Papers of Sir Charles Colville

Scope and Content

A series of letters sent from Mauritius concerning the setting up of an astronomy observatory. Dated from 1829-1831. Also a copy of the Mauritius Gazette, Saturday 20th June 1829 containing an article on astronomy.

Administrative / Biographical History

Sir CHARLES COLVILLE was the second son of John, ninth Lord Colville of Culross. He entered the army in 1781, and was a career soldier serving, amongst other places, in the West Indies, Ireland, Egypt and Gibraltar, and rising to the rank of General. He was was commander-in-chief at Bombay from 1819 to 1825, and governor of the Mauritius from 1828 to 1834. He was promoted to General in 1837, and died on 27 March 1843 at Rosslyn House, Hampstead.

Access Information

Open. Please contact the archivist using the email address given here. The archive is open on Tuesdays and Fridays 10-5, and Thursdays 2-5. Access is to any researcher without appointment but it will help if an appointment is made via phone or email. Please bring photo ID

Acquisition Information

It is probable that Colville sent the Papers to Alexander Johnston, Vice-President of the Royal Asiatic Society, in order to garner support for an observatory in Mauritius.

Archivist's Note

The material was catalogued by Nancy Charley, RAS Archivist, in 2019.

Conditions Governing Use

Digital photography (without flash) for research purposes may be permitted upon completion of a copyright declaration form, and with respect to current UK copyright law.

Custodial History

These papers were written or sourced by Charles Colville when he was governor of Mauritius.

Subjects