William Kirkpatrick

Major-General William Kirkpatrick (1754 – 22 August 1812) was a Bengal Army officer, diplomat and orientalist.

Life

He was the eldest son of James Kirkpatrick, a colonel in the Madras Army, and grandson of the author James Kirkpatrick, M.D.. His father was in command of the troops at Fort Marlborough, Sumatra, in 1777, and returned home in 1779. He married Katherine, daughter of Alexander Monro, by whom he had three sons—William, George, in the Bombay civil service, and James Achilles. He died at Hollydale, Kent, in 1818, aged 89.

William Kirkpatrick, the eldest son, became a cadet in 1771, was appointed ensign in the Bengal Army on 17 January 1773, lieutenant 9 April 1777, captain 3 April 1781, and major 1 March 1794. He was Persian interpreter to Giles Stibbert, who was commander-in-chief in Bengal in 1777–9 and 1780–5, and prepared a Persian translation of the articles of war (printed 1782). Afterwards he was resident with Mahadji Scindia at Gwalior, and served on Lord Cornwallis's staff as Persian interpreter in the Third Anglo-Mysore War of 1790–1. He translated works from the Persian, and also published a translation of the Diary and Letters of Tippoo Sultaun (London, 1804), and an Account of the Mission to Nepaul in 1793 (London, 1811).

Family Kirkpatrick married Maria Pawson, a member of the Yorkshire gentry, in September 1785 after a short courtship. She subsequently accompanied him back to India. Their relationship resulted in four children, but quickly became strained and fell apart. Maria returned to England with her children in 1788. From then on, Kirkpatrick attempted to keep in contact with her, but they grew increasingly distant and legally separated in 1797. The children were consequently put into the care of William's family, whereas Maria went back to India with her new lover. In contrast, Kirkpatrick had a much longer-lasting relationship with Dhoolaury Bibi, an Indian woman. They were together from before 1777 until his marriage with Maria in 1785, and resumed their affair when his wife left India in 1788.

Kirkpatrick had four daughters with Maria: Clementina, who married Admiral Sir John Louis, 2nd Baronet; Barbara, who married Charles Buller, M.P.; Julia, who married Edward Strachey (1774–1832), son of Sir Henry Strachey, 1st Baronet, and was mother of Sir Edward Strachey, 3rd Baronet; and Eliza, who died unmarried.

In addition, he fathered two children with Dhoolaury Bibi who he legally acknowledged. Both were educated in England: Robert (*1777) Cecilia