Editing Saint Helena (section)

===Crown colony (1834–1981)===
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Under the provisions of the 1833 India Act, control of Saint&nbsp;Helena passed from the EIC to the British Crown, and it became a [[crown colony]].<ref name="crown colony">[http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2009/1751/schedule/made The St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Constitution Order 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511202653/http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2009/1751/schedule/made |date=11 May 2011 }} "...the transfer of rule of the island to His Majesty's Government on 22 April 1834 under the Government of India Act 1833, now called the Saint Helena Act 1833" (Schedule Preamble)</ref> Subsequent administrative cost-cutting triggered a long-term population decline; those who could afford to do so tended to leave the island for better opportunities elsewhere. The latter half of the 19th century saw the advent of steamships not reliant on [[trade winds]], as well as the diversion of Far East trade away from the traditional [[South Atlantic]] shipping lanes to a route via the [[Red Sea]] (which, prior to the building of the [[Suez Canal]], involved a short overland section).<ref name="E. A. B. 494"/>

In 1840, a British naval station established to suppress the [[Atlantic slave trade]] was based on the island, and between 1840 and 1849, over 15,000 freed slaves, known as "Liberated Africans", were landed there.<ref name="E. A. B. 494"/>

In 1858, French emperor Napoleon III purchased, in the name of the French government, [[Longwood House]] and the lands around it, the last residence of Napoleon I (who died there in 1821; his remains had been returned to France in 1840.)<ref name="smithsonianmag.com" /> It is still French property, administered by a French representative and under the authority of the French [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (France)|Ministry of Foreign Affairs]].

A 2020 report states that the island's prosperity ended after 1869 when "the Suez Canal shifted trade routes north". A 2019 report explained that "ships no longer needed a stopping point on a longer journey to Europe".<ref name="theculturetrip.com"/><ref name="smithsonianmag.com"/> The number of ships calling at the island fell from 1,100 in 1855 to only 288 in 1889.<ref name="E. A. B. 494"/>

On 11 April 1898, American [[Joshua Slocum]], on his solo round-the-world voyage, arrived at Jamestown. He departed on 20 April 1898 for the final leg of his circumnavigation, having been extended hospitality by the governor, [[R. A. Sterndale]]. He presented two lectures on his voyage and was invited to Longwood by the French consular agent.<ref>Geoffrey Wolff, ''The Hard Way Around: The Passages of Joshua Slocum'', p 11</ref>
[[File:Review of reviews and world's work (1890) (14761208986).jpg|thumb|300px|Boer prisoners of war, 1900]]

By the end of 1899, St Helena was connected to London by undersea cable; this allowed for telegraph communication. In 1900 and 1901, over 6,000 [[Boer]] prisoners were held on the island, during the [[Second Anglo-Boer War]]. A 2019 report stated, "no traces remain of the two POW camps", but added, "the Boer Cemetery is a poignant spot".<ref name="theculturetrip.com"/> Among the notables were [[Piet Cronjé]] and his wife after their defeat at the [[Battle of Paardeberg]].<ref>Royle, Stephen A. 'Alexander The Rat – F. W. Alexander, Chief Censor, Deadwood Camp, St Helena'. Wirebird: The Journal of the Friends of St Helena 15 (Spring 1997): 17–21.[https://www.friendsofsthelena.com/upload/files/Alexander_the_Rat.pdf Full Paper]</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Knight|first=Ian|title=Boer Commando 1876–1902|year=2004|publisher=Osprey Publishing|page=56|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BgUqvgAACAAJ|isbn=978-1-84176-648-5}}</ref> The resulting population reached an all-time high of 9,850 in 1901. By 1911, however, that had declined to 3,520 people. In 1906, the British government withdrew the garrison; the island's economy suffered when spending by the soldiers stopped.<ref name="A BRIEF HISTORY"/>

A local industry manufacturing fibre from [[New Zealand flax]] was successfully re-established in 1907 and generated considerable income during the [[First World War]]. Ascension Island was made a dependency of Saint&nbsp;Helena in 1922, and Tristan da Cunha followed in 1938. During the [[Second World War]], the United States built [[RAF Ascension Island|Wideawake Airport]] on Ascension in 1942, but no military use was made of Saint&nbsp;Helena except maintenance of its defences.<ref>Clements, Bill. 'Second World War Defences on St Helena'. Wirebird: The Journal of the Friends of St Helena 33 (Autumn 2006): 11–15. [https://www.friendsofsthelena.com/upload/files/Second_World_War_Defences_on_St_Helena.pdf Full Paper]</ref>

Attendance at school became mandatory in 1942, for ages 5 to 15 in 1941, and the government took over control of the education system. The first secondary school opened in 1946. The American construction of Wideawake Airfield generated numerous jobs for St Helena; the sale of flax for rope also generated revenue for the island.<ref name="A BRIEF HISTORY"/> However, the industry declined after 1951 because of transport costs and competition from synthetic fibres. The decision in 1965 by the British [[General Post Office|Post Office]] to use synthetic fibres for its mailbags was a further blow, contributing to the closure of the island's flax mills in 1965.

From 1958, the [[Union-Castle Line|Union-Castle]] shipping line gradually reduced its service calls to the island. Curnow Shipping, based in [[Avonmouth]], replaced the Union-Castle Line mailship service in 1977, using the [[Royal Mail Ship|RMS]] ''St&nbsp;Helena'', which was introduced in 1989.