Tristram Speedy
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Tristram Charles Sawyer Speedy (also known as Captain Speedy; November 1836 – 9 August 1910) was a well-known
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
explorer and adventurer during the
Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...
.


Life

Speedy was born at
Meerut Meerut (, IAST: ''Meraṭh'') is a city in Meerut district of the western part of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city lies northeast of the national capital New Delhi, within the National Capital Region and west of the state capital ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, a son of James Havelock Speedy, an army officer (a lieutenant in the 3rd Regiment of Foot he Buffs born in Dublin in 1811, died 1868 Mauku New Zealand), and his wife Sarah, an army officer's daughter. After being educated in England, Speedy returned to India as an army officer himself. He served in the
North-West Frontier Province The North-West Frontier Province (NWFP; ps, شمال لویدیځ سرحدي ولایت, ) was a Chief Commissioner's Province of British India, established on 9 November 1901 from the north-western districts of the Punjab Province. Followi ...
from 1854 to 1860, receiving the Indian Mutiny,
Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...
and Eufoszai medals. While hunting in the Horn of Africa, Speedy was summoned to the court of Emperor
Tewodros II of Ethiopia , spoken = ; ''djānhoi'', lit. ''"O steemedroyal"'' , alternative = ; ''getochu'', lit. ''"Our master"'' (pl.) Tewodros II ( gez, ዳግማዊ ቴዎድሮስ, baptized as Gebre Kidan; 1818 – 13 April 1868) was Emperor of Ethiop ...
, who bestowed on him the title ''Basha Felika'' ('Sir Speedy' or 'Commander Speedy'). Tewodros employed him to train his army; however, Speedy fell out with the emperor and had to flee the country. He then served as ''locum tenens'' and British vice-consul at the
Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
port of Massawa. In early 1864, Speedy resigned to travel to
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, where he served in the Waikato Militia. He was promoted to captain in 1864, and received the Maori Wars medal. During the
1868 Expedition to Abyssinia The British Expedition to Abyssinia was a rescue mission and punitive expedition carried out in 1868 by the armed forces of the British Empire against the Ethiopian Empire (also known at the time as Abyssinia). Emperor Tewodros II of Ethiopia, ...
, Speedy's knowledge of Ethiopia was crucial to the commander, Sir Robert Napier. Speedy was recalled to join the expedition and received the Abyssinian War Medal. After an audience with
Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...
, Speedy was appointed guardian to Prince Alemayehu Simeon, the young son of the late Emperor Tewodros II, who had committed suicide rather than surrender to the British. Speedy's collection of Ethiopian objects from this time is now 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 ...
. Speedy married Cornelia Cotton in England, then returned to India with his wife and the Abyssinian prince. He was stationed at Sitapur as District Superintendent of the Oudh Police from 1869 to 1871. During this time, he accompanied the Duke of Edinburgh (the second son of Queen Victoria) on a shooting trip in
Nepal Nepal (; ne, :ne:नेपाल, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in S ...
. In 1871, Speedy sailed to the Straits Settlements in Malaya and became superintendent of police on the island of Penang. He resigned in 1873 to raise and command a body of Indian troops to restore order in
Larut Taiping (, Jawi: ; zh, t=太平, , Hokkien: Thài-pêng; ta, தைப்பிங்) is a town located in Larut, Matang and Selama District, Perak, Malaysia. It is located approximately northwest of Ipoh, the capital of Perak, and sou ...
, a mining district in the Malayan state of Perak, for the Mentri (Chief Minister) Ngah Ibrahim. In 1874, Speedy was appointed assistant British resident of Larut and established and named Malaysia's oldest town, ‘ Thaipeng’, meaning 'Heavenly Peace'. He remained there until 1877. The following year, by then Major and Mrs Speedy spent several months exploring Sudan; his wife published a book about their travels. In 1883–85, Speedy took part in the mission led by Vice-Admiral Sir William Hewett to the court of Emperor
Yohannes IV ''girmāwī''His Imperial Majesty, spoken= am , ጃንሆይ ''djānhoi''Your Imperial Majesty(lit. "O steemedroyal"), alternative= am , ጌቶቹ ''getochu''Our Lord (familiar)(lit. "Our master" (pl.)) yohanes Yohannes IV (Tigrinya: ዮሓ ...
of Ethiopia to negotiate the region's disputed borders. He returned to Ethiopia in 1897 as part of
Rennell Rodd, 1st Baron Rennell James Rennell Rodd, 1st Baron Rennell, (9 November 1858 – 26 July 1941), known as Sir Rennell Rodd before 1933, was a British diplomat, poet and politician. He served as British Ambassador to Italy during the First World War. Early life R ...
's mission to the court of King Menelik to negotiate the Anglo-Ethiopian Treaty, which defined the border with Sudan.


Cultural references

* During the Abyssinian War (1867–68) the correspondents George Henty of '' The Standard'' and Henry Stanley of the '' New York Herald'' reported on him extensively. * The pioneering society photographer
Julia Margaret Cameron Julia Margaret Cameron (''née'' Pattle; 11 June 1815 – 26 January 1879) was a British photographer who is considered one of the most important portraitists of the 19th century. She is known for her Soft focus, soft-focus close-ups of famous ...
captured his image in a series of portraits in 1868. * Tristram Speedy appears in ''A Narrative of Captivity in Abyssinia; With Some Account of the Late Emperor Theodore, His Country and People'' (1868) by Henry Blanc. * The traveller
Isabella Bird Isabella Lucy Bird, married name Bishop (15 October 1831 – 7 October 1904), was a nineteenth-century British explorer, writer, photographer, and naturalist. With Fanny Jane Butler she founded the John Bishop Memorial Hospital in Srinagar i ...
comments on Captain Speedy and his troops in ''The Golden Chersonese'', and the ''Way Thither'' (1883). * A speech given by Speedy to the girls of
North London Collegiate School North London Collegiate School (NLCS) is an independent school with a day school for girls in England. Founded in Camden Town, it is now located in Edgware, in the London Borough of Harrow. Associate schools are located in South Korea, Jeju I ...
in about 1883 was remembered by Molly Hughes in her ''A London Girl of the 1880s'': "A certain Captain Speedy had just returned from Abyssinia, and gave us an amusing talk about it, dressing up, like a quick-change artist, as a general, a priest, a merchant, a courtier, and so on, and throwing in some amazing details of their religious rites, wedding ceremonies, and methods of commerce. He won our gratitude, too, by saying: 'I understand that you girls have to write an account of my talk to you. Well, the very word Abyssinia means confusion, because the races are confused, the religion is confused, the mountains and valleys are confused, and I know that I am confused in addressing so many girls. So the more confused your accounts are, the better they will represent the country and the lecture.'" * Captain Speedy was the likely inspiration for
Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...
's short story "The Lang Men o' Larut" (1889). * He is mentioned in
Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...
's ''In the South Seas'' (1896) as dressed in Abyssinian costume. * He appears as a hero in ''
Flashman on the March ''Flashman on the March'' is a 2005 novel by George MacDonald Fraser. It is the twelfth and last Flashman novel. Plot introduction As in all of Fraser's Flashman novels, the story is presented as part of the Flashman Papers, supposedly written ...
'' (
George MacDonald Fraser George MacDonald Fraser (2 April 1925 – 2 January 2008) was a British author and screenwriter. He is best known for a series of works that featured the character Flashman. Biography Fraser was born to Scottish parents in Carlisle, England, ...
, 2005). * A play entitled ''I was a Stranger'', written by Peter Spafford and based upon Speedy's Abyssinian adventure, was broadcast on the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
on 17 May 2004. * Captain Speedy's image is used on the controversial award-winning Timah whisky, produced by the
Malaysian Malaysian may refer to: * Something from or related to Malaysia, a country in Southeast Asia * Malaysian Malay, a dialect of Malay language spoken mainly in Malaysia * Malaysian people, people who are identified with the country of Malaysia regard ...
company Winepak Corporation (M) Sdn Bhd.


References


Further reading

* Jean Southon, "The Rise and Fall of Basha Felika: Captain Speedy, His Life and Times" 2003.


External links


Autobiography of Sarah Speedy, Captain Speedy's mother
{{DEFAULTSORT:Speedy, Tristram British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Sikh War British military personnel of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 British military personnel of the Abyssinian War English philanthropists English explorers British Indian Army officers 1836 births 1911 deaths Place of birth missing