Thomas Holdich
Encyclopedia
Colonel
Sir Thomas Hungerford Holdich, KCMG
, KCIE
, CB
(1843–1929) was an English
geographer and president of the Royal Geographical Society
. He is best known as Superintendent of Frontier Surveys in British India and author of numerous books, including The Gates of India, The Countries of the King's Award and Political Frontiers and Boundary Making.
Born in Dingley
, Northamptonshire
, England
to the Rev. Thomas Holdich, he was educated at Godolphin Grammar School
and the Royal Military Academy, obtaining a commission in the Royal Engineers
in 1862. He saw active service in the Bhutan
expedition of 1865, the Abyssinian campaign of 1867-68
and the Second Afghan War of 1878-79.
During peacetime, he was largely occupied with the survey of India, and served on the Afghan Boundary Commission of 1884-86, the Tasmar Boundary Commission of 1894, the Pamir Boundary Commission of 1895 and the Perso-Baluchistan Boundary Commission of 1896. He was also engaged by the governments of Argentina
and Chile
in 1892 to define the boundary along the Andes Mountains
. He was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Geographical Society
in 1887 in recognition of his work on the Afghan frontier.
On his retirement in 1898, he thanked "that providence which had been good to me in that during that last year of my Indian career I had been able to put a round finish on the last of our frontier maps". In later years, he wrote and lectured extensively on geographical issues, and served as president of the Royal Geographical Society from 1917-19. He contributed a number of entries to the eleventh edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica
.
Sir Thomas was married to Ada Vanrenan, and had two daughters and two sons. He died in 1929 at his home at Parklands in Merrow, Surrey
, near Guildford
, at the age of 86.
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Sir Thomas Hungerford Holdich, KCMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
, KCIE
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...
, CB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(1843–1929) was an English
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...
geographer and president of 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...
. He is best known as Superintendent of Frontier Surveys in British India and author of numerous books, including The Gates of India, The Countries of the King's Award and Political Frontiers and Boundary Making.
Born in Dingley
Dingley, Northamptonshire
Dingley is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England, located along the A427, about east of the nearest town, Market Harborough. It is also close to the A6 and near the border with Leicestershire...
, Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
, 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...
to the Rev. Thomas Holdich, he was educated at Godolphin Grammar School
Godolphin and Latymer School
The Godolphin and Latymer School is an independent school for 700 girls aged eleven to eighteen in London. Ms Margaret Rudland was the head mistress of the school for over 20 years before being succeeded by Ms Ruth Mercer.-History:...
and the Royal Military Academy, obtaining a commission in the Royal Engineers
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....
in 1862. He saw active service in the Bhutan
Bhutan
Bhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...
expedition of 1865, the Abyssinian campaign of 1867-68
1868 Expedition to Abyssinia
The British 1868 Expedition to Abyssinia was a punitive expedition carried out by armed forces of the British Empire against the Ethiopian Empire...
and the Second Afghan War of 1878-79.
During peacetime, he was largely occupied with the survey of India, and served on the Afghan Boundary Commission of 1884-86, the Tasmar Boundary Commission of 1894, the Pamir Boundary Commission of 1895 and the Perso-Baluchistan Boundary Commission of 1896. He was also engaged by the governments of Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
in 1892 to define the boundary along the Andes Mountains
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
. He was awarded the Gold Medal of 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...
in 1887 in recognition of his work on the Afghan frontier.
On his retirement in 1898, he thanked "that providence which had been good to me in that during that last year of my Indian career I had been able to put a round finish on the last of our frontier maps". In later years, he wrote and lectured extensively on geographical issues, and served as president of the Royal Geographical Society from 1917-19. He contributed a number of entries to the eleventh edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica
Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition
The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition is a 29-volume reference work, an edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. It was developed during the encyclopaedia's transition from a British to an American publication. Some of its articles were written by the best-known scholars of the time...
.
Sir Thomas was married to Ada Vanrenan, and had two daughters and two sons. He died in 1929 at his home at Parklands in Merrow, Surrey
Merrow, Surrey
The village of Merrow, in Surrey, England, lies on the north-east corner of Guildford. It is about two miles from the town centre, right on the edge of the ridge of hills that forms the North Downs. Although now a relatively anonymous suburb, the village can trace its origins back many hundreds of...
, near Guildford
Guildford
Guildford is the county town of Surrey. England, as well as the seat for the borough of Guildford and the administrative headquarters of the South East England region...
, at the age of 86.
List of publications
- The Abor Expedition: Geographical Results: Discussion. Geographical Journal, Feb., 1913, vol. 41, no. 2, p. 109-114. co-authored with L A Bethell and Hamilton BowerHamilton BowerHamilton Bower was a British military officer who traveled through Chinese Turkestan and Tibet.-Life:In 1889-90 Bower traveled through Chinese Turkestan, where in the city Kucha he purchased a Sanskrit-language manuscript written in the Brahmi alphabet...
.
External links
- Biography from the Holdich Family History Society
- In Memoriam: Colonel Sir Thomas Hungerford Holdich, k.c.m.g., k.c.i.e., c.b. (1843—1929.) - Himalayan Journal