![Henry-adrian-churchill-cb-1828-1886-explorer-and-d](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/Henry-adrian-churchill-cb-1828-1886-explorer-and-d.jpg)
Henry Adrian Churchill
CB (16 September 1828 – 12 July 1886) was an archaeological explorer of ancient
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...
and a British diplomat who stopped much of the commercial slavery in
Zanzibar
Zanzibar (; ; ) is an insular semi-autonomous province which united with Tanganyika in 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanzania. It is an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of many small islands ...
and helped prevent a war between Zanzibar and
Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...
.
Family and early life
Churchill was born in
Adrianople
Edirne (, ), formerly known as Adrianople or Hadrianopolis (Greek: Άδριανούπολις), is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders, ...
(modern day
Edirne
Edirne (, ), formerly known as Adrianople or Hadrianopolis (Greek: Άδριανούπολις), is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders, ...
) in
Turkish Thrace
East Thrace or Eastern Thrace ( tr, Doğu Trakya or simply ''Trakya''; el, Ανατολική Θράκη, ''Anatoliki Thraki''; bg, Източна Тракия, ''Iztochna Trakiya''), also known as Turkish Thrace or European Turkey, is the pa ...
, the son of
William Nosworthy Churchill. His second name was derived from his place of birth. His father was familiar with the Turkish language and the
Ottoman Turkish script
The Ottoman Turkish alphabet ( ota, الفبا, ') is a version of the Arabic script used to write Ottoman Turkish until 1928, when it was replaced by the Latin-based modern Turkish alphabet.
Though Ottoman Turkish was primarily written in this ...
, having worked as a
dragoman
A dragoman or Interpretation was an interpreter, translator, and official guide between Turkish-, Arabic-, and Persian-speaking countries and polities of the Middle East and European embassies, consulates, vice-consulates and trading posts. A ...
for the American Embassy in
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
(now Istanbul) and founded the first semi-official newspaper ''
Ceride-i Havadis'' .
His mother Beatrix (née Belhomme) was the daughter of a French merchant who had settled in Turkey.
He married Maria Braniefska (b. Warsaw 1839? – d.
Pará
Pará is a Federative units of Brazil, state of Brazil, located in northern Brazil and traversed by the lower Amazon River. It borders the Brazilian states of Amapá, Maranhão, Tocantins (state), Tocantins, Mato Grosso, Amazonas (Brazilian state) ...
,
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
1905) with whom he had 7 children. Four of his five sons,
Harry Lionel (1860–1924),
Sidney John Alexander (1862–1921),
William Algernon (1865–1947), and
George Percy
The Honourable George Percy (4 September 1580 – 1632) was an English explorer, author, and early Colonial Governor of Virginia.
Early life
George Percy was born in England, the youngest son of Henry Percy, 8th Earl of Northumberland and Lady ...
(1877-1973) followed him into the diplomatic service.
Education
In 1837, when aged nine, his father sent him to England to attend boarding schools in
Ewell
Ewell ( , ) is a suburban area with a village centre in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, approximately south of central London and northeast of Epsom.
In the 2011 Census, the settlement had a population of 34,872, a majority of wh ...
and then
Kentish Town
Kentish Town is an area of northwest London, England in the London Borough of Camden, immediately north of Camden Town. Less than four miles north of central London, Kentish Town has good transport connections and is situated close to the ope ...
, where he learnt English and mathematics.
In 1841 he went to
Lycée Louis-le-Grand
The Lycée Louis-le-Grand (), also referred to simply as Louis-le-Grand or by its acronym LLG, is a public Lycée (French secondary school, also known as sixth form college) located on rue Saint-Jacques in central Paris. It was founded in the ...
in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
where he studied languages, mathematics, and art. In 1846 he returned to
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
aged 18.
Career
Turco-Persian Boundary Commission
In 1848 at the age of 20 Churchill began his career in the service of the Crown by assisting the British Commission for the Delimitation of the Turco-Persian Boundary as part of the 1849–52 Turco-Persian Frontier Commission.
While serving in the Frontier Commission, along with friend and fellow archaeologist
William Loftus William Loftus may refer to:
* William Loftus (archaeologist), British geologist, naturalist, explorer and archaeological excavator
* William Loftus (British Army officer), British Army officer and Member of Parliament
* William Loftus (Canadian foo ...
and a detachment of troops, he rode across the desert and marshes of
Chaldaea
Chaldea () was a small country that existed between the late 10th or early 9th and mid-6th centuries BCE, after which the country and its people were absorbed and assimilated into the indigenous population of Babylonia. Semitic-speaking, it was ...
from the
Euphrates
The Euphrates () is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Tigris–Euphrates river system, Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia ( ''the land between the rivers'') ...
to the lower
Tigris
The Tigris () is the easternmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of the Armenian Highlands through the Syrian and Arabian Deserts, and empties into the ...
, observing remains as they went. During their travels Churchill made extensive detailed drawings and sketches, which were subsequently deposited in the
British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
and
the Geological Society
The Geological Society of London, known commonly as the Geological Society, is a learned society based in the United Kingdom. It is the oldest national geological society in the world and the largest in Europe with more than 12,000 Fellows.
Fe ...
.
From 1850-52 he was Secretary and Interpreter to the Commission, and in 1852 was appointed 3rd Paid
Attaché
In diplomacy, an attaché is a person who is assigned ("to be attached") to the diplomatic or administrative staff of a higher placed person or another service or agency. Although a loanword from French, in English the word is not modified accor ...
in
Teheran
Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...
.
[The London Gazette – 5 September 1856](_blank)
/ref>
Military service
In 1854 at the age of 26 he was attached to the staff of Major General Sir William Fenwick Williams.
He was able to speak and read Arabic and acted as translator to Colonel Atwell Lake. As Secretary and Interpreter on the Staff of the British Commissioner with the Turkish Army in Asia, he took part in the defence of Kars
Kars (; ku, Qers; ) is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. Its population is 73,836 in 2011. Kars was in the ancient region known as ''Chorzene'', (in Greek Χορζηνή) in classical historiography ( Strabo), part of ...
, and after its capitulation to General Mouravieff in November 1855 was for a time a prisoner of the Russians.[ Levantine Heritage](_blank)
/ref>
Some of his contemporary sketches of Kars are held in the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Diplomat
In 1856 at the age of 28 he was appointed British Consul in Sarajevo
Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...
, Bosnia
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and He ...
(1856), Jassy, Romania (1858),[The London Gazette – 28 September 1858](_blank)
/ref> then Consul-General in Moldavia
Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and former principality in Centr ...
(1859),[The London Gazette – 9 July 1859](_blank)
/ref> Syria (1862),[The London Gazette – 8 December 1862](_blank)
/ref> Algeria (1863),[The London Gazette – 29 April 1863](_blank)
/ref> and Consul in Zanzibar (1865).[The London Gazette – 8 February 1875](_blank)
/ref>
During his time in Zanzibar he helped prevent a war by convincing Sultan Majid, the Sultan
Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...
of Zanzibar, not to invade Oman.[ ''Papers Respecting the Slave Trade on the East Coast of Africa and the System Pursued for its Suppression.'' Foreign Office, 29 October 1869]
/ref> He also worked on anti-slavery issues with Sultan Majid who had consolidated his power around the East African slave trade, and stopped much of the commercial slavery then still occurring on Zanzibar.
Unfortunately, the heavy workload and the adverse climate took a toll on his health and in September 1868 he sailed to Bombay but after reaching Somalia
Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...
the ship was forced to return to Zanzibar, upon which Churchill found his health had improved and he continued his duties. However his recovery was short lived and in 1869 his Vice Consul and physician John Kirk advised him to leave for London for the sake of his health. Churchill's relationship with Sultan Majid became so close that upon his departure from Zanzibar he received a valuable diamond ring. Churchill returned briefly to Zanzibar and worked to keep the peace after Sultan Majid died in October 1870, then in November 1870 wrote to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs advising that he had sent a reinforcement of seven men to Dr David Livingstone
David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, and pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, an explorer in Africa, and one of the most popular British heroes of t ...
to replace seven men in his expedition who had died of cholera. He finally left Zanzibar in December 1870, leaving Kirk to undertake his duties.
He was subsequently appointed Consul in Resht
Rasht ( fa, رشت, Rašt ; glk, Rəšt, script=Latn; also romanized as Resht and Rast, and often spelt ''Recht'' in French and older German manuscripts) is the capital city of Gilan Province, Iran. Also known as the "City of Rain" (, ''Ŝahre ...
, Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
(1875), and Palermo
Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...
(1879)[ The London Gazette – 1 October 1879](_blank)
/ref> where he died in office in 1886 aged 57.
Artistic interests
He was a proficient artist and an accomplished watercolourist.Portrait of Miss Emilie Morris by Henry Adrian Churchill in 1866
/ref> A younger brother William was also a proficient artist and while visiting him at the British Consulate in Zanzibar in the late 1860s captured a wide range of scenes and people of contemporary Zanzibar which were published in the Illustrated London News
''The Illustrated London News'' appeared first on Saturday 14 May 1842, as the world's first illustrated weekly news magazine. Founded by Herbert Ingram, it appeared weekly until 1971, then less frequently thereafter, and ceased publication in ...
.[Zanzibar Sketches](_blank)
/ref>
Decorations
* Légion d'Honneur for the Crimean War[The London Gazette −7 February 1856](_blank)
/ref> 1856
*Imperial Order of the Medjidie
Order of the Medjidie ( ota, نشانِ مجیدی, August 29, 1852 – 1922) is a military and civilian order of the Ottoman Empire. The Order was instituted in 1851 by Sultan Abdulmejid I.
History
Instituted in 1851, the Order was awarded in fi ...
: Third Class[The London Gazette 1 May 1857]
/ref> 1857
* Companion of the Order of the Bath
Companion may refer to:
Relationships Currently
* Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance
* A domestic partner, akin to a spouse
* Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach
* Companion (caregiving), a caregive ...
1857
References
External links
Portrait of Henry Adrian Churchill aged 32, in 1860
Portrait of Miss Emilie Morris by Henry Adrian Churchill in 1866
DNB entry for Loftus
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Churchill, Henry Adrian
1828 births
1886 deaths
English archaeologists
English Assyriologists
British diplomats
19th-century archaeologists
Arabic–English translators
19th-century translators
British expatriates in the Ottoman Empire
Companions of the Order of the Bath
Assyriologists