Colonial heads (Governors, Governors‑General, and Administrators – 1650 to 1946)
| Period | Title | Name | Term of Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1643 – 1652 | Governor of Cayenne (first French settlement) | Charles Poncet de Brétigny | 1643 – 1652 |
| 1654 – 1655 | Governor | Jean‑Baptiste de Saint‑Anne | 1654 – 1655 |
| 1664 – 1666 | Governor | Jean Baudin | 1664 – 1666 |
| 1670 – 1671 | Governor | Antoine Lefèbvre de La Barre (later Governor‑General of the Antilles) | 1670 – 1671 |
| 1684 – 1687 | Governor | Antoine Le Blanc de Lacet | 1684 – 1687 |
| 1699 – 1704 | Governor | Pierre Nicolas de Briquet | 1699 – 1704 |
| 1713 – 1715 | Governor | Louis de Vaudreuil | 1713 – 1715 |
| 1763 – 1765 | Governor | Édouard Mansault | 1763 – 1765 |
| 1778 – 1785 | Governor | Jean François Guyot | 1778 – 1785 |
| 1785 – 1793 | Governor | Jacques‑Philippe de Guignard, comte de Beauce | 1785 – 1793 |
| 1793 – 1797 | Governor | Louis‑François Antoine Armand | 1793 – 1797 |
| 1801 – 1802 | Governor | Pierre‑Clément de Laussat (re‑established French authority after the Treaty of Amiens) | 1801 – 1802 |
| 1802 – 1809 | Governor | Jean‑André Bouche‑Jervois | 1802 – 1809 |
| 1814 – 1816 | Governor | Julien Klein (restored French control after the Napoleonic Wars) | 1814 – 1816 |
| 1822 – 1827 | Governor | Pierre Laporte | 1822 – 1827 |
| 1828 – 1834 | Governor | Claude‑François de Moulin | 1828 – 1834 |
| 1838 – 1843 | Governor | Jean‑Baptiste Labarrère | 1838 – 1843 |
| 1848 – 1850 | Governor | Henri Père | 1848 – 1850 |
| 1855 – 1860 | Governor | Édouard‑Henri Mabille | 1855 – 1860 |
| 1862 – 1864 | Governor | Charles Benners | 1862 – 1864 |
| 1864 – 1865 | Governor | Auguste Mendoza | 1864 – 1865 |
| 1868 – 1870 | Governor | Léon Médéric | 1868 – 1870 |
| 1870 – 1871 | Governor | Alphonse Cazeneuve | 1870 – 1871 |
| 1875 – 1885 | Governor | Jean‑Pierre Nicaud | 1875 – 1885 |
| 1886 – 1889 | Governor | Émile Margueritte | 1886 – 1889 |
| 1895 – 1901 | Governor | Victor‑Alexandre Travaux | 1895 – 1901 |
| 1901 – 1919 | Governor | Alfred Bourrou | 1901 – 1919 |
| 1923 – 1925 | Governor | Louis Boudy | 1923 – 1925 |
| 1933 – 1936 | Governor | Pierre Constance | 1933 – 1936 |
| 1936 – 1940 | Governor | Édouard Hills | 1936 – 1940 |
| 1940 – 1944 | Administrator (Vichy regime) | Gilbert Migeon | 1940 – 1944 |
| 1944 – 1946 | Governor (Free French) | Jules‑René Tronchet | 1944 – 1946 |
The colonial administration of French Guiana was dissolved when the territory became an overseas department on 19 March 1946.
Departmental heads (Prefects – 1946 to present)
| Period | Title | Name | Term of Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 – 1947 | Prefect | Pierre Mansuy | 1946 – 1947 |
| 1947 – 1949 | Prefect | Robert Samson | 1947 – 1949 |
| 1950 – 1951 | Prefect | Joseph Bourdon | 1950 – 1951 |
| 1952 – 1955 | Prefect | Marcel Fresson | 1952 – 1955 |
| 1955 – 1958 | Prefect | René Maleron | 1955 – 1958 |
| 1958 – 1960 | Prefect | André Séranne | 1958 – 1960 |
| 1960 – 1962 | Prefect | Jean‑Luc Milleron | 1960 – 1962 |
| 1962 – 1965 | Prefect | Maurice Mallet | 1962 – 1965 |
| 1965 – 1967 | Prefect | Henri Dunand | 1965 – 1967 |
| 1967 – 1971 | Prefect | Albert Mougel | 1967 – 1971 |
| 1971 – 1974 | Prefect | Louis Boulanger | 1971 – 1974 |
| 1974 – 1979 | Prefect | Pierre Verla | 1974 – 1979 |
| 1979 – 1982 | Prefect | Jacques Mouli | 1979 – 1982 |
| 1982 – 1985 | Prefect | André Launay | 1982 – 1985 |
| 1985 – 1987 | Prefect | Philippe Tadayon | 1985 – 1987 |
| 1987 – 1990 | Prefect | Michel Barbot | 1987 – 1990 |
| 1990 – 1993 | Prefect | Claude Bellan | 1990 – 1993 |
| 1993 – 1995 | Prefect | Jean‑Paul Soubie | 1993 – 1995 |
| 1995 – 1997 | Prefect | Alain Lafuente | 1995 – 1997 |
| 1997 – 2000 | Prefect | Régis Malaise | 1997 – 2000 |
| 2000 – 2003 | Prefect | Jean‑Claude Roussel | 2000 – 2003 |
| 2003 – 2006 | Prefect | Patrick Boulanger | 2003 – 2006 |
| 2006 – 2009 | Prefect | Bernard Paquet | 2006 – 2009 |
| 2009 – 2011 | Prefect | Philippe Merry | 2009 – 2011 |
| 2011 – 2013 | Prefect | Thierry Béohan | 2011 – 2013 |
| 2013 – 2015 | Prefect | Dominique Boudet | 2013 – 2015 |
| 2015 – 2017 | Prefect | Pascal Pauquet | 2015 – 2017 |
| 2017 – 2020 | Prefect | Patrick Boutelis | 2017 – 2020 |
| 2020 – 2022 | Prefect | Christophe Hillis | 2020 – 2022 |
| 2022 – present | Prefect | Thierry Queffelec | 2022 – present (as of 2024) |
Prefects are appointed by the President of the French Republic on the recommendation of the Minister of the Interior and act as the State’s representative in the overseas department.
Notes
- The colonial period saw a mixture of military governors, civilian administrators, and occasionally “governors‑general” who simultaneously oversaw several French Caribbean territories.
- The transition to departmental status in 1946 replaced the governor’s office with that of the prefect, aligning French Guiana’s administrative structure with that of metropolitan French departments.
- The list above includes the most widely documented office‑holders; for a complete chronological register, consult the official archives of the French Ministry of the Interior or the French National Archives.
