The Miskito General was one of the principal regional leaders within the political and administrative

hierarchy A hierarchy (from Ancient Greek, Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy ...

of the Kingdom of Mosquitia (also known as the Mosquito Kingdom), a hereditary monarchy that existed along the Caribbean coast of

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

from the early 17th century until its effective dissolution in the late 19th century. The office of General was typically associated with the north-western region of the kingdom between the Aguan River and the Wanks River, and played a significant role in the kingdom’s military, political, and diplomatic affairs.

Historical Context

The Kingdom of Mosquitia developed a

decentralized Decentralization or decentralisation is the process by which the activities of an organization, particularly those related to planning and decision-making, are distributed or delegated away from a central, authoritative location or group and gi ...

but

hierarchical A hierarchy (from Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy is an importan ...

political system In political science, a political system means the form of Political organisation, political organization that can be observed, recognised or otherwise declared by a society or state (polity), state. It defines the process for making official gov ...

under British influence during the 17th and 18th centuries. The

monarchy A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, reigns as head of state for the rest of their life, or until abdication. The extent of the authority of the monarch may vary from restricted and largely symbolic (constitutio ...

appointed several subordinate

officials An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of the ...

—often with European-style

titles A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify their generation, official position, military rank, professional or academic qualification, or nobility. In some languages, titles may be ins ...

—who exercised regional authority on behalf of the king. These included the General, the

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

, and the

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

, each assigned to a broad geographical section of the kingdom. The General was commonly in charge of the north-western between the Aguan River and Wanks River. This role emerged more clearly by the early 18th century, during a period of increased British influence and the formalization of Miskito political structures.

List of Generals

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

(1722–1729) * Charles Hobby (1729-c 1740) * Handyside (c 1740–1764) * Tempest (1764-c 1785) * Thomas Lee (1785–1790) * Perkin Tempest (1796–1797) * Edward Trelawney (1790-1790) * Jaspar Hall (1790–1797) * Lowry Robinson (1800-?) * Barras (1820) * Thomas Lowry Robinson (c 1830-c 1847) * Mettison (1847)Michael Olien, "General, Governor and Admiral: Three Miskito Lines of Succession," ''Ethnohistory'' 45/2 (1998): 286, figure 2.

References

{{authority control Miskito