Constructing Ionian identities: the Ionian Islands in British official ...

To Kirkpatrick, a member of the Supreme Council of Justice, Nugent’s
governance undermined Maitland’s established order. 26 However, his successor, Sir
Howard Douglas, would restore autocracy.
Sir Howard Douglas: an autocrat.
On 29 April 1835 Sir Howard Douglas arrived in the Ionian Islands, a safe
option for the Colonial Office after Nugent’s impulsiveness. Douglas was born in
Gosport in 1776 and was raised by his aunt in Edinburgh before entering the Royal
Military Academy at Woolwich. He was a distinguished British soldier, a lieutenant
general of the British army, who served in the Canadian colonies of Nova Scotia,
Quebec and Kingston. In Kingston, Douglas lived among the Native Americans and
learned the art of observing and hunting. His experience helped him develop an
understanding of the parameters of colonial rule. From North America Douglas
moved to Europe. 27
In Britain he trained a new generation of officers at the Royal Military College
and other academies. He was interested in naval warfare, studying navigation and
developing various techniques for marine surveying. He participated in the Peninsula
campaigns and was sent on special missions during the Napoleonic wars. 28
Afterwards he published several military treatises: Essay on the Principles and
Construction of Military Bridges was first published in 1816 and Observations on
the Motives, Errors, and Tendency of M. Carnots System of Defense in 1819; his
26 Kirkpatrick to Hay, 10 September 1834, CO 136/323.
27 Fullom S. W., The life of General Sir Howard Douglas, (London, 1863), chapters 7-10.
28 Ibid., chapters 12, 13, 16-23
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