John Elliot Drinkwater Bethune

John Elliot Drinkwater Bethune (1801–1851) was an English educator, mathematician and polyglot known for promoting women's education in India. He was the founder of Calcutta Female School (now known as Bethune College) in Calcutta, which is considered the oldest women's college in Asia. He started his professional life as a lawyer in England and came to India by his appointment as a law member of the Governor General's Council of Ministers.

Early life Bethune was born in Ealing, England, the elder son of John Drinkwater Bethune. He studied at Trinity College, Cambridge, after which he received employment as the Counsel of the Home Office. He drafted many essential reforms in this position, including the Municipal Reform Act, the Tithe Commutation Act and the County Courts Act. In 1848, he was appointed as a member of the Supreme Council of India and subsequently became the President of the Council of Education. The school started in Mukherjee's home in Baitakkhana (now known as Bowbazar), with 21 girls enrolled.

The following year, enrollment rose to 80. In November, on a plot on the west side of Cornwallis Square, the cornerstone for a permanent school building was laid. The name "Hindu Female School" was inscribed on the copper plate placed in the stone and on the ceremonial silver trowel made for the occasion. In 1879, it was developed into Bethune College, the first women's college in Asia.

Death and burial John Elliot Bethune died in Calcutta, West Bengal, India, in 1851. He was buried in Lower Circular Road Cemetery.