Sir William Sinclair Marris (9 October 1873 – 12 December 1945) was a British civil servant, colonial administrator, and classical scholar. He was a member of the

Indian Civil Service The Indian Civil Service (ICS), officially known as the Imperial Civil Service, was the higher civil service of the British Empire in India during British rule in the period between 1858 and 1947. Its members ruled over more than 300 million ...

during the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

, and later became

Vice-Chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and former Commonwealth n ...

of the

University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charte ...

Education and life

Born on 9 October 1873, Marris was educated at

Wanganui Collegiate School Whanganui Collegiate School (formerly Wanganui Collegiate School; see here) is a state-integrated, coeducational, day and boarding, secondary school in Whanganui, Manawatū-Whanganui region, New Zealand. The school is affiliated to the Anglican c ...

and

Canterbury College Canterbury College may refer to: * Canterbury College (Indiana), U.S. * Canterbury College (Waterford), Queensland, Australia * Canterbury College (Windsor, Ontario), Canada * Canterbury College, Kent, England * Canterbury College, Oxford, England ...

in New Zealand, and later studied at

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

. He passed first in the Indian Civil Service (open) examination in 1895. He married Eleanor Mary Fergusson, in 1905, who died a year later in 1906. After retirement from the Indian Civil Service, Marris returned to Northern England and remarried to Elizabeth Wilford in 1934, whom he had known from his childhood in New Zealand. In 1921, he laid

Murari Chand College Murari Chand College ( bn, মুরারিচাঁদ কলেজ) (usually referred to as MC College) was the first college in the Sylhet Division. It was established in 1892, making it the seventh oldest college in Bangladesh. Since then i ...

's foundation stone in Thackeray Hills,

Sylhet Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট) is a metropolitan city in northeastern Bangladesh. It is the administrative seat of the Sylhet Division. Located on the north bank of the Surma River at the eastern tip of Bengal, Sylhet has a subtropical climate an ...

alongside

Syed Abdul Majid The Hon'ble Moulvi Khan Bahadur Syed Abdul Majid, CIE ( bn, সৈয়দ আব্দুল মজিদ; 1872–1922), also known by his daak naam Kaptan Miah ( bn, কাপ্তান মিঞা), was a Bengali politician, lawyer and ...

. Following his return from India he resigned as a member of the Council of the Secretary of India to take a principalship at Armstrong College in Newcastle upon Tyne, and he was Vice-Chancellor of

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

from 1932 to 1934. During this period, he published translations of Greek and Roman Literature. He retired in 1937 and settled in

Cirencester Cirencester (, ; see below for more variations) is a market town in Gloucestershire, England, west of London. Cirencester lies on the River Churn, a tributary of the River Thames, and is the largest town in the Cotswolds. It is the home of ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

, where at Dollar House he died on 12 December 1945.

Indian Civil Service

Sir William Sinclair Marris served in the Indian Civil Service in several positions * Assistant Magistrate, U.P. 1896 * Under Secretary to Government, U.P. 1899 * Under Secretary to Government of India. 1901 * Deputy Secretary to Government of India, 1904 * Magistrate and Collector; Aligarh, 1910 * Member Executive Committee Coronation Durbar, 1912 * Acting Secretary to Government of India, Home Department, 1913 * Inspector-General of Police, U.P. 1916 * Joint Secretary to Government of India 1919-1921 * Reforms Commissioner, 1919–20 * Governor of Assam, 1921–22 * Governor of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, 1922–28 * Member of Council of India, 1928–29

Publications

Sir William Marris authored and translated several publications including * ''The Odes of Horace.'' By

Horace Quintus Horatius Flaccus (; 8 December 65 – 27 November 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). The rhetorician Quintilian regarded his ' ...

, ''(translated Sir William Marris).'' Published London, New York tc. H.Frowde, 1912 (books I-IV and the Saecular hymn translated into English verse) * ''The Iliad of Homer.'' By

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

, ''(translated Sir William Marris).'' Published London, New York tc. Oxford University Press, 1934 * ''The Odyssey of Homer.'' By

, ''(translated Sir William Marris).'' Published London, New York tc. Oxford University Press, 1925 * ''Catullus.'' By Catallus, ''(translated Sir William Marris).'' Published Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1924 * ''India: the political problem'' By Sir William Marris. Published Nottingham, 1930?

Vice-Chancellor of the University of Durham

From 1929 to 1937, Marris was Principal of Armstrong College in the Newcastle division of the University of Durham (now

Newcastle University Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a UK public university, public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is ...

), in which role he held the position of Vice-Chancellor of the University of Durham from 1932 to 1934.

References

External links

Portrait of Sir William Sinclair Marris
from the National Portrait Gallery {{DEFAULTSORT:Marris, William Sinclair 1873 births 1945 deaths People educated at Whanganui Collegiate School University of Canterbury alumni Vice-Chancellors and Wardens of Durham University Indian Civil Service (British India) officers Governors of Assam Members of the Council of India Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire Knights Commander of the Order of the Star of India Translators of Homer