Sir James Robert Longden (7 July 1827 – 4 October 1891) was an English colonial administrator. Longden was born as the youngest son of John R. Longden, proctor, of

Doctors' Commons Doctors' Commons, also called the College of Civilians, was a society of lawyers practising civil (as opposed to common) law in London, namely ecclesiastical and admiralty law. Like the Inns of Court of the common lawyers, the society had buildi ...

, London. In 1844, two years after the establishment of a civil government, he was appointed government clerk in the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...

, and became acting colonial secretary the year after. In 1861 he was appointed President of the Virgin Islands, in 1865

Governor of Dominica This article lists the governors and other administrators of Dominica (where known), during its time as a colony of the Kingdom of Great Britain (1761–1778; 1784–1800), the Kingdom of France (1778–1784), and the United Kingdom (1800–1978). ...

, in 1867 Governor of British Honduras, in 1870 Governor of Trinidad, Governor of British Guiana in 1874, and in December 1876

Governor of Ceylon {{Use dmy dates, date=November 2019 The Governor of Ceylon can refer to historical vice-regal representatives of three colonial powers: Portuguese Ceylon * List of Captains of Portuguese Ceylon (1518–1551) * List of Captain-majors of Portuguese ...

, which post he held until his retirement in 1883. Most notable of his tenure in Ceylon was his grant of land that established the Borella General Cemetery, that has since interred the names of many great Ceylonese over the centuries. He was made CMG in 1871, in 1876, in the 1883 Birthday Honours. After his retirement he resided at Longhope, near

Watford, Hertfordshire Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, an ...

, and took a very active part in county affairs. He was a J.P. and alderman for the county under the Local Government Act. He died at

Longhope Longhope is a village in west Gloucestershire, situated within the Forest of Dean, England, United Kingdom. Arthur Bullock, who was born in Longhope in 1899, described its location as follows: * The parish occupies the most easterly valley in t ...

on 4 October 1891. His funeral took place at

Brookwood Cemetery Brookwood Cemetery, also known as the London Necropolis, is a burial ground in Brookwood, Surrey, England. It is the largest cemetery in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in Europe. The cemetery is listed a Grade I site in the Regist ...

on 9 October 1891.

Family

On 22 September 1864 on the island of

Saint Kitts Saint Kitts, officially the Saint Christopher Island, is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean. Saint Kitts and the neighbouring island of Nevis cons ...

, he married Alice Emily Berridge (1846–1910), younger daughter of James Samuel Berridge (1806–1885), a local landowner and businessman, and his wife Jane Chapman (1803–1888). They had six children, including: *Colonel Arthur Berridge Longden DSO (1868–1936) * Cyril Chapman Longden KPM (1873–1913) *Vice-Admiral Horace Walker Longden CMG (1877–1953) *Alice Emily Longden, who married in 1900 W. Engelenburg of

Soerabaia Surabaya ( jv, ꦱꦸꦫꦧꦪ or jv, ꦯꦹꦫꦨꦪ; ; ) is the capital city of the Indonesian province of East Java and the second-largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta. Located on the northeastern border of Java island, on the Madur ...

, Java.

External links

*
Longden biography
specific for Trinidad and Tobago
Description and image
in ''Twentieth century impressions of Ceylon'' (Google books)

References

* Dod's Knightage, 1891 * Colonial Office List, 1891 * Times, 5 and 10 October 1891 {{DEFAULTSORT:Longden, James Robert Civil servants from London 1827 births 1891 deaths 19th-century English people Governors of British Trinidad Governors of Dominica Presidents of the British Virgin Islands Governors of British Honduras Governors of British Guiana Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Burials at Brookwood Cemetery