Alexander Burnes
Encyclopedia
Captain
Sir Alexander Burnes (16 May 1805 – 2 November 1841) was a Scottish
traveller and explorer who took part in The Great Game
. He was nicknamed Bokhara Burnes for his role in establishing contact with and exploring Bukhara
, which made his name.
, Scotland
, to the son of the local provost
, who was first cousin to the poet Robert Burns
. At the age of sixteen, Alexander joined the army of the East India Company
and while serving in India
, he learned Hindustani
and Persian
, and obtained an appointment as interpreter at Surat
in 1822. Transferred to Kutch in 1826 as assistant to the political agent, he took an interest in the history and geography of north-western India and the adjacent countries, which had not yet been thoroughly explored by the British.
was not carried out for political reasons; but in 1831 he was sent to Lahore
with a present of horses from King William IV
to Maharaja
Ranjit Singh
. The British claimed that the horses would not survive the overland journey, so they were allowed to transport the horses up the Indus and used the opportunity to secretly survey the river. In the following years, in company with Mohan Lal
, his travels continued through Afghanistan
across the Hindu Kush
to Bukhara and Persia.
The narrative which he published on his visit to England
in 1834 added immensely to contemporary knowledge of these countries, and was one of the most popular books of the time. The first edition earned the author £800, and his services were recognized not only by the Royal Geographical Society
of London, but also by that of Paris
. He was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Society the same year. Soon after his return to India in 1835 he was appointed to the court of Sindh
to secure a treaty for the navigation of the Indus and in 1836 he undertook a political mission to Dost Mahommed Khan at Kabul
.
and reinstated Shah Shuja
, thus leading to the disasters of the First Afghan War
. On the restoration of Shah Shuja in 1839, Burnes became regular political agent at Kabul, and remained there until his assassination in 1841, during the heat of an insurrection. The calmness with which he continued at his post long after the imminence of his danger was apparent, and the ferocity with which he fought after the killing of his political assistant Major William Broadfoot (killing six assailants in the process), won him a heroic reputation.
It came to light in 1861 that some of Burnes' dispatches from Kabul in 1839 had been altered so as to convey opinions opposite to his, but Lord Palmerston
refused after such a lapse of time to grant the inquiry demanded in the House of Commons
. A narrative of his later labours was published in 1842 under the title of Cabool.
He is commemorated in the name of the Rufous-vented Prinia
Prinia burnesii.
Captain (OF-2)
The army rank of captain is a commissioned officer rank historically corresponding to command of a company of soldiers. The rank is also used by some air forces and marine forces. Today a captain is typically either the commander or second-in-command of a company or artillery battery...
Sir Alexander Burnes (16 May 1805 – 2 November 1841) was a Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
traveller and explorer who took part in The Great Game
The Great Game
The Great Game or Tournament of Shadows in Russia, were terms for the strategic rivalry and conflict between the British Empire and the Russian Empire for supremacy in Central Asia. The classic Great Game period is generally regarded as running approximately from the Russo-Persian Treaty of 1813...
. He was nicknamed Bokhara Burnes for his role in establishing contact with and exploring Bukhara
Bukhara
Bukhara , from the Soghdian βuxārak , is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. The nation's fifth-largest city, it has a population of 263,400 . The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time...
, which made his name.
Early life
He was born in MontroseMontrose, Angus
Montrose is a coastal resort town and former royal burgh in Angus, Scotland. It is situated 38 miles north of Dundee between the mouths of the North and South Esk rivers...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, to the son of the local provost
Provost (civil)
A provost is the ceremonial head of many Scottish local authorities, and under the name prévôt was a governmental position of varying importance in Ancien Regime France.-History:...
, who was first cousin to the poet Robert Burns
Robert Burns
Robert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
. At the age of sixteen, Alexander joined the army of the East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
and while serving in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, he learned Hindustani
Hindustani language
Hindi-Urdu is an Indo-Aryan language and the lingua franca of North India and Pakistan. It is also known as Hindustani , and historically, as Hindavi or Rekhta...
and Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, and obtained an appointment as interpreter at Surat
Surat
Surat , also known as Suryapur, is the commercial capital city of the Indian state of Gujarat. Surat is India's Eighth most populous city and Ninth-most populous urban agglomeration. It is also administrative capital of Surat district and one of the fastest growing cities in India. The city proper...
in 1822. Transferred to Kutch in 1826 as assistant to the political agent, he took an interest in the history and geography of north-western India and the adjacent countries, which had not yet been thoroughly explored by the British.
Exploration
His proposal in 1829 to undertake a journey of exploration through the valley of the Indus RiverIndus River
The Indus River is a major river which flows through Pakistan. It also has courses through China and India.Originating in the Tibetan plateau of western China in the vicinity of Lake Mansarovar in Tibet Autonomous Region, the river runs a course through the Ladakh district of Jammu and Kashmir and...
was not carried out for political reasons; but in 1831 he was sent to Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
with a present of horses from King William IV
William IV of the United Kingdom
William IV was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death...
to Maharaja
Maharaja
Mahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani denotes either the wife of a Maharaja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a Maharaja is known as a Rajamata...
Ranjit Singh
Ranjit Singh
Maharaja Ranjit Singh Ji was the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire.-Early life:...
. The British claimed that the horses would not survive the overland journey, so they were allowed to transport the horses up the Indus and used the opportunity to secretly survey the river. In the following years, in company with Mohan Lal
Mohan Lal (Zutshi)
Mohan Lal was a traveller, diplomat, and author. He played a central role in the First Anglo-Afghan War of 1838–1842. His biography of Dost Mohammad Khan, emir of Kabul, is a primary source on the War....
, his travels continued through Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
across the Hindu Kush
Hindu Kush
The Hindu Kush is an mountain range that stretches between central Afghanistan and northern Pakistan. The highest point in the Hindu Kush is Tirich Mir in the Chitral region of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.It is the westernmost extension of the Pamir Mountains, the Karakoram Range, and is a...
to Bukhara and Persia.
The narrative which he published on his visit to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in 1834 added immensely to contemporary knowledge of these countries, and was one of the most popular books of the time. The first edition earned the author £800, and his services were recognized not only by the Royal Geographical Society
Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences...
of London, but also by that of Paris
Société de Géographie
The Société de Géographie , is the world's oldest geographical society. It was founded in 1821 . Since 1878, its headquarters has been at 184 Boulevard Saint-Germain, Paris. The entrance is marked by two gigantic caryatids representing Land and Sea...
. He was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Society the same year. Soon after his return to India in 1835 he was appointed to the court of Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...
to secure a treaty for the navigation of the Indus and in 1836 he undertook a political mission to Dost Mahommed Khan at Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
.
First Afghan War
He advised Lord Auckland to support Dost Mahommed on the throne of Kabul, but the viceroy preferred to follow the opinion of Sir William Hay MacnaghtenWilliam Hay Macnaghten
Sir William Hay Macnaghten, 1st Baronet was a British civil servant in India, who played a major part in the First Anglo-Afghan War....
and reinstated Shah Shuja
Shuja Shah Durrani
Shuja Shah Durrani was ruler of the Durrani Empire from 1803 to 1809. He then ruled from 1839 until his death in 1842. Shuja Shah was of the Sadozai line of the Abdali group of Pashtuns...
, thus leading to the disasters of the First Afghan War
First Anglo-Afghan War
The First Anglo-Afghan War was fought between British India and Afghanistan from 1839 to 1842. It was one of the first major conflicts during the Great Game, the 19th century competition for power and influence in Central Asia between the United Kingdom and Russia, and also marked one of the worst...
. On the restoration of Shah Shuja in 1839, Burnes became regular political agent at Kabul, and remained there until his assassination in 1841, during the heat of an insurrection. The calmness with which he continued at his post long after the imminence of his danger was apparent, and the ferocity with which he fought after the killing of his political assistant Major William Broadfoot (killing six assailants in the process), won him a heroic reputation.
It came to light in 1861 that some of Burnes' dispatches from Kabul in 1839 had been altered so as to convey opinions opposite to his, but Lord Palmerston
Henry Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston
Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, KG, GCB, PC , known popularly as Lord Palmerston, was a British statesman who served twice as Prime Minister in the mid-19th century...
refused after such a lapse of time to grant the inquiry demanded in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
. A narrative of his later labours was published in 1842 under the title of Cabool.
He is commemorated in the name of the Rufous-vented Prinia
Rufous-vented Prinia
The Rufous-vented Prinia or Long-tailed Grass Warbler is a small warbler.-Range, habitat, and status:As treated here, this prinia is found only in the plains of the Indus in Pakistan and adjacent in Punjab...
Prinia burnesii.
Publications
- Travels into Bokhara. Being an account of a Journey from India to Cabool, Tartary and Persia. Also, narrative of a Voyage on the Indus from the Sea to Lahore (London: John Murray) 1834 3 Vols.
- "On the Commerce of Shikarpur and Upper Scinde" Transactions of the Bombay Geographical Society Vol. II 1836-8 (Bombay: American Mission Press) Reprinted 1844 pp315-9
- Cabool. Being a Personal Narrative of a Journey to, and Residence in that City in the years 1836, 7, and 8 (London: John Murray) 1842 (Posthumous)
See also
- The Great GameThe Great GameThe Great Game or Tournament of Shadows in Russia, were terms for the strategic rivalry and conflict between the British Empire and the Russian Empire for supremacy in Central Asia. The classic Great Game period is generally regarded as running approximately from the Russo-Persian Treaty of 1813...
- Sir JW KayeJohn William KayeSir John William Kaye was a British military historian.The son of Charles Kaye, a solicitor, he was educated at Eton College and at the Royal Military College, Addiscombe. From 1832 to 1841 he was an officer in the Bengal Artillery, afterwards spending some years in literary pursuits both in...
, Lives of Indian Officers (1889). - Flashman - a novel featuring Burnes.
- The Mulberry Empire (2002) by Philip HensherPhilip HensherPhilip Michael Hensher FRSL is an English novelist, critic and journalist.Hensher was born in South London, although he spent the majority of his childhood and adolescence in Sheffield, attending Tapton School. He did his undergraduate degree at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford before attending...
- a novel featuring Burnes - To Herat and Cabul, A Story of the First Afghan WarTo Herat and Cabul, A Story of the First Afghan WarTo Herat and Cabul, A Story of the First Afghan War is a book by British author G. A. Henty. It was illustrated by Charles M. Sheldon and published by Blackie and Son Ltd, London. The setting is the First Anglo-Afghan War fought between the British Raj and Afghanistan from 1839 to 1842....
(1902) by G. A. HentyG. A. HentyGeorge Alfred Henty , was a prolific English novelist and a special correspondent. He is best known for his historical adventure stories that were popular in the late 19th century. His works include Out on the Pampas , The Young Buglers , With Clive in India and Wulf the Saxon .-Biography:G.A...
- a novel of historical fiction featuring Burnes. - Will we make it to Jalalabad? Biographical article on Burnes by Bijan Omrani.