Saint Helena Colonial Records

British Colonization (1657-present)
Saint Helena is part of the British Overseas Territory, which includes Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. It is Britain's second-oldest overseas territory after Bermuda. A charter to govern Saint Helena was given to the British East India Company in 1657, and the island was colonized in 1659. The British Nationality Act 1981 reclassified Saint Helena and the other two Crown colonies as British Dependent Territories. The British Overseas Teritories Act of 2002 gave full British citizenship to Saint Helena islanders, and the three dependent territories were renamed the British Overseas Territories. In 2009, Saint Helena and its two territories received equal status under a new constitution, and the British Overseas Territory was renamed Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. However, Saint Helena remains a constitutional monarchy under Elizabeth II of Great Britain.