Home > Alexander Burnes

He was born at Montrose, Scotland. While serving in India, in the army of the East India Company, which he had joined at the age of sixteen, he learned Hindustani and Persian, and obtained an appointment as interpreter at Surat in 1822. Transferred to Cutch in 1826 as assistant to the political agent, he took an interest in the history and geography of north-western India and the adjacent countries, at that time very little known. His proposal in 1829 to undertake a journey of exploration through the valley of the Indus River was not carried out for political reasons; but in 1831 he was sent to Lahore with a present of horses from King William IVWilliam IV (William Henry) ( 21 August 1765 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom and of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death. William, the son of George III and younger brother and successor of George IV, was the penultimate monarch of the Ho to Maharaja Ranjit SinghMaharaja Ranjit Singh was a Sikh ruler of the Punjab. His tomb is located in Lahore, Pakistan. External links Sikhism Indian history. and took advantage of the opportunity for extensive investigations. In the following years, in company with Mohan LalMohan Lal ( 1812 1877) played a very central role in the First Anglo-Afghan War of 1838-1842. His biography of Dost Mohammad Khan, emir of Kabul is a primary source on the War. He was a great traveller, brilliant diplomat, and a reputed author. He was bor, his travels continued through AfghanistanAfghanistan ( Dari/ Pashtu: Afgnistn is a country in Central Asia. It is bordered by Iran in the west, Pakistan in the south and east, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in the north, and China in the easternmost part of the country. It is among the across the Hindu KushThe Hindu Kush or Hindukush is a mountain range in Afghanistan as well as in the Northern Areas of Pakistan. It was named during the times when Mughals were making influx into greater India, hence the name Hindu (meaning Indian). It is the westernmost ext to Bokhara and PersiaPersia is the historical name for the state of Iran. The name was used in the West due to the ancient Greek name for Iran, Persis''. Persia is used to describe the nation of Iran, its people, or its ancient empire. The name Persia comes from a province in.

The narrative which he published on his visit to EnglandEngland is the largest, the most populous, and the most densely populated of the four " Home Nations" which make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK). Occupying the south-eastern portion of the island of Great Britain, England in 1834 added immensely to contemporary knowledge of these countries, and was one of the most popular books of the time. The first edition earned the author £800, and his services were recognized not only by the Royal Geographical Society of London, but also by that of Paris. Soon after his return to India in 1835 he was appointed to the court of Sind to secure a treaty for the navigation of the Indus; and in 1836 he undertook a political mission to Dost Mahommed Khan at Kabul. He advised Lord Auckland to support Dost Mahommed on the throne of Kabul, but the viceroy preferred to follow the opinion of Sir William Hay Macnaghten and reinstated Shah Shuja, thus leading up to the disasters of the First Afghan War. On the restoration of Shah Shuja in 1839, Burnes became regular political agent at Kabul, and remained there till his assassination in 1841, during the heat of an insurrection. The calmness with which he continued at his post, long after the imminence of his danger was apparent, won him an heroic reputation. It came to light in 1861 that some of Burnes' despatches from Kabul in 1839 had been altered, so as to convey opinions opposite to his, but Lord Palmerston refused after such a lapse of time to grant the inquiry demanded in the House of Commons. A narrative of his later labours was published in 1842 under the title of Cabool.

See Sir JW Kaye, Lives of Indian Officers (1889).