Perim Island

ASSISTANT RESIDENTS 1919-1929

 

The post-war years saw a return to a stint on Perim being something presumably to be looked forward to; 1925 is a good example. All the British officers of the 5th/12th Frontier Force Regiment had a few weeks there and as one would expect the more senior officers escaping from the hottest months in Aden and the two subalterns being left with the cool season! 

In the previous year Lieut Lawrence had been murdered by members of his Regiment, the recently raised 1st Yemen Infantry (see Murder of Lawrence).

The withdrawal of the Indian infantry battalion in 1928 and the handing over of the defence of Aden to the RAF was to lead to the abolition of the post of Assistant Resident in April 1929. The last Assistant was an RAF officer, presumably from the Armoured Car Squadron that was part of the Aden Protectorate Levies. With no infantry detachment available for Perim its defence passed to being a police responsibility. 

The administration of the island was put in the hands of the manager of the Perim Coal Company, who was given the title of Government Agent Perim. When the Coal Company went bankrupt in 1936 responsibility for Perim passed to the Aden police. From then to 1959 the commissioner or his deputy was Administrator Perim.