Britain invaded and captured Spanish Jamaica in 1655 and declaring it a crown colony in 1866. The official residents for local governors were in Port Royal and later in Spanish Town. In 1872 when Kingston became the capital, King’s House, the new official residence for governors was constructed. The building was destroyed by an earthquake in 1907 and was subsequently rebuild and restored.
Following Jamaica’s administrative independence from the British monarch, governors were disbanded and replaced by local representatives to the monarch called governor-generals. Sir. Kenneth William Blackburne was governor of Jamaica from 1957 until 1962 when the island gained independence. He subsequently served has governor-general for 3 months making him the first governor general of Jamaica. His 3 months stint ended with him being replaced by Jamaican Sir. Clifford Campbell. King’s house remained the official residence of Clifford Campbell and all his subsequent successors to the role of governor-general where they perform official state duties such as swearing-in of ministers and judges.
