List of rulers of the Pitcairn Islands

Mayor of Pitcairn
Coat of arms of the Pitcairn Islands
Incumbent Simon Young since 1 January 2023
Style	Mayor (Domestically)
Member of	Island Council
Seat	Adamstown
Appointer	Governor of Pitcairn (de jure) Popular vote (de facto)
Term length	3 years; renewable
Formation	7 December 1999 (current office of the Mayor)
First holder	Fletcher Christian (as Leader) Steve Christian (as Mayor)
Deputy	Kevin Young

The Pitcairn Islands, a group of islands in the southern Pacific Ocean, are the last remaining British Overseas Territory in Oceania. Settled by mutineers from the Bounty in 1790, the island was effectively sovereign until 1898, when it was annexed by the United Kingdom and placed under the jurisdiction of the governor of Fiji. When Fiji became independent in 1970, Pitcairn Island was placed under the authority of the British high commissioner (ambassador) to New Zealand. In practice, partly due to its isolation, Pitcairn has effectively had internal self-government throughout this period. From 1790 to 1829, the local head of government was known simply as the leader. They had a president from 1832 to 1838, and a magistrate from that time until 1999, except for an eleven-year gap from 1893 to 1904, when the chief official was the president of the Council. In 1999, the magistrate's non-judicial functions were transferred to the new office of mayor.

Local heads of government (1790–present)

Pitcairn Islands
No.	Name (Birth–Death)	Title	Portrait	Tenure		Notes	Governor of Pitcairn	Monarch
				From	Until
1	Fletcher Christian (1764–1793)	Leader		23 January 1790	3 October 1793		—	—
2	Edward "Ned" Young (1762–1800)			3 October 1793	25 December 1800
3	John "Jack" Adams (1767–1829)			25 December 1800	5 March 1829
–	Vacant [a]			5 March 1829	October 1832
4	Joshua Hill (1773–1844?)	President		October 1832	1838
5	Edward Quintal (1800–1841)	Magistrate		1838	1839			Victoria
6	Arthur Quintal I (1795–1872)			1840	1841
7	Fletcher Christian II (1812–1852)			1842	1842
8	Matthew McCoy (1819–1853)			1843	1843	1st term
9	Thursday October Christian II (1820–1911)			1844	1844	1st term
10	Arthur Quintal II (1816–1902)			1845	1846	1st term
11	Charles Christian II (1818–1886)			1847	1847
12	George Adams (1804–1873)			1848	1848
13	Simon Young (1823–1893)			1849	1849
14	Arthur Quintal II (1816–1902)			1850	1850	2nd term
15	Thursday October Christian II (1820–1911)			1851	1851	2nd term
16	Abraham Blatchly Quintal (1827–1910)			1852	1852
17	Matthew McCoy (1819–1853)			1853	1853	2nd term
18	Arthur Quintal II (1816–1902)			1854	1854	3rd term
19	George Martin Frederick Young (1822–1909)			1855	3 May 1856
–	Vacant due to relocation to Norfolk Island			1856	1864
20	Thursday October Christian II (1820–1911)	Magistrate		1864	1864	3rd term
21	Moses Young (1829–1909)			1865	1866	1st term
22	Thursday October Christian II (1820–1911)			1867	1867	4th term
23	Robert Pitcairn Buffett (1830–1916)			1868	1868
24	Moses Young (1829–1909)			1869	1869	2nd term
25	James Russell McCoy (1845–1924)			1870	1872	1st term
26	Thursday October Christian II (1820–1911)			1873	1874	5th term
27	Moses Young (1829–1909)			1875	1875	3rd term
28	Thursday October Christian II (1820–1911)			1876	1877	6th term
29	James Russell McCoy (1845–1924)			1878	1879	2nd term
30	Thursday October Christian II (1820–1911)			1880	1880	7th term
31	Moses Young (1829–1909)			1881	1881	4th term
32	Thursday October Christian II (1820–1911)			1882	1882	8th term
33	James Russell McCoy (1845–1924)			1883	1883	3rd term
34	Benjamin Stanley Young (1851–1934)			1884	1885	1st term
35	James Russell McCoy (1845–1924)			1886	1889	4th term
36	Charles Carleton Vieder Young (1850–1941)			1890	1891
37	Benjamin Stanley Young (1851–1934)			1892	1892	2nd term
38	James Russell McCoy (1845–1924)	President of the Council		1893	1896	5th term
39	William Alfred Young (1863–1911)			1897	1897	1st term
40	James Russell McCoy (1845–1924)			1897	1903	6th term
								Edward VII
41	William Alfred Young (1863–1911)			1904	1904	2nd term
42	James Russell McCoy (1845–1924)	Magistrate		1905	1906	7th term
43	Arthur Herbert Young (1873–1943)			1907	1907	1st term
44	William Alfred Young (1863–1911)			1908	1908	3rd term
45	Matthew Edmond McCoy (1868–1929)			1909	1909
46	Gerard Bromley Robert Christian (1870–1919)			1910	1919
								George V
47	Charles Richard Parkin Christian (1883–1971)			1920	1920	1st term
48	Frederick Martin Christian (1883–1971)			1921	1921	1st term
49	Charles Richard Parkin Christian (1883–1971)			1922	1922	2nd term
50	Edgar Allen Christian (1879–1960)			1923	1924	1st term
51	Charles Richard Parkin Christian (1883–1971)			1925	1925	3rd term
52	Richard Edgar Christian (1882–1940)			1926	1929	1st term
53	Arthur Herbert Young (1873–1943)			1930	1931	2nd term
54	Edgar Allen Christian (1879–1960)			1932	1932	2nd term
55	Charles Richard Parkin Christian (1883–1971)			1933	1934	4th term
56	Richard Edgar Christian (1882–1940)			1935	1938	2nd term
								Edward VIII
								George VI
57	Arthur Herbert Young (1873–1943)			1939	1939	3rd term
58	Richard Edgar Christian (1882–1940)			1940	1940	3rd term
59	Andrew Clarence David Young (1899–1988)			1940	1940
60	Arthur Herbert Young (1873–1943)			1941	1941	4th term
61	Frederick Martin Christian (1883–1971)			1942	1943	2nd term
62	Charles Richard Parkin Christian (1883–1971)			1944	1945	5th term
63	Norris Henry Young (1887–1974)			1945	1948
64	Charles Richard Parkin Christian (1883–1971)			1949	1949	6th term
65	Warren Clive Christian (1914–2003)			1950	1951	1st term
66	John Lorenzo Christian (1895–1984)			1952	1954	1st term
							Elizabeth II
67	Charles Richard Parkin Christian (1883–1971)			1955	1957	7th term
68	Warren Clive Christian (1914–2003)			1958	1959	2nd term
69	John Lorenzo Christian (1895–1984)			1959	1966	2nd term
70	Pervis Ferris Young (1928–2003)			1967	December 1975
								Sir Arthur Norman Galsworthy
								Sir David Aubrey Scott
71	Ivan Christian (1919–1991)			December 1975	December 1984			Sir Harold Smedley
								Richard Stratton
72	Brian Young (born 1954)			December 1984	1 January 1991			Terence Daniel O'Leary
								Robin Byatt
								David Moss
73	Jay Warren (born 1956)			1 January 1991	7 December 1999	1st term
								Robert John Alston
								Martin Williams
74	Steve Christian (born 1951)	Mayor		7 December 1999	8 November 2004	[b]
								Richard Fell
75	Brenda Christian (born 1953)	Acting Mayor		8 November 2004	15 December 2004
76	Jay Warren (born 1956)	Mayor		1 January 2005	31 December 2007	2nd term
								George Fergusson
77	Mike Warren (born 1964)			1 January 2008	31 December 2013
								Mike Cherrett
								Victoria "Vicki" Treadell
78	Shawn Christian (born 1975)			1 January 2014	31 December 2019
								Jonathan Sinclair
								Robin Shackell
								Laura Clarke
79	Charlene Warren-Peu (born 1979)			1 January 2020	31 December 2022
								Iona Thomas
							Charles III
80	Simon Young			1 January 2023	Incumbent
Sources: Pitcairn Island Civil Recorder (1864–1964) [2]

1. The death of John Adams led to a constitutional crisis. An important leader was Thursday October Christian, the first son of Fletcher Christian and the first child born on the island. In the ensuing period, the islanders tried to relocate to Tahiti, until the arrival of Joshua Hill.
2. Dismissed from office by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office following his four rape convictions.

Colonial governors (1898–present)

See separate articles:

• Governors of Fiji (1898–1970)
• British High Commissioners to New Zealand (1970–present)

See also

• List of current heads of government in the United Kingdom and dependencies
• History of the Pitcairn Islands

References

1. "Minutes of the Regular council Meeting held at the Pulau school" (PDF). PITCAIRN ISLAND COUNCIL. 24 April 2024. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
2. Pitcairn Island Civil Recorder