Territory of New Guinea

Territory of New Guinea[1]
1914–1975
Flag Badge
Status	Mandate of Australia (1920–1946) Trust Territory of Australia (1946–1975)
Capital	Rabaul (1914–1937) Lae (1937–1942) Wau (1942)
Capital-in-exile	Port Moresby
Common languages	English (official) Austronesian languages Papuan languages English creoles German creoles
Monarch
• 1914–1936	George V
• 1952–1975	Elizabeth II
Administrator
• 1914–1915	William Holmes (first)
• 1934–1942	Walter McNicoll (last)[2]
Legislature	Legislative council House of Assembly
Historical era	Interwar period
• Treaty of Versailles	28 June 1919
• Union with Papua	16 September 1975[3]
Currency	New Guinean pound (1914–1966) Australian dollar (1966–75) Oceanian pound (1942–45)
Preceded by Succeeded by 1919: German New Guinea 1945: Japanese occupation of New Guinea Japanese occupation of the Solomon Islands 1941: Japanese occupation of New Guinea Japanese occupation of the Solomon Islands 1949: Territory of Papua and New Guinea 1975: Papua New Guinea

The Territory of New Guinea was an Australian-administered League of Nations and then United Nations trust territory on the island of New Guinea from 1914 until 1975. In 1949, the Territory and the Territory of Papua were established in an administrative union by the name of the Territory of Papua and New Guinea. That administrative union was renamed as Papua New Guinea in 1971. Notwithstanding that it was part of an administrative union, the Territory of New Guinea at all times retained a distinct legal status and identity until the advent of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea.

The initial Australian mandate, entitled the Mandate for the German Possessions in the Pacific Ocean situated South of the Equator other than German Samoa and Nauru, was based on the previous German New Guinea, which had been captured and occupied by Australian forces during World War I.

Most of the Territory of New Guinea was occupied by Japan during World War II, between 1942 and 1945. During this time, Rabaul, on the island of New Britain, became a major Japanese base (see New Guinea campaign). After World War II, the territories of Papua and New Guinea were combined in an administrative union under the Papua New Guinea Provisional Administration Act (1945–46).