Donald Friell McLeod

Sir Donald Friell McLeod (6 May 1810 – 28 November 1872) was British civil servant in India who served as Lieutenant Governor of the Punjab between 1865 and 1870. He was one of the founders of Lahore Oriental College, now part of the Punjab University, and is generally remembered as a philanthropic administrator and promoter of education, of both Oriental studies by Europeans, and European literature studies in India.

Early life He was born at Fort William, Calcutta, then part of the Bengal Presidency. His father was Duncan McLeod (1780–1856), a Scotsman who later became lieutenant general of the Bengal engineers, and achieved distinction designing the Hazarduari Palace. His mother was Henrietta Friell, who descended maternally from the Boileau of Castelnau family. During his six-year tenure in Benares, he was regarded for having made significant improvements to the municipal administration and police, and greatly reducing crime in the city. McLeod was taken to St. George's Hospital, where his right arm was amputated whilst he was induced by ether. He died surrounded by friends and family a few hours later. He was also a philanthropist, and on retiring to London had little financial means beyond his pension. Shortly after his death, his collection of some 2,000 books was purchased in 1873 by the newly established University College, Lahore (now the University of the Punjab) as the foundation for its university library.

His friend John Lawrence called him a cunctator, describing him as morally and intellectually having no superior in the Punjab, but noting as an administrator he wasted much time on unimportant matters, spending half the day writing "elegant demi-official chits".