A proconsul (‘’pro console’’ in Latin) was a Roman consul whose imperium (the power to command an army) was extended, or a former consul who was given consular imperium. The original purpose of this was to create extra military commanders to support or conduct military operations. With the acquisition of territories beyond Italy which were annexed as Roman provinces, the proconsuls became one of two types of provincial governors. The other was the propraetor. The proconsuls were one of three types of promagistrates, the other being the propraetor and the proquaestor. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries proconsuls were military men who were appointed one of the types of colonial governors in the British Empire with administrative-military roles. Today the Pro Consul is an official in the consular section of a British embassy. His role is to provide consular assistance to British nationals in cases of hospitalisations, mental health, deaths, victims of crime, financial assistance, welfare, and manage detainee and prisoner casework. They also build and maintain relationships at appropriate levels with local authorities, such as police, prison, court, social services and hospitals, as well as help prepare for crisis handling and implement the embassies crisis management plan. In modern usage, the title has been used (sometimes disparagingly) for a person from one country ruling another country or bluntly interfering in another country's internal affairs.

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