Robert Nathan (Indian civil servant)
Encyclopedia
Sir Robert Nathan, KCSI
, CIE
(1868–1921) was an Indian Police Officer
notable for his works against the Indian revolutionaries in Bengal
, Britain
and North America
.
, before joining the Indian Civil Service in 1888. He was appointed secretary of the Indian Universities Commission in 1902, and Private Secretary to the Viceroy, Lord Curzon, in 1905. In 1907 Nathan was made Chief Secretary to the Government of Eastern Bengal and Assam, and Commissioner of Dhaka Police. In 1908, Nathan, then the Police Commissioner
of Dhaka
, was responsible along with the district collector H.L. Salkeld for uncovering the revolutionary organisation of the Anushilan Samiti
, and for instituting the measures to suppress the organisation.
's section dealing with the Indian seditionist movement in Europe, called MI5(g)
, that was formed at the time headed by Vernon Kell. Nathan's fellow officer at the time was another ex-Indian police official, H.L. Stephenson. He headed at the time the political branch of the Secret service, and along with Basil Thomson
who headed the Special Branch of the Scotland Yard
, Nathan was closely involved in the interrogation of Indians who worked along with the Germans during the war.
Nathan's efforts, along with those of John Wallinger
's Indian Political Intelligence Office
(with whom Nathan worked closely), were key in the British counter-espionage work. Nathan identified plans by Ghadar Party
and the Berlin Committee
to assassinate Lord Kitchener
in 1915 through an associate of Har Dayal
, Gobind Behari Lal. He was also responsible at this time, along with Basil Thomson, to turn Harish Chandra (who was associated with the Berlin committee
) into a double agent. Nathan was also responsible for the plans made by British intelligence in late 1915 to assassinate Virendranath Chattopadhyaya
through agent Donald Gullick.
worked closely with the German consulate at San Francisco to obtain arms and men for what came to be known as the Ghadar Conspiracy
. Nathan successfully brought the Ghadarites and staff at the German consulate to trial following the Annie Larsen arms plot
. He organised the Hindu-German conspiracy trial, which at the time was the longest in American legal history. He was responsible for the arrest of Chandrakanta Chakraverty and his subsequent interrogation, along with that Ernst Sekunna. Through March 1917, Nathan worked closely with William Wiseman
, and negotiated with the US State Department the details of the case against the Indian conspirators. He strongly supported granting a guarantee to the United States not to be held responsible for violation of neutrality.
Order of the Star of India
The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes:# Knight Grand Commander # Knight Commander # Companion...
, CIE
Order of the Indian Empire
The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1878. The Order includes members of three classes:#Knight Grand Commander #Knight Commander #Companion...
(1868–1921) was an Indian Police Officer
Indian Police Service
The Indian Police Service , simply known as Indian Police or IPS, is one of the three All India Services of the Government of India...
notable for his works against the Indian revolutionaries in Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
, Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Early career in India
Nathan was educated at Peterhouse, CambridgePeterhouse, Cambridge
Peterhouse is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It is the oldest college of the University, having been founded in 1284 by Hugo de Balsham, Bishop of Ely...
, before joining the Indian Civil Service in 1888. He was appointed secretary of the Indian Universities Commission in 1902, and Private Secretary to the Viceroy, Lord Curzon, in 1905. In 1907 Nathan was made Chief Secretary to the Government of Eastern Bengal and Assam, and Commissioner of Dhaka Police. In 1908, Nathan, then the Police Commissioner
Police commissioner
Commissioner is a senior rank used in many police forces and may be rendered Police Commissioner or Commissioner of Police. In some organizations, the commissioner is a political appointee, and may or may not actually be a professional police officer. In these circumstances, there is often a...
of Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
, was responsible along with the district collector H.L. Salkeld for uncovering the revolutionary organisation of the Anushilan Samiti
Anushilan Samiti
Anushilan Samiti was an armed anti-British organisation in Bengal and the principal secret revolutionary organisation operating in the region in the opening years of the 20th century. This association, like its offshoot the Jugantar, operated under the guise of suburban fitness club...
, and for instituting the measures to suppress the organisation.
Return to Britain
Nathan was appointed Vice Chancellor of Calcutta University in 1914, and the same year returned from India on account of ill-health. He began his work for British intelligence against Indian revolutionaries in October 1914. After retiring from the ICS in 1915, Nathan joined the MI5MI5
The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
's section dealing with the Indian seditionist movement in Europe, called MI5(g)
MI5(g)
The MI5, or the MI5 G section, was a branch of the MI5 that was formed during World War I to address the war time espionage operation by the Indian revolutionary movement in Europe. The department arose by renaming the MO5, which was renamed MI5 in 1916. The MI5 itself, working under Vernon Kell,...
, that was formed at the time headed by Vernon Kell. Nathan's fellow officer at the time was another ex-Indian police official, H.L. Stephenson. He headed at the time the political branch of the Secret service, and along with Basil Thomson
Basil Thomson
Sir Basil Home Thomson, KCB was a British intelligence officer, police officer, prison governor, colonial administrator, and writer.-Early life:...
who headed the Special Branch of the Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
, Nathan was closely involved in the interrogation of Indians who worked along with the Germans during the war.
Nathan's efforts, along with those of John Wallinger
John Wallinger
Sir John Arnold-Wallinger was a British Indian intelligence officer who led the prototype Indian Political Intelligence Office from 1909 to 1916. He was also the literary prototype of the spymaster of a number of Somerset Maugham's short stories...
's Indian Political Intelligence Office
Indian Political Intelligence Office
The Indian Political Intelligence Office was an Intelligence organisation initially established in England in 1909 in response to the dissemination of anarchist and revolutionary elements of Indian nationalism to different countries in Europe after the liquidation of India House in London in 1909...
(with whom Nathan worked closely), were key in the British counter-espionage work. Nathan identified plans by Ghadar Party
Ghadar Party
The Ghadar Party was an organization founded by Punjabi Indians, in the United States and Canada with the aim to liberate India from British rule...
and the Berlin Committee
Berlin Committee
The Berlin Committee, later known as the Indian Independence Committee after 1915, was an organisation formed in Germany in 1914 during World War I by Indian students and political activists residing in the country. The purpose of the Committee was to promote the cause of Indian Independence...
to assassinate Lord Kitchener
Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener
Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, ADC, PC , was an Irish-born British Field Marshal and proconsul who won fame for his imperial campaigns and later played a central role in the early part of the First World War, although he died halfway...
in 1915 through an associate of Har Dayal
Har Dayal
Lala Har Dayal was a Indian nationalist revolutionary who founded the Ghadar Party in America. He was a polymath who turned down a career in the Indian Civil Service...
, Gobind Behari Lal. He was also responsible at this time, along with Basil Thomson, to turn Harish Chandra (who was associated with the Berlin committee
Berlin Committee
The Berlin Committee, later known as the Indian Independence Committee after 1915, was an organisation formed in Germany in 1914 during World War I by Indian students and political activists residing in the country. The purpose of the Committee was to promote the cause of Indian Independence...
) into a double agent. Nathan was also responsible for the plans made by British intelligence in late 1915 to assassinate Virendranath Chattopadhyaya
Virendranath Chattopadhyaya
Virendranath Chattopadhyaya alias Chatto was a prominent Hindu Indian revolutionary who aimed to overthrow the British Raj in India by using violence as a tool...
through agent Donald Gullick.
Work in North America
Later, on instructions from British secret service, Robert Nathan transferred to the Pacific coast of North America where the Ghadar PartyGhadar Party
The Ghadar Party was an organization founded by Punjabi Indians, in the United States and Canada with the aim to liberate India from British rule...
worked closely with the German consulate at San Francisco to obtain arms and men for what came to be known as the Ghadar Conspiracy
Ghadar Conspiracy
The Ghadar Conspiracy was a conspiracy for a pan-Indian mutiny in the British Indian Army in February 1915 formulated by the Ghadar Party...
. Nathan successfully brought the Ghadarites and staff at the German consulate to trial following the Annie Larsen arms plot
Annie Larsen affair
The Annie Larsen affair was a gun-running plot in the United States during World War I. The plot, involving India's Ghadar Party, the Irish Republican Brotherhood and the German Foreign office, was a part of the larger Hindu German Conspiracy, and it was the prime offence cited in the 1917 Hindu...
. He organised the Hindu-German conspiracy trial, which at the time was the longest in American legal history. He was responsible for the arrest of Chandrakanta Chakraverty and his subsequent interrogation, along with that Ernst Sekunna. Through March 1917, Nathan worked closely with William Wiseman
Sir William Wiseman, 10th Baronet
Sir William George Eden Wiseman, 10th Baronet was a British intelligence agent and banker. He was a general partner at American investment bank Kuhn, Loeb & Co. from 1929 till 1960.- Biography :...
, and negotiated with the US State Department the details of the case against the Indian conspirators. He strongly supported granting a guarantee to the United States not to be held responsible for violation of neutrality.