William Marsden
Encyclopedia
William Marsden DCL
FRS (16 November 1754 – 6 October 1836) was an English
orientalist
, linguist, numismatist and pioneer in the scientific study of Indonesia
. Serving as first secretary of the Admiralty
during years of conflict with France, in 1805 Marsden received the bittersweet news of victory in the Battle of Trafalgar
and of the death of Admiral Horatio Nelson in the battle.
, and educated at Trinity College, Dublin. Upon obtaining a civil service appointment with the East India Company
at sixteen years of age, he was sent to Benkulen, Sumatra
, in 1771. He was promoted to the position of principal secretary to the government, and acquired a knowledge of the Malay language
and the country. After returning to England
in 1779, he was awarded the Doctor of Civil Law (D.C.L.) degree by Oxford University in 1780 and published his History of Sumatra in (1783
).
Marsden was elected to membership in the Royal Society
in 1783. He had been recommended by James Rennell
, Edward Whitaker Gray
, John Topham, Alexander Dalrymple
, and Charles Blagden
.
, he published Grammar and Dictionary of the Malay Language. This was followed by a translation of the Travels of Marco Polo
in 1818
.
Marsden was a member of many learned societies, and treasurer and vice-president of the Royal Society
. In 1834 he presented his collection of oriental coin
s to the British Museum
and his library of books and Oriental manuscripts to King's College London
. His other works are Catalogue of Dictionaries, Vocabularies, Grammars and Alphabets (1796
), Numismata orientalia (London, 1823–1825), and several papers on Eastern topics in the Philosophical Transactions and the Archaelogia.
He married Elizabeth, the daughter of his friend Sir Charles Wilkins
FRS, but there was no issue to this marriage. On 6 October 1836 he died as the result of an apoplexy
attack and was buried at Kensal Green Cemetery
. He left his estate to his kinsman Rev. Canon John Howard Marsden
. Elizabeth subsequently married Colonel William Leake
FRS on 17 September 1838.
Doctor of Civil Law
Doctor of Civil Law is a degree offered by some universities, such as the University of Oxford, instead of the more common Doctor of Laws degrees....
FRS (16 November 1754 – 6 October 1836) 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...
orientalist
Oriental studies
Oriental studies is the academic field of study that embraces Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology; in recent years the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Asian studies and Middle Eastern studies...
, linguist, numismatist and pioneer in the scientific study of Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. Serving as first secretary of the Admiralty
Admiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
during years of conflict with France, in 1805 Marsden received the bittersweet news of victory in the Battle of Trafalgar
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
and of the death of Admiral Horatio Nelson in the battle.
Early life
Marsden was the son of a Dublin merchant. He was born in Verval, County WicklowCounty Wicklow
County Wicklow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wicklow, which derives from the Old Norse name Víkingalág or Wykynlo. Wicklow County Council is the local authority for the county...
, and educated at Trinity College, Dublin. Upon obtaining a civil service appointment with the East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
at sixteen years of age, he was sent to Benkulen, Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
, in 1771. He was promoted to the position of principal secretary to the government, and acquired a knowledge of the Malay language
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
and the country. After returning to 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...
in 1779, he was awarded the Doctor of Civil Law (D.C.L.) degree by Oxford University in 1780 and published his History of Sumatra in (1783
1783 in literature
-Events:*Friedrich Schiller leaves Stuttgart for Weimar to avoid persecution.*William Cobbett arrives in London.*August von Kotzebue is appointed to the high court of appeal in Reval.-New books:* Thomas Day - The History of Standford and Merton...
).
Marsden was elected to membership in the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
in 1783. He had been recommended by James Rennell
James Rennell
Major James Rennell, FRS was an English geographer, historian and a pioneer of oceanography.-Early life:Rennell was born near Chudleigh in Devon...
, Edward Whitaker Gray
Edward Whitaker Gray
Edward Whitaker Gray , English botanist and secretary to the Royal Society, was uncle of Samuel Frederick Gray, author of The Practical Chemist.-Educational and professional roles:...
, John Topham, Alexander Dalrymple
Alexander Dalrymple
Alexander Dalrymple was a Scottish geographer and the first Hydrographer of the British Admiralty. He was the main proponent of the theory that there existed a vast undiscovered continent in the South Pacific, Terra Australis Incognita...
, and Charles Blagden
Charles Blagden
Sir Charles Brian Blagden FRS was a British physician and scientist. He served as a medical officer in the Army and later held the position of Secretary of the Royal Society...
.
Admiralty secretary
In 1795, Marsden was appointed second secretary to the admiralty, later rising to the position of first secretary with a salary of £4,000 per annum. It was in this capacity in 1805 that he received the news of victory in the Battle of Trafalgar and of the death of Admiral Horatio Nelson in the battle. He retired in 1807 with a lifetime pension of £1,500 per annum which he subsequently relinquished in 1831. In 18121812 in literature
The year 1812 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:* Series of lectures on drama and Shakespeare - Samuel Taylor Coleridge* Washington Irving begins editing Analectic magazine....
, he published Grammar and Dictionary of the Malay Language. This was followed by a translation of the Travels of Marco Polo
Marco Polo
Marco Polo was a Venetian merchant traveler from the Venetian Republic whose travels are recorded in Il Milione, a book which did much to introduce Europeans to Central Asia and China. He learned about trading whilst his father and uncle, Niccolò and Maffeo, travelled through Asia and apparently...
in 1818
1818 in literature
The year 1818 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* Lord Byron begins writing Don Juan.* Series of lectures on poetry, drama, philosophy - Samuel Taylor Coleridge.-New books:*Jane Austen - Persuasion...
.
Marsden was a member of many learned societies, and treasurer and vice-president of the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
. In 1834 he presented his collection of oriental coin
Coin
A coin is a piece of hard material that is standardized in weight, is produced in large quantities in order to facilitate trade, and primarily can be used as a legal tender token for commerce in the designated country, region, or territory....
s to the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
and his library of books and Oriental manuscripts to King's College London
King's College London
King's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
. His other works are Catalogue of Dictionaries, Vocabularies, Grammars and Alphabets (1796
1796 in literature
-Events:*Samuel Taylor Coleridge publishes his periodical The Watchman*Samuel Ireland publishes a collection of Shakespearean forgeries in his Miscellaneous Papers and Legal Instruments Under the Hand and Seal of William Shakespeare. Amid a growing controversy, Edmond Malone exposes the forgeries...
), Numismata orientalia (London, 1823–1825), and several papers on Eastern topics in the Philosophical Transactions and the Archaelogia.
He married Elizabeth, the daughter of his friend Sir Charles Wilkins
Charles Wilkins
Sir Charles Wilkins, KH, FRS , was an English typographer and Orientalist, notable as the first translator of Bhagavad Gita into English, and as the creator of the first Devanagari typeface....
FRS, but there was no issue to this marriage. On 6 October 1836 he died as the result of an apoplexy
Apoplexy
Apoplexy is a medical term, which can be used to describe 'bleeding' in a stroke . Without further specification, it is rather outdated in use. Today it is used only for specific conditions, such as pituitary apoplexy and ovarian apoplexy. In common speech, it is used non-medically to mean a state...
attack and was buried at Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in Kensal Green, in the west of London, England. It was immortalised in the lines of G. K. Chesterton's poem The Rolling English Road from his book The Flying Inn: "For there is good news yet to hear and fine things to be seen; Before we go to Paradise by way of...
. He left his estate to his kinsman Rev. Canon John Howard Marsden
John Howard Marsden
John Howard Marsden was an English antiquary, vicar, and first Disney Professor of Archaeology at the University of Cambridge....
. Elizabeth subsequently married Colonel William Leake
William Martin Leake
William Martin Leake, FRS , British antiquarian and topographer, was born in London.After completing his education at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, and spending four years in the West Indies as lieutenant of marine artillery, he was sent by the government to Constantinople to instruct the...
FRS on 17 September 1838.
Selected works
- 1784 -- The history of Sumatra: containing an account of the government, laws, customs and manners of the native inhabitants, with a description of the natural productions, and a relation of the ancient political state of that island. London: Printed for the author. OCLC 3792458
- 1802 -- "Observations on the language of Siwah; in a letter to the Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph Banks; by William Marsden, Esq., F.R.S." in The Journal of Frederick Horneman's Travels: From Cairo to Mourzouk, the Capital of the Kingdom of Fezzan, in Africa, by Friedrich Hornemann, James RennellJames RennellMajor James Rennell, FRS was an English geographer, historian and a pioneer of oceanography.-Early life:Rennell was born near Chudleigh in Devon...
, William Marsden and William YoungWilliam Young-Bills:* Bill Young , United States Representative from Florida's 10th congressional district* Bill Young , American football player* Bill Young , Australian rules footballer...
. London: G. and W. Nicol. OCLC 5165766 - 1796 -- Catalogue of Dictionaries, Vocabularies, Grammars and Alphabets
- 1812 -- Grammar and Dictionary of the Malay Language
- 1818 -- Travels of Marco Polo
- 1823 -- Numismata orientalia
- 1830 -- Memoirs of a Malayan Family by 'La-uddı̄n Nakhoda Muda (translated by William Marsden). London: Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and IrelandRoyal SocietyThe Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
. OCLC 5347657
External links
- Project Gutenberg: William Marsden (1783), The History of Sumatra