David Brown (24 June 1734 – 13 May 1804) was a Scottish-Danish merchant and shipowner. His trading house, established in a partnership with his brother

John Brown (1723–1808) John Brown (3 March 1723 - 16 January 1808) was a Scottish-Danish merchant and ship-owner. He was a joint founder of John & David Brown in 1759. The company owned 17 ships in 1787 but was liquidated the following year. He was also active in the Da ...

was active in overseas trade. He served as Lord Governor of

Tranquebar Tharangambadi (), formerly Tranquebar (, ), is a town in the Mayiladuthurai district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu on the Coromandel Coast. It lies north of Karaikal, near the mouth of a distributary named Uppanar of the Kaveri River. It wa ...

Danish India Danish India () was the name given to the forts and Factory (trading post), factories of Denmark (Denmark–Norway before 1814) in the Indian subcontinent, forming part of the Danish overseas colonies. Denmark–Norway held colonial possessions ...

from February 1774 to January 1779.

Early life

Brown was born in

Dalkeith Dalkeith ( ; , ) is a town in Midlothian, Scotland, on the River Esk. It was granted a burgh of barony in 1401 and a burgh of regality in 1541. The settlement of Dalkeith grew southwestwards from its 12th-century castle (now Dalkeith Pala ...

, Scotland, the son of William Brown and Margeret Brown. He came to Denmark in 1757 and was first employed as a clerk at the Nicolai Fenwich trading house in

Helsingør Helsingør ( , ; ), classically known in English as Elsinore ( ), is a coastal city in northeastern Denmark. Helsingør Municipality had a population of 63,953 on 1 January 2025, making it the 23rd most populated municipality in Denmark. Helsin ...

. In 1750 he came to

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

Career

Founded John & David Brown

David and John Brown founded John & David Brown in 1759. It owned its own fleet of merchant ships which traded on the

Danish West Indies The Danish West Indies () or Danish Virgin Islands () or Danish Antilles were a Danish colony in the Caribbean, consisting of the islands of Saint Thomas with , Saint John () with , Saint Croix with , and Water Island. The islands of St ...

. The firm offered commission, speculation and exchange trading. Its vessels mainly had the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

and the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

as their destinations, and the trading house eventually came to play a significant role in the maintenance of the West Indian trade. In 1781 he bought the Unrost shipyard. The name of the firm was changed to John & William Brown & Co. in 1782.

Danish India

On 14 February 1775, Brown succeeded Hermann Abbestée as Lord Governor of Tranquebar. His term ended on 17 January 1779.

Property

In 1788, David Brown bought Benzonseje Manor from his brother. He later sold it again to the estate administrator Lars Lassen in 1789.

Personal life

Brown married Anna Fenwick (1741–1776). She was a daughter of Nicolas Fenwick, merchant in Helsingør, and his wife Elisabeth Fenwick née Watson. She died in Tranquebar in 1776. He then married Mary Forbes (1751–1827). His first wife bore him the following children: William Brown, Margrethe Elisabeth (Betzy) Brown, Nicolas Brown, Amelie Louise Brown, John Lewis Brown, Melior Anna (Nancy) Brown and David Brown. His second wife bore him one daughter, Mary Brown (1785–1793), who died as a child. Brown died on 13 May 1804 at Maglegård in

Gentofte Gentofte () is a district of Gentofte Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Major landmarks include Gentofte Town Hall, Gentofte Hospital and Gentofte Church. Gentofte Lake with surrounding parkland and nature reserves form ...

. He was buried at Sankt Mariæ Kirke in Vor Frue Kloster in

References

External links

Østergade property
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, David 1734 births 1804 deaths Governors of Danish India Scottish businesspeople in shipping Danish businesspeople in shipping Danish shipping company founders 18th-century Danish businesspeople 19th-century Danish businesspeople 18th-century Scottish merchants 19th-century Scottish businesspeople People from Dalkeith British emigrants Scottish company founders Ship owners Immigrants to Denmark Merchants from Denmark–Norway