Sir Barrow Helbert Ellis, KCSI (24 January 1823 – 20 June 1887) was an

Anglo-Indian Anglo-Indian people fall into two different groups: those with mixed Indian and British ancestry, and people of British descent born or residing in India. The latter sense is now mainly historical, but confusions can arise. The ''Oxford English ...

civil servant who held several prominent posts in India during the time of British colonial rule.

Education

Ellis, born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on 24 January 1823, was the son of S. Helbert Ellis – a prominent member of the Jewish community in London – and Fanny Ellis, daughter of Samuel Lyons de Symons. Educated at

University College School ("Slowly but surely") , established = , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent day school , religion = , president = , head_label = Headmaster , head = Mark Beard , r_head_label = , r_hea ...

, he matriculated at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

in 1839 and went to Haileybury. There he distinguished himself in all branches of study, and left in 1843 as senior student to enter the civil service of

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

Career

His first appointment in India was as third assistant-collector and magistrate of

Ratnagiri district Ratnagiri District (Marathi pronunciation: �ət̪n̪aːɡiɾiː is a district in the state of Maharashtra, India. The administrative headquarter of the district is located in the town of Ratnagiri. The district is 11.33% urban. The district ...

; he was promoted to the post of second assistant in 1847, and in 1848 was made commissioner for investigating certain claims upon the

Nizam The Nizams were the rulers of Hyderabad from the 18th through the 20th century. Nizam of Hyderabad (Niẓām ul-Mulk, also known as Asaf Jah) was the title of the monarch of the Hyderabad State ( divided between the state of Telangana, Mar ...

's government. In 1851, Ellis arrived in

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

as assistant-commissioner, and from 1855 to 1857 was in charge of the offices of chief commissioner during the absence in England of Sir

Henry Bartle Frere Sir Henry Bartle Edward Frere, 1st Baronet, (29 March 1815 – 29 May 1884) was a Welsh British colonial administrator. He had a successful career in India, rising to become Governor of Bombay (1862–1867). However, as High Commissioner for ...

. He was made special commissioner for

jagir A jagir ( fa, , translit=Jāgir), also spelled as jageer, was a type of feudal land grant in the Indian subcontinent at the foundation of its Jagirdar (Zamindar) system. It developed during the Islamic rule era of the Indian subcontinent, start ...

s or

alienated land Alienated land is that which has been acquired from customary landowners by the government, either for its own use or for private development requiring a mortgage or other forms of guarantees. The term refers historically to the appropriation of cus ...

s in the province, before leaving Sindh in 1858. In 1859, he was collector and magistrate at

Bharuch district Bharuch (formerly commonly known as Broach) in India, is a district in the southern part of the Kathiawar peninsula on the west coast of state of Gujarat with a size and population comparable to that of Greater Boston. Bharuch derives its name f ...

, and, after serving as chief secretary of the Bombay government, was nominated an additional member in 1862 and an ordinary member in 1865 of the Bombay council. Five years later, he was promoted to the Viceroy's council.

Later life

In 1875, Ellis returned to England, and was made not only

K.C.S.I. The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes: # Knight Grand Commander (GCSI) # Knight Commander ( KCSI) # Companion ( CSI) No appointments ...

but a member of the

Council of India The Council of India was the name given at different times to two separate bodies associated with British rule in India. The original Council of India was established by the Charter Act of 1833 as a council of four formal advisors to the Governor ...

in London. He took a prominent part in the affairs of the Jewish community of London, being vice-president of the

Anglo-Jewish Association The Anglo-Jewish Association (AJA) is a British organisation. It was formed in 1871 for the 'promotion of social, moral, and intellectual progress among the Jews; and the obtaining of protection for those who may suffer in consequence of being Jew ...

and of the

Jews' College The London School of Jewish Studies (commonly known as LSJS, originally founded as Jews' College) is a London-based organisation providing adult educational courses and training to the wider Jewish community. Since 2012 LSJS also offers rabbinic ...

, where a portrait has since been placed. He published a report on education in Sindh (Bombay, 1856), and edited George Stack's ''Dictionary of Sindhi and English'' (Bombay, 1855). He was an active member of the

Royal Asiatic Society The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society (RAS), was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the en ...

, which he joined in 1876, and founded a prize in

Bombay University The University of Mumbai is a collegiate, state-owned, public research university in Mumbai. The University of Mumbai is one of the largest universities in the world. , the university had 711 affiliated colleges. Ratan Tata is the appointed ...

; a scholarship there was established in his honour in 1875. In 1885, he retired from the Indian council, on whose deliberations he had exerted much influence. He died at Evian-les-Bains, France, on 20 June 1887, and was buried in the Jewish cemetery at Willesden, Middlesex, on 28 June. Ellis was highly regarded by his contemporaries; Sir

George Birdwood Sir George Christopher Molesworth Birdwood (8 December 183228 June 1917) was an Anglo-Indian official, naturalist, and writer. Life The son of General Christopher Birdwood, he was born at Belgaum, then in the Bombay Presidency, on 8 December 1 ...

described him as "one of the ablest revenue officers of the Bombay Presidency". While at Bombay, Ellis was exceptionally popular with all classes of native Indians. He was at all times accessible to them, both in India and England, and the native newspapers eulogised him unstintedly at the time of his death. He left a sum of 2,500l. in trust for the poor of Ratnajiri, his first official charge. He was not married. The

Ellis Bridge The Ellis Bridge is a century-old bridge in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. It bridges the western and eastern parts of the city across the Sabarmati river. This bowstring arch truss bridge was the first bridge in Ahmedabad, constructed in 1892. Concret ...

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per t ...

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

was named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Barrow Helbert 1823 births 1887 deaths 19th-century English people 19th-century Jews Administrators in British India Alumni of the University of London Burials at Willesden Jewish Cemetery English Jews English knights Indian Civil Service (British India) officers People educated at University College School Knights Commander of the Order of the Star of India Members of the Council of India Members of the Council of the Governor General of India