Henry Thomas Colebrooke
| Henry Thomas Colebrooke | |
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A bust of Henry Thomas Colebrooke currently owned by the Royal Asiatic Society
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| Born |
June 15, 1765 London, England |
| Died | April 10, 1837 (aged 71) London, England |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Orientalist |
| Known for | Sanskrit scholar, one of the founders of the Royal Asiatic Society |
Henry Thomas Colebrooke FRS FRSE (June 15, 1765 – March 10, 1837) was an English orientalist and mathematician. He has been described as "the first great Sanskrit scholar in Europe".
Henry Thomas Colebrooke, third son of Sir George Colebrooke, 2nd Baronet, Chairman of the East India Company, and Mary Gaynor of Antigua, was born in London. He was educated at home; and when only fifteen (15) he had made considerable attainments in classics and mathematics. From the age of twelve to sixteen he resided in France.
In 1782 Colebrooke was appointed to a writership in India. About a year after his arrival there he was placed in the board of accounts in Calcutta; and three years later he was removed to a situation in the revenue department at Tirhut. In 1789 he was removed to Purneah, where he investigated the resources of that part of the country, and published his Remarks on the Husbandry and Commerce of Bengal, privately printed in 1795, in which he advocated free trade between Great Britain and India.
He was sent to Nagpur in 1799 on a special mission, and on his return was made a judge of the new court of appeal, over which he afterwards presided. In 1805, Lord Wellesley appointed him honorary professor of Hindu law and Sanskrit at the college of Fort William. In 1807 he became a member of council and was elected President of the Asiatic Society of Calcutta. He returned to England in 1815.
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