Roger Drake

Roger Drake (born 1721 or 1722) was a British administrator in the East India Company. He served as President of Fort William in Bengal between 1752 and 1756 and was later reprimanded for his actions during the Siege of Calcutta in 1756.

Biography Born in 1721 or 1722, Drake was the nephew of financier Roger Drake, of the firm Drake and Long based in Leadenhall Street and prominent director of the East India Company. Drake joined the service of the East India Company and arrived in Bengal on 26 May 1737. He rose through the ranks and became President of Fort William on 8 August 1752 following the death of William Fytche.

In April 1756, Siraj ud-Daulah became Nawab of Bengal and sought to reprimand the company for abusing their privileged trading rights. He wrote a letter to both the French and British Company's requesting that they remove all fortifications at Chandannagore and Calcutta. The French replied tactfully claiming they were merely repairing existing structures whilst Drake replied that he was improving the defences in case of war with France. During the siege Drake controversially abandoned his post and with a handful of fellow officers sought refuge with the women and children on ships moored nearby In his absence John Zephaniah Holwell was placed in charge and led the defence until their capitulation in the evening of 20 June. Calcutta was subsequently sacked and the remaining Europeans were held captive in the Black Hole of Calcutta.

Personal life He married Mary Coales on 10 January 1743 and they had a daughter Millicent. After Mary's death on 6 October 1749 he married her sister Martha Coales with whom he had three more children, Roger, Richard, and Nathaniel.