The grave of Sir Andrew Fraser, Dean Cemetery, Edinburgh

Sir Andrew Henderson Leith Fraser (14 November 1848 – 26 February 1919) was a British officer 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 p ...

and the

Lieutenant Governor of Bengal The Governor was the chief colonial administrator in the Bengal presidency, originally the "Presidency of Fort William" and later "Bengal province". In 1644, Gabriel Boughton procured privileges for the East India Company which permitted them t ...

between 1903 and 1908.

Early life and education

Born in Bombay on 14 November 1848, Fraser was educated at the

Edinburgh Academy The Edinburgh Academy is an independent day school in Edinburgh, Scotland, which was opened in 1824. The original building, on Henderson Row in the city's New Town, is now part of the Senior School. The Junior School is located on Arboretum Ro ...

before being called to the Bar at the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...

. He was a son of Rev. Alexander Garden Fraser (1814–1904) and Joanna Maria Shaw (1823–1864).

Career

He joined the

in 1871, serving in the Central Provinces for nearly thirty years. In 1897, he was appointed a CSI and was knighted with the KCSI in 1902. During his service he rose to be the Chief Commissioner of Central Provinces in 1899 followed by President of Police Commission in 1902. In 1903, he was selected the successor of James Bourdillon to the post of the

. He was elected President of

The Asiatic Society The Asiatic Society is a government of India organisation founded during the Company rule in India to enhance and further the cause of "Oriental research", in this case, research into India and the surrounding regions. It was founded by the p ...

for 1905–07. Fraser retained the position of Governor of the Western province of Bengal following the 1905 Partition of Bengal. However, his role in the planning of partition of Bengal, earned him notoriety among nationalist agitators, with a notable assassination attempt in 1907 which attempted to derail his train. Another assassination attempt in November 1908 involved a pistol which failed to go off, the would-be assassin later declaring that he wanted to show Bengalis that even the Lieutenant-Governor was not invincible. He was succeeded in 1908 by Sir William Baker. Fraser 's published works include his memoirs ''Among Indian Rajahs and Ryots'' published in 1909, and ''India under Curzon and After'' published in 1911. He lived his final years at 22 Heriot Row in Edinburgh's Second New Town. Andrew Henderson Leith Fraser died on 26 February 1919. He is buried in Dean Cemetery in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

, on the south wall of the north section, backing onto the original cemetery. The stone is very distinctive, carrying a St Andrews Cross in red granite by McGlashan. He is also the founder and the first principal of one of the biggest and most popular public school Rajkumar College, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India.

Family

His wife Henrietta died in 1952. Their children included the cricketers Patrick and Charles Fraser, the soldiers Cpt Charles J. S. Fraser MC (d.1929) and Cpt Harry Lugard Fraser and Professor

Alec Garden Fraser Alexander Garden Fraser (6 October 1873 – 27 January 1962), , was a British educator and Anglican vicar. He was one of the founders of Achimota School and the first principal of the school (1924–1935). The other founders were Sir Frederick ...

, principal of Trinity College.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, Andrew Henderson Leith 1848 births 1919 deaths People educated at Edinburgh Academy Scottish lawyers Lieutenant-governors of Bengal Knights Commander of the Order of the Star of India Indian Civil Service (British India) officers Scottish civil servants Presidents of The Asiatic Society