Colonel John Baillie (10 May 1772 – 20 April 1833) of Leys, entered the military service of the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
in 1790. He proved to be an excellent linguist and took up a professorship at
Fort William College
Fort William College (also known as the College of Fort William) was an academy of oriental studies and a centre of learning, founded on 18 August 1800 by Lord Wellesley, then Governor-General of British India, located within the Fort William co ...
in
Calcutta, India
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, commer ...
. In 1807 he resigned his professorship for the position of Resident at the Indian city of Lucknow which he held until 1815. In that year was commissioned a Lieutenant-Colonel of the 4th Native Infantry. He returned to the United Kingdom in 1816 and as well as managing the family estates in
Inverness-shire
Inverness-shire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Nis) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Covering much of the Highlands and Outer Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county, though one of the smallest in populatio ...
he became Member of Parliament and a director of the East India Company.
Biography
John Baillie was born at Inverness on 10 May 1772. He was the younger son of George Baillie of Leys, Inverness, and his wife, Anne. Baillie served in the East India Company from 1790 until retiring in 1818 (arriving in India in 1791 and leaving in 1816). He was commissioned an
ensign
An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...
in 1793 and a lieutenant in 1794, devoting his leisure to the study of oriental languages, which he prosecuted with such success that on the foundation of the new college of
Fort William College
Fort William College (also known as the College of Fort William) was an academy of oriental studies and a centre of learning, founded on 18 August 1800 by Lord Wellesley, then Governor-General of British India, located within the Fort William co ...
in
Calcutta
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...
in 1801 he was appointed professor of the Arabic and Persian languages and of Mohammedan law.
In 1803, on the outbreak of the
Second Anglo-Maratha War
}
The Second Anglo-Maratha War (1803–1805) was the second conflict between the British East India Company and the Maratha Empire in India.
Background
The British had supported the "fugitive" Peshwa Raghunathrao in the First Anglo-Maratha War, ...
, Baillie joined in the siege of Agra with the rank of captain, and soon after was appointed to the difficult post of
Political Agent at
Bundelkhand
Bundelkhand (, ) is a geographical and cultural region and a proposed state and also a mountain range in central & North India. The hilly region is now divided between the states of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, with the larger portion lyin ...
in central India. Disaffection was rife there, and the chiefs were forming dangerous combinations. Captain Baillie, however, succeeded in disuniting the league of the chiefs and re-establishing order and security, for which services he was publicly thanked by the governor-general in a letter to the directors, in which it was said that "the British authority in Bundelkhand was only preserved by his fortitude, ability, and influence". He had, in fact, transferred to the company a territory with a revenue of £225,000 a year.
Baillie resigned his professorship in 1807 for the position of
Resident
Resident may refer to:
People and functions
* Resident minister, a representative of a government in a foreign country
* Resident (medicine), a stage of postgraduate medical training
* Resident (pharmacy), a stage of postgraduate pharmaceuti ...
at the Indian city of
Lucknow
Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...
which he held till 1815. In that year was commissioned a Lieutenant-Colonel of the 4th Native Infantry.
Baillie returned to the United Kingdom in 1816 and as well as managing the family estates in
Inverness-shire
Inverness-shire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Nis) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Covering much of the Highlands and Outer Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county, though one of the smallest in populatio ...
he became Member of Parliament and a director of the East India Company. He stood successfully for Parliament: for
Hedon
Hedon is a town and civil parish in Holderness in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately east of Hull city centre. It lies to the north of the A1033 road at the crossroads of the B1240 and B1362 roads.
It is pa ...
(1820–1830),
Inverness Burghs (1830–1831) and again for Inverness Burghs (1832 – 20 April 1833).
He was elected as a
Fellow of the Royal Society
Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...
in 1817.
Complete List of Royal Society Fellows 1660–2007
/ref>
In 1823 he became a director of the East India Company, and was willing use his influence in Parliament to support the Companies interests.
Works
While professor, John Baillie wrote:
*''Sixty Tables elucidatory of a Course of Lectures on Arabic Grammar delivered in the College of Fort William during the first year of its institution'' (first edition 1801)
*The Five Books upon Arabic Grammar'', i.e. the "Meeut Âmel", "Shurhu Meeut Âmel", "Mesbâh", "Hedâyut oon-Nuhve", and the "Kâfeea", of which the first four were issued in two thin volumes in 1802–3, and the last had not been published by 1900.
Baillie also translated from the Arabic part (relating to commercial transactions) of a digest of Mohammedan law in 1797, at the request of Sir John Shore (Lord Teignmouth), the then governor-general, but the work was never completed.
Baillie's position as Resident in Lucknow allowed him to amass a large collection of manuscripts, many of which later passed to the Edinburgh University Library
Edinburgh University Library is the main library of the University of Edinburgh and one of the most important libraries of Scotland. The University Library was moved in 1827 to William Playfair's Upper Library in the Old College building. The ...
in 1876, where they were catalogued by Edward Robertson in 1912. He is best known for his collection of paintings and illustrated manuscripts, such as the ''Jami al-Tawarikh
The ''Jāmiʿ al-tawārīkh'' (Persian/Arabic: , ) is a work of literature and history, produced in the Mongol Ilkhanate. Written by Rashid al-Din Hamadani (1247–1318 AD) at the start of the 14th century, the breadth of coverage of the work ha ...
'', and the poems of Hafiz of Sharaz.
Press Cutting – Morning Post 22 April 1833 – Deaths
On the 20th inst., at his house in Devonshire-place, in the 61st year of his age, Colonel John Baillie, of Leys, Inverness-shire, M.P. for the Inverness District of Burghs and a Director of the East India Company.
Notes
References
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Attribution
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Further reading
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Baillie, John
1772 births
1833 deaths
Military personnel from Inverness
British East India Company Army officers
Baillie,John
Baillie,John
UK MPs 1820–1826
UK MPs 1826–1830
UK MPs 1830–1831
UK MPs 1832–1835
British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Maratha War
Directors of the British East India Company
Fellows of the Royal Society