Under certain historical circumstances, a major power's consular representation would take on various degrees of administrative roles, not unlike a colonial Resident Minister. This would often occur in territories without a formal state government or in relatively insignificant "backwaters."
Protectorates
When a state falls under the "amical" protection of a stronger power, the latter is usually represented by a high ranking diplomatic and/or gubernatorial officer, such as a Resident general, Resident Minister or High Commissioner. However, if there is no such representation, the task may fall to the only available "diplomatic" alternative: consular representation.
Africa
In German Kamerun, 6 July 1884 – 26 June 1885, provisional consul Heinrich Randad filled the void between the first Reichskommissar and the subsequent series of regular incumbents In parts of present Nigeria, British Consuls were in charge of the following West African protectorates:
the Bights of Biafra and Benin after the merger of the two above on 6 August 1861; the last incumbent was promoted on 5 June 1885 to stay on as first Consul general of the Bight.
From 7 November 1889, Samoa, previously a Polynesian kingdom, was governed by the joint German-British-U.S. Samoa Tripartite Convention, which made Samoa a protectorate of those three powers. On 10 June 1899, a provisional government sui generis was formed, consisting of the consuls of the three protecting powers:
This arrangement lasted until 1 March 1900, when most of the archipelago was annexed by Imperial Germany. The eastern islands remained under U.S. control and became the territory of American Samoa.
On Tonga, a British protectorate from 1900, the British Empire was only represented by its consuls from 1901 until Tongan independence in 1970. From 1901 until 1952, the protectorate was also under the administrative authority of the High Commissioner of the British Western Pacific Territories, who was always the British Governor of Fiji.
In the Suez Canal Zone, even before it was officially established under that name in 1936, the British were represented since 1922 by Vice Consuls in Port Suez, the last of which stayed on in 1941 as first of several Consuls till the 1956 Egyptian nationalisation.
From December 1941 to August 1945, Japanese troops invaded the Portuguese colony of Macau several times, giving the Japanese control over the access of people and goods. This made it by 1943 a virtual protectorate, with Japanese consul Fukui Yasumitsu controlling all contact until 1945 with the Portuguese governor, Gabriel Maurício Teixeira.
Similar functions have been performed elsewhere by consular officers of other ranks: Consular Agent, Honorary Consul and Consul general.
U.S. military personnel
Certain U.S. military personnel also have statutory authority to act as consuls for its military administration purposes, more broadly for its military personnel and dependents, and for its merchant seamen in a port lacking an accredited U.S. consul. The US assigns a military-equivalent rank to its Honorary Consuls. Its honorary consular Officers rank immediately after Naval Lieutenants, Captains, and Flight Lieutenants; Honorary Vice Consuls after Lieutenant Commanders, Majors, and Squadron Leaders; Honorary Consuls after Naval Captains, Colonels, and Group Captains; and Honorary Consuls General after Rear Admirals, Major Generals and Air Vice Marshals. This is done in order to "cut to the chase", i.e. in a sensitive situation to get the Consul to someone with whom he/she can negotiate with confidence.
