<th width="25%" align=left>Term
<th width="30%" align=left>Incumbent
<th width="30%" align=left>Notes
| 1843 | Foundation of the Sanusiya Order
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| Awlad Sayyidi ‘Abd Allah Dynasty, (al-Khattabi al-Mujahiri al-Hasani al-Idrisi lineage)
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| 1843 to 7 September 1859 | Sheikh Sayyid Muhammad ibn ‘Ali as-Sanusi
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| 7 September 1859 to 2 June 1902 | Sheikh Sayyid Muhammad ibn Sayyid Muhammad al-Mahdi as-Sanusi
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| 2 June 1902 to 21 August 1918 | Sheikh Sayyid Ahmad ibn Sayyid Muhammad ash-Sharif as-Sanusi
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| 21 August 1918 to 25 October 1920 | Sheikh Sayyid Muhammad Idris as-Sanusi
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| 25 October 1920 to 1929 | Emir Sayyid Muhammad Idris as-Sanusi 1st Term
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| 1911 to 1913 | Ottavio Briccola, Governor
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| October 1913 to 1918 | Giovanni Battista Ameglio, Governor
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| 5 August 1918 to 1919 | Vincenzo Garioni, Governor
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| 1920 | Italy claims sovereignty
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| 5 August 1919 to 23 November 1921 | Giacomo De Martino, Governor
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| 23 November 1921 to October 1922 | Luigi Pintor, Governor
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| October 1922 to December 1922 | Eduardo Baccardi, Governor
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| 7 January 1923 to 1924 | Luigi Bongiovanni, Governor
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| 1924 to 2 December 1926 | Ernesto Mombelli, Governor
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| 2 December 1926 to 1928 | Attilio Teruzzi, Governor
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| January 1929 to March 1930 | Domenico Siciliani, Governor
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| March 1930 to May 1934 | Rodolfo Graziani, marchese di Neghelli, Governor
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| 1 January 1934 | Incorporated into Libya
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| June 1934 to April 1935 | Guglielmo Nasi, Governor
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| 1941 | British Administration
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| February 1941 to 1942 | Stephen Hemsley Longrigg, Governor
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| 1943 to 1945 | Duncan Cameron Cumming, Administrator
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| 30 October 1945 to 1946 | Peter Bevil Edward Acland, Administrator
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| October 1946 | Sanusi emir recognized by U.K. administering the territory for the UN
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| 1946 to 1948 | James William Norris Haugh, Administrator
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| 1948 to 1 June 1949 | Eric Armar Vully de Candole, Administrator
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| 1 June 1949 | Emirate of Cyrenaica recognized
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| 1 June 1949 to 17 September 1949 | Eric Armar Vully de Candole, Administrator
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| 17 September 1949 to 1951 | Eric Armar Vully de Candole, Resident
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| October 1946 to 24 December 1951 | Emir Sayyid Muhammad Idris as-Sanusi | 2nd Term
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| 24 December 1951 | Incorporated into Libya
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