Sir Henry Pottinger, 1st Baronet
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Lieutenant-General The Right Honourable Sir Henry Pottinger Bt GCB |
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Portrait of Pottinger by Francis Grant, 1845
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| Governor of Madras | |
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In office 1848–1854 |
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| Preceded by | The Marquess of Tweeddale |
| Succeeded by | The Lord Harris |
| Governor of the Cape Colony | |
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In office 1847–1847 |
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| Preceded by | Sir Peregrine Maitland |
| Succeeded by | Sir Harry Smith |
| Governor of Hong Kong | |
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In office 26 June 1843 – 8 May 1844 |
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| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Sir John Davis |
| Administrator of Hong Kong | |
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In office 1841–1843 |
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| Preceded by | Alexander Johnston (acting) |
| Succeeded by | Office abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
3 October 1789 County Down, Ireland |
| Died | 18 March 1856 (aged 66) Malta |
| Spouse(s) | Susanna Maria Cooke |
| Alma mater | Belfast Academy |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | Bombay Army |
| Years of service | 1804–1856 |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Battles/wars |
Third Anglo-Maratha War First Opium War |
Lieutenant General Sir Henry Pottinger, 1st Baronet, GCB, PC (Chinese: 砵甸乍; 3 October 1789 – 18 March 1856), was an Anglo-Irish soldier and colonial administrator who became the first Governor of Hong Kong.
Henry Pottinger was born in County Down, Ireland, in 1789. He was the fifth son of Eldred Curwen Pottinger, Esq., of Mount Pottinger, County Down, and his wife Anne, who was the daughter of Robert Gordon, Esq., of Florida House in the same county. They had three daughters and eight sons.Eldred Pottinger was his nephew. Henry studied at the Belfast Academy, today known as Belfast Royal Academy.
In 1804, he went to India to serve in the army and explored the lands between the Indus and Persia, travelling in disguise as a Muslim merchant and studying local languages, under the orders of Sir John Malcolm. In 1806, he joined the British East India Company and in 1809, he was a Lieutenant who fought in one of the Anglo-Mahratta wars. In 1810, he and Charles Christie undertook an expedition from Nushki (Balochistan) to Isfahan (Central Persia) disguised as Muslims. Christie went north to Herat and then west while Pottinger went west across two deserts to Kerman and Isfahan where they rejoined. The expedition was funded by the East India Company to map and research the regions of Balochistan and Persia because of concerns about India being invaded by French forces. It would be 100 years before another European took this route, and Pottinger rose to the rank of Colonel. Pottinger later became Resident Administrator of Sindh in 1820. He later held the same post in Hyderabad.
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Wikipedia