George Francis Robert Harris, 3rd Baron Harris (14 August 1810 – 23 November 1872), was a British peer, Liberal politician and colonial administrator. He served as the Governor of Trinidad from 1846 to 1854 and

Governor of Madras This is a list of the governors, agents, and presidents of colonial Madras, initially of the English East India Company, up to the end of British colonial rule in 1947. English Agents In 1639, the grant of Madras to the English was finalized be ...

from 1854 to 1859.

Early life and education

Harris was born on 14 August 1810 to William Harris, 2nd Baron Harris and his wife Eliza Selina Anne who owned Waterstown House at Glasson, Co. Westmeath, Ireland, and Belmont House, Faversham, England. He was the grandson of

George Harris, 1st Baron Harris George Harris, 1st Baron Harris GCB (18 March 1746 – 19 May 1829) was a British soldier. Military career Harris was the son of the Reverend George Harris, curate of Brasted, Kent. He was educated at Westminster School and at the Royal ...

, who had commanded the army of the

British 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 South ...

in the Fourth Mysore War. Harris had his early education at

Eton College Eton College () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI of England, Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. i ...

and under the private tutorship of Rev. John Shaw before joining

Merton College, Oxford Merton College (in full: The House or College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the 1260s when Walter de Merton, ...

in 1829. Harris completed his matriculation from Merton College and graduated in arts from

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 uniq ...

in 1832. He succeeded his father in June 1845 to the barony and the family seat of Belmont House. He also became joint patron of Athlone Yacht Club in 1845 with Lord Castlemaine and Hon. L. H. King-Harman following the death of his father. Harris was beset will ill-health and remained bed-ridden for some time in the city of Pau in France where he worked for a time for the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...

Governor of Trinidad

In 1846, Harris was appointed Governor of Trinidad, a role he kept until 1854. In 1850 he married Sarah, daughter of Port of Spain archdeacon George Cummins. During his tenure, Harris revamped the prevailing education system thereby laying down the foundation for the present-day system of education prevailing in Trinidad. Harris also mooted the idea of importing indentured labourers from India to replace the plantation slaves who had been freed following the abolition of slavery. Harris is considered to be one of Trinidad's best ever administrators though he had also been criticized for favouring his own men in appointments.

Governor of Madras

Soon after taking over as Governor of Madras, Harris found grave deficiencies in the police system in the Presidency and reorganised the force introducing reforms that would eventually give rise to the Indian police as it exists today. On 1 July 1856, Harris flagged off the first regular passenger train service in the province between the city of Madras and the town of

Arcot Arcot (natively spelt as Ārkāḍu) is a town and urban area of Ranipet district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. Located on the southern banks of Palar River, the city straddles a trade route between Chennai and Bangalore or Salem, betw ...

. The

University of Madras The University of Madras (informally known as Madras University) is a public state university in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and among the most prestigious universities in India, incorporated by an a ...

was established in 1857 when Harris was the governor. In September 1854, Harris headed the Torture Commission appointed to investigate the allegations of torture inflicted on Indian peasants by revenue officials. Throughout his tenure, Harris was critical of the attitude of the

Anglo-Indian Anglo-Indian people fall into two different groups: those with mixed Indian and British ancestry, and people of British descent born or residing in India. The latter sense is now mainly historical, but confusions can arise. The '' Oxford English ...

press in Madras and tried to regulate the freedom of the press. He criticized them as: When the

Indian Rebellion of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the for ...

broke out, the province of Madras remained loyal to the British Crown. As a result, Harris lent the whole

Madras Army The Madras Army was the army of the Presidency of Madras, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire. The presidency armies, like the presidencies themselves, belonged to the East India Company until the Government ...

to the Government of India for quelling the rebellion. The Madras Army participated in the relief of Cawnpore in which

Lieutenant-Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...

James George Smith Neill James George Smith Neill (27 May 1810 – 25 September 1857)Dictionary of Indian Biography p314 was a British military officer of the East India Company, who served during the Indian rebellion of 1857. Early career Neill was born at Swindridge ...

of the Madras Fusiliers indulged in indiscriminate massacre of Indians and was eventually killed. However, there is also evidence that suggests that one of the 52 regiments of the Madras Army refused to volunteer for service during the mutiny. Harris continued even after the transfer of sovereignty over India from the

to the

British crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has different ...

in 1858, eventually resigning as governor in 1859.

Later life and death

Lord Harris died in November 1872, aged 62. In 1850 he had married Sarah, daughter of the Venerable George Cummons, Archdeacon of Trinidad. She died only three years later. In 1864 he was appointed Honorary Colonel of the

East Kent Militia The East Kent Militia, later the 3rd Battalion, Buffs (East Kent Regiment) was an auxiliary regiment raised in Kent in South East England. From its formal creation in 1760 the regiment served in home and colonial defence in all of Britain's major ...

. He presided in 1870 over the East and West Kent Club and was until his death president of the

Kent County Cricket Club Kent County Cricket Club is one of the eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Kent. A club representing the county was first founded in 1842 but Ke ...

. Lord Harris was succeeded in the barony by his son Robert Harris, 4th Baron Harris, who became a successful cricketer and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

politician.

Arms

Notes

References

* *Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, George Harris, 3rd Baron 1810 births 1872 deaths Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Alumni of Merton College, Oxford Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Governors of British Trinidad Governors of Madras Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India Liberal Party (UK) Lords-in-Waiting Eldest sons of British hereditary barons Presidents of Kent County Cricket Club