William Foster (historiographer): Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|British historiographer and civil servant}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox person
{{Infobox person
| honorific_prefix  = [[Sir]]
| honorific_prefix  = [[Sir]]
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== Biography ==
== Biography ==
Foster was born on 19 November 1863, the son of a civil servant. He was educated in Coopers' Grammar School and [[London University]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Beckingham|first=C. F.|date=1951|title=Sir William Foster, C.I.E.|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0035869X0010499X/type/journal_article|journal=[[Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society]]|volume=83|issue=3–4|pages=224|doi=10.1017/S0035869X0010499X|issn=1356-1863|doi-access=free}}</ref> In 1882 he entered [[India Office]] and continued working there until 1927.<ref name=":0" /> He became Registrar and Superintendent of Records from 1907 to 1923 and Historiographer to the India Office from 1923 to 1927.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Makepeace|first=Margaret|date=4 June 2020|title=An unexpected letter from Sir William Foster of the India Office|url=https://blogs.bl.uk/untoldlives/2020/06/an-unexpected-letter-from-sir-william-foster-of-the-india-office.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201227173602/https://blogs.bl.uk/untoldlives/2020/06/an-unexpected-letter-from-sir-william-foster-of-the-india-office.html|archive-date=27 December 2020|access-date=27 December 2020|website=[[British Library]]}}</ref> He served the [[Hakluyt Society]] as Secretary (1893–1902) and President (1928–1945).<ref name=":0" />
Foster was born on 19 November 1863, the son of a civil servant. He was educated in the Coopers' Company's (Grammar) School for Boys and [[London University]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Beckingham|first=C. F.|date=1951|title=Sir William Foster, C.I.E.|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0035869X0010499X/type/journal_article|journal=[[Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society]]|volume=83|issue=3–4|pages=224|doi=10.1017/S0035869X0010499X|issn=1356-1863|doi-access=free}}</ref> In 1882 he entered [[India Office]] and continued working there until 1927.<ref name=":0" /> He became Registrar and Superintendent of Records from 1907 to 1923 and Historiographer to the India Office from 1923 to 1927.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Makepeace|first=Margaret|date=4 June 2020|title=An unexpected letter from Sir William Foster of the India Office|url=https://blogs.bl.uk/untoldlives/2020/06/an-unexpected-letter-from-sir-william-foster-of-the-india-office.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201227173602/https://blogs.bl.uk/untoldlives/2020/06/an-unexpected-letter-from-sir-william-foster-of-the-india-office.html|archive-date=27 December 2020|access-date=27 December 2020|website=[[British Library]]}}</ref> He served the [[Hakluyt Society]] as Secretary (1893–1902) and President (1928–1945).<ref name=":0" />


Foster was [[Knight Bachelor|knighted]] in the [[1925 New Year Honours]].<ref> {{London Gazette|issue=33007|page=2|date=30 December 1924|supp=y}} </ref>
Foster was [[Knight Bachelor|knighted]] in the [[1925 New Year Honours]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=33007|page=2|date=30 December 1924|supp=y}}</ref>


==Works==
==Works==
A bibliography of Foster is provided by Anthony Farrington.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Farrington|first=Anthony|title=Sir William Foster, 1863-1951: A bibliography|publisher=Her Majesty's Stationery Office|year=1972|location=London}}</ref>
A bibliography of Foster is provided by Anthony Farrington.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Farrington|first=Anthony|title=Sir William Foster, 1863-1951: A bibliography|publisher=Her Majesty's Stationery Office|year=1972|location=London}}</ref>
* ''The Register of Letters and of the Governor and Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies 1600-1619'' with [[George Christopher Molesworth Birdwood|Sir George Birdwood]] (1893)
* ''The Register of Letters and of the Governor and Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies 1600-1619'' with [[George Birdwood|Sir George Birdwood]] (1893)
* ''Letters Received By The East India Company'' (1897)
* ''Letters Received By The East India Company'' (1897)
* ''The Embassy of Sir Thomas Roe to India 1615-19: As Narrated in his Journal and Correspondence'' 2 vols. (ed. 1899)  
* ''The Embassy of Sir Thomas Roe to India 1615-19: As Narrated in his Journal and Correspondence'' 2 vols. (ed. 1899)  
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* ''Thomas Herbert: Travels in Persia 1627-1629'' (ed. 1928)
* ''Thomas Herbert: Travels in Persia 1627-1629'' (ed. 1928)
* ''A New Account of the East Indies'' 2 vols. with Alexander Hamilton (1930)
* ''A New Account of the East Indies'' 2 vols. with Alexander Hamilton (1930)
* ''England's Quest of Eastern Trade'' (1933)
Also - * ''Winter, Edward'', (signed as "W. F.") in Dictionary of National Biography, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., (1885-1900) in 63 vols.
Also - * ''Winter, Edward'', (signed as "W. F.") in Dictionary of National Biography, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., (1885-1900) in 63 vols.


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==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}
{{wikisource author}}
{{wikisource|works=or}}


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, William}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, William}}
[[Category:1863 births]]
[[Category:1863 births]]
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[[Category:Knights Bachelor]]
[[Category:Knights Bachelor]]
[[Category:People from Southsea]]
[[Category:People from Southsea]]
[[Category:Civil servants in the India Office]]
[[Category:Companions of the Order of the Indian Empire]]
[[Category:Alumni of the University of London]]
[[Category:British archivists]]

Latest revision as of 02:27, 8 June 2025

Sir

William Foster

CIE
Born(1863-11-19)19 November 1863
Died11 May 1951(1951-05-11) (aged 87)

Sir William Foster CIE (19 November 1863 – 11 May 1951) was a British historiographer and civil servant who was Registrar and Superintendent of Records in the India Office.[1] He was a member of the Hakluyt Society and was "the foremost authority on the detailed history of early British relations with India and other countries in Asia."[2]

Biography[edit | edit source]

Foster was born on 19 November 1863, the son of a civil servant. He was educated in the Coopers' Company's (Grammar) School for Boys and London University.[3] In 1882 he entered India Office and continued working there until 1927.[3] He became Registrar and Superintendent of Records from 1907 to 1923 and Historiographer to the India Office from 1923 to 1927.[4] He served the Hakluyt Society as Secretary (1893–1902) and President (1928–1945).[3]

Foster was knighted in the 1925 New Year Honours.[5]

Works[edit | edit source]

A bibliography of Foster is provided by Anthony Farrington.[6]

  • The Register of Letters and of the Governor and Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies 1600-1619 with Sir George Birdwood (1893)
  • Letters Received By The East India Company (1897)
  • The Embassy of Sir Thomas Roe to India 1615-19: As Narrated in his Journal and Correspondence 2 vols. (ed. 1899)
  • The English Factories in India, 1618-1669 : a Calendar of Documents in the India Office, British Museum and Public Record Office (1911) first of thirteen volumes, eleven of which are available at: Internet Archive
  • A Guide to the India Office Records, 1600-1858 (1919)
  • Early Travels in India, 1583-1619 (1921)
  • The East India House: its History and Associations (1924)
  • John Company (1926)
  • A Supplementary Calendar of Documents in the India Office Relating to India or to Home Affairs of the East India Company 1600-1640 (1928)
  • Thomas Herbert: Travels in Persia 1627-1629 (ed. 1928)
  • A New Account of the East Indies 2 vols. with Alexander Hamilton (1930)
  • England's Quest of Eastern Trade (1933)

Also - * Winter, Edward, (signed as "W. F.") in Dictionary of National Biography, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., (1885-1900) in 63 vols.

Bibliography[edit | edit source]

  • Beckingham, C. F. (1951). "Sir William Foster, C.I.E." Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society. 83 (3–4): 224. doi:10.1017/S0035869X0010499X.

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ "The British Library - India Office Select Materials - Collection details". British Library. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  2. ↑ "Obituary: Sir William Foster". The Times. 12 May 1951. p. 8.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Beckingham, C. F. (1951). "Sir William Foster, C.I.E." Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society. 83 (3–4): 224. doi:10.1017/S0035869X0010499X. ISSN 1356-1863.
  4. ↑ Makepeace, Margaret (4 June 2020). "An unexpected letter from Sir William Foster of the India Office". British Library. Archived from the original on 27 December 2020. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  5. ↑ "No. 33007". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 1924. p. 2.
  6. ↑ Farrington, Anthony (1972). Sir William Foster, 1863-1951: A bibliography. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office.
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