Henry Vansittart
| Henry Vansittart | |
|---|---|
Portrait, oil on canvas, of Henry Vansittart (1732–1770) by Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723–1792)
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| Governor of the Presidency of Fort William | |
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In office 1760–1764 |
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| Preceded by | Robert Clive |
| Succeeded by | The Lord Clive |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
3 June 1732 Bloomsbury, Middlesex, England |
| Died | 1770 (aged 37) Died at sea off Cape Town |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater |
Reading School Winchester College |
Henry Vansittart (3 June 1732 – 1770) was the English Governor of Bengal from 1759 to 1764.
Vansittart was born in Bloomsbury in Middlesex, the third son of Arthur van Sittart (1691–1760), and his wife Martha, daughter of Sir John Stonhouse, 3rd Baronet. His father and his grandfather, Peter van Sittart (1651–1705), were both wealthy merchants and directors of the Russia Company. Peter, a merchant adventurer, who had migrated from Danzig to London about 1670, was also a director of the East India Company. The family name is taken from the town of Sittard in Limburg, the Netherlands. They settled at Shottesbrooke in Berkshire.
Educated at Reading School and at Winchester College, Henry Vansittart joined the society of the Franciscans, or the Hellfire Club, at Medmenham. His elder brothers, Arthur and Robert, were also members of this fraternity.
In 1745, at the age of thirteen, he entered service of the East India Company as a writer and sailed for Fort St David in Madras. Here he showed himself very industrious, made the acquaintance of Robert Clive and rose rapidly from one position to another, although he spent three years back in England from 1751.
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