  [Abridged] We present a first detailed analysis of resolved stellar
populations in the dwarf galaxies NGC 185 and NGC 205 based on archival V- and
I-band WFPC2 pointings. For NGC 185 we deduce that star formation was probably
still active about 4 x 10^8 yr ago. Key abundance-related results are: (1) We
identify ancient stars with [Fe/H] <~ -1.5 dex by a well-defined horizontal
branch (HB). (2) We find a prominent RGB/ faint-AGB clump/ bump- like feature
with the same mean V-band magnitude as the HB, within uncertainties; from a
comparison with theory, ancient stars have [Fe/H] ~ -1.5 dex, with a higher
abundance level for intermediate-age stars. (3) From colour information we
infer that the median [Fe/H] > -1.11 +/- 0.08 dex for ancient stars. For NGC
205, we record (m-M)o = 24.76 +/- 0.1 mag, based on the RGB I-band tip
magnitude method. We find that stars were probably still forming less than 3 x
10^8 yr ago, which is compatible with star formation triggered by an
interaction with M31. Key abundance-related results are: (1) The RGB/ faint-AGB
is significantly skewed to redder values than that of a control field in the
outskirts of M31; it probably results from a relatively narrow metallicity and
or age range for a significant fraction of the dwarf's stars. (2) For ancient
stars we infer from colour information that the median [Fe/H] > -1.06+/-0.04
dex. We briefly compare the stellar populations of NGC 205, NGC 185 and NGC
147.
  Finally, we find an apparent blue excess in the outer region of the nuclear
star cluster in NGC 205. It is as compact as a typical galactic globular
cluster, but is quite bright (10^6 L_solar,R); and by matching its blue colour
with models, its stellar population is young, up to a few times 10^8 yr old.
