Richard Keigwin (Governor of Bombay)
Encyclopedia
Captain Richard Keigwin was a governor of Mumbai
during the early period of English rule of that place. He was never fully recognized in this position by the English. He acted as governor of Bombay from 1683-1684.
Keigwin had served as governor of St. Helena prior to coming to Bombay in 1676. At the time Bombay was under the control of the English East India Company however Keigwin was an independent settler. Shortly after arriving he organized a military force and quickly gained a seat on the governing council of Bombay. From 1677-1681 he served as the head of company military forces in Bombay, but the Bombay trading operations were under the control a governor based in Surat
with a deputy governor at Bombay. In 1679 Keigwin was involved in winning a significant naval victory against the Mahrattas. During this time the head government authority in Bombay was Henry Oxenden. In 1682 John Child became governor of East India Company Operations based in Surat. He received orders to reduce the cost of operations in Bombay and sent his brother-in-law Charles Ward to serve as his deputy in Bombay. The troops in Bombay did not like having their wages cut so they revolted and declared Keigwin governor.
Keigwin then sent a later to England asking Charles II
to take direct control of Bombay again stating that the East India Company had failed. After running Bombay for about a year Sir Thomas Grantham
arrived to straighten things out. Grantham worked out a general pardon, allowed Keigwin to retain the salary he had collected while acting as governor and then brought Keigwin back to England with him.
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
during the early period of English rule of that place. He was never fully recognized in this position by the English. He acted as governor of Bombay from 1683-1684.
Keigwin had served as governor of St. Helena prior to coming to Bombay in 1676. At the time Bombay was under the control of the English East India Company however Keigwin was an independent settler. Shortly after arriving he organized a military force and quickly gained a seat on the governing council of Bombay. From 1677-1681 he served as the head of company military forces in Bombay, but the Bombay trading operations were under the control a governor based in Surat
Surat
Surat , also known as Suryapur, is the commercial capital city of the Indian state of Gujarat. Surat is India's Eighth most populous city and Ninth-most populous urban agglomeration. It is also administrative capital of Surat district and one of the fastest growing cities in India. The city proper...
with a deputy governor at Bombay. In 1679 Keigwin was involved in winning a significant naval victory against the Mahrattas. During this time the head government authority in Bombay was Henry Oxenden. In 1682 John Child became governor of East India Company Operations based in Surat. He received orders to reduce the cost of operations in Bombay and sent his brother-in-law Charles Ward to serve as his deputy in Bombay. The troops in Bombay did not like having their wages cut so they revolted and declared Keigwin governor.
Keigwin then sent a later to England asking Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
to take direct control of Bombay again stating that the East India Company had failed. After running Bombay for about a year Sir Thomas Grantham
Thomas Grantham
Sir Thomas Grantham was an English tobacco trader and naval officer, commander of the naval fleet of the British East India Company. In 1684 he was sent to Bombay by the King of England to put down an insurrection led by the Company, who had set up a parallel government and assumed wide authority...
arrived to straighten things out. Grantham worked out a general pardon, allowed Keigwin to retain the salary he had collected while acting as governor and then brought Keigwin back to England with him.
Sources
- John Keay. The Honorable Company: A History of the English East India Company. New York: Macmillan, 1991. p. 137-139.
- John Knox Laughton. "Richard Keigwin" in Dictionary of National Biography Vol. 30.