Protectorate

Protectorate, (1) the period during which Oliver Cromwell ruled in this country under the title of the 'Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ireland and of the Dominions and Territories thereunto belonging'; (2) also the office of protector; (3) territories placed under the protection of the British sovereign generally by treaty with the native ruler or chiefs administered on the same lines as Crown Colonies (Hals. L.E., tit. 'Dependencies, Colonies and British Possessions).