Edmund Fanning (colonial administrator)

Edmund Fanning
Drawing of Fanning, 1952, by Benson John Lossing
Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia
In office 1783–1786
Lieutenant-Governor of St. John's Island
In office 1786–1805
Personal details
Born	April 24, 1739
Died	28 February 1818(1818-02-28) (aged 78)
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	Great Britain
Rank	Full General
Commands	North Carolina militia King's American Regiment
Battles/wars	War of the Regulation Battle of Alamance American Revolutionary War Battle of Forts Clinton and Montgomery Battle of Rhode Island Tryon's raid Siege of Charleston Battle of Hobkirk's Hill Battle of Eutaw Springs

Edmund Fanning (April 24, 1739 – February 28, 1818) was an American-born colonial administrator and military officer. Born in New York, he became a lawyer and politician in North Carolina in the 1760s. He first came to fame as the focus of hatred of the Regulators, and led anti-Regulator militia in the War of the Regulation. When the American Revolutionary War broke out, he was driven from his home in New York, and joined the British Army, recruiting other Loyalists. He served during campaigns in New England and the South. At the end of the war in 1783 he became a United Empire Loyalist, settling in Nova Scotia.

Fanning was appointed lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia not long after his arrival, and helped oversee the resettlement of other Loyalist refugees in the province. In 1786 he was appointed lieutenant governor of Saint John's Island, which was renamed Prince Edward Island during his tenure. He served in that post until 1813. He retired to London, where he died in 1818.