accompanied by a full escort of troops and officials. Abd al-Rahman was the son of the self-proclaimed Mahdi
Muhammad Ahmad Muhammad Ahmad bin Abdullah bin Fahal (; 12 August 1843 – 21 June 1885) was a Sudanese religious and political leader. In 1881, he claimed to be the Mahdi and led a war against Egyptian rule in Sudan, which culminated in a remarkable vi ...
(1844–1885) and was leader of the Ansar movement. When Archer arrived on 14 February he was formally welcomed by Sayyid 'Abd al-Rahman with 1,500 Ansar supporters. Escorted by horsemen, the dignitaries went on by car to a reception at the Sayyid's house. Replying to a speech by the Sayyid, Archer said his visit marked "an important stage forward in the relations" between the Sayyid and his followers and the government. Archer said he had come to cement the ties of friendship and understanding. Archer's visit precipitated a crisis in the colonial administration. Archer was forced to resign, replaced by Sir John Maffey.


Later life and legacy

After leaving the Sudan, Archer spent most of the next fifteen years organizing the salt industry in Kutch,
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. Archer settled in the south of France when he retired, dying at
Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...
on 1 May 1964. Archer made significant contributions to the study of birds and their breeding and migration habits in
British East Africa 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. Cont ...
, while considering a professional career as a big-game hunter. In Uganda, Archer sought to employ indigenous residents for higher level clerical work so as to lessen the British administration's dependence on Indians for such activity. This represented something of a break from traditional protocol, as locals had hitherto mainly been recruited for low grade clerical work. He was willing to work with the Mahdists, Britain's former enemies, and this open-minded attitude put an end to his career. Archer was a tall and imposing man, and had a forceful personality. A young man who met Archer in 1939 said of him: "When I talk to him I experience the feeling one gets when one walks out of a very stuffy room full of tobacco smoke into the open air and is greeted by a heavy buffeting wind, which pushes one back a step but which exhilarates and invigorates."
Archer's buzzard Archer's buzzard (''Buteo augur archeri'') is a subspecies of the augur buzzard that is endemic to Somalia. The bird's common name and Latin binomial commemorate the British explorer and colonial official Sir Geoffrey Francis Archer. Taxono ...
, Archer's lark (endemic to Somalia) and Archer's ground robin, a species in the
Old World flycatcher The Old World flycatchers are a large family, the Muscicapidae, of small passerine birds restricted to the Old World (Europe, Africa and Asia), with the exception of several vagrants and two species, bluethroat (''Luscinia svecica'') and north ...
family, carry Archer's name.


Books

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References


Footnotes


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Archer, Geoffrey Francis 1882 births 1964 deaths Governors-general of Anglo-Egyptian Sudan English ornithologists Governors of British Somaliland Governors of Uganda Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George 20th-century British zoologists People from Kensington