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{{short description|English officer | {{short description|English officer and civil servant (1817–1908)}} | ||
{{Use dmy dates|date=April | {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} | ||
{{Use British English|date=April | {{Use British English|date=April 2022}} | ||
{{Infobox officeholder | {{Infobox officeholder | ||
|honorific_prefix = Sir | |honorific_prefix = Sir | ||
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|predecessor = [[The Marquess of Lorne]] | |predecessor = [[The Marquess of Lorne]] | ||
|successor = Sir [[Mountstuart Duff]] | |successor = Sir [[Mountstuart Duff]] | ||
|birth_date = {{birth date|1817| | |birth_date = {{birth date|1817|7|24|df=y}} | ||
|birth_place = [[Stowey, Somerset]], England | |birth_place = [[Stowey, Somerset]], England | ||
|death_date = {{death date and age|1908| | |death_date = {{death date and age|1908|2|12|1817|7|24|df=y}} | ||
|death_place = [[Camden, London]], England | |death_place = [[Camden, London]], England | ||
| | |spouse = [[Jane Maria Strachey|Jane Maria Grant]] (1859–1908; his death) | ||
|children = 13, including [[Lytton Strachey|Lytton]], [[James Strachey|James]], [[Dorothy Bussy|Dorothea]], [[Pernel Strachey|Pernel]], and [[Oliver Strachey|Oliver]] | |||
|father = [[Sir Henry Strachey, 1st Baronet|Sir Henry Strachey]] | |||
|branch_label = Branch | |branch_label = Branch | ||
|branch = {{army|British India|size=20px}} | |branch = {{army|British India|size=20px}} | ||
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}} | }} | ||
'''Sir Richard Strachey''' {{postnominals|country=GBR|GCSI|FRS|FRGS}} (24 July 1817 – 12 February 1908) was a British soldier and Indian administrator, the third son of Edward Strachey and grandson of | '''Sir Richard Strachey''' {{postnominals|country=GBR|GCSI|FRS|FRGS}} (24 July 1817 – 12 February 1908) was a British soldier and Indian administrator, the third son of Edward Strachey and grandson of [[Sir Henry Strachey, 1st Baronet]]. | ||
==Early life== | ==Early life== | ||
He was born on 24 July 1817, at [[Sutton Court]], [[Stowey]], Somerset. From [[Addiscombe Military Seminary]] he passed into the [[Bengal Engineers]] in 1836,<ref>Bombay engineers according to Sabyasachi Bhattacharya (2005)</ref> and was employed for some years on [[irrigation]] works in the [[North-Western Provinces]]. So many members of the family were in the Indian government that sarcastic mentions were made of the "Government of the Stracheys".<ref name=obit>Holdich, T. H. (1908) Obituary: General Sir Richard Strachey, GCSI, FRS, LLD. The Geographical Journal, Vol. 31, No. 3 (Mar. 1908), pp. 342–344</ref> | He was born on 24 July 1817, at [[Sutton Court]], [[Stowey]], Somerset. From [[Addiscombe Military Seminary]] he passed into the [[Bengal Engineers]] in 1836,<ref>Bombay engineers according to Sabyasachi Bhattacharya (2005).</ref> and was employed for some years on [[irrigation]] works in the [[North-Western Provinces]]. So many members of the family were in the Indian government that sarcastic mentions were made of the "Government of the Stracheys".<ref name=obit>Holdich, T. H. (1908) Obituary: General Sir Richard Strachey, GCSI, FRS, LLD. The Geographical Journal, Vol. 31, No. 3 (Mar. 1908), pp. 342–344.</ref> | ||
==Career== | ==Career== | ||
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[[File:StracheyDedication.png|thumb|250px|right|Dedication of 1889 meteorology department book by [[Henry Francis Blanford]] ]] | [[File:StracheyDedication.png|thumb|250px|right|Dedication of 1889 meteorology department book by [[Henry Francis Blanford]] ]] | ||
Strachey's scientific labours in connection with the geology, [[botany]] and physical geography of the [[Himalayas]] were considerable. He devoted much time to [[meteorology|meteorological]] research, was largely instrumental in the formation of the [[Indian Meteorological Department|Indian meteorological department]], and became chairman of the meteorological council of the [[Royal Society]] in 1883. From 1888 to 1890 he was president of the [[Royal Geographical Society]]. In 1897 he was awarded one of the [[Royal Medal]]s of the Royal Society, of which he became a fellow in 1854; and in the same year he was created [[Order of the Star of India| | Strachey's scientific labours in connection with the geology, [[botany]] and physical geography of the [[Himalayas]] were considerable. He devoted much time to [[meteorology|meteorological]] research, was largely instrumental in the formation of the [[Indian Meteorological Department|Indian meteorological department]], and became chairman of the meteorological council of the [[Royal Society]] in 1883. From 1888 to 1890 he was president of the [[Royal Geographical Society]]. In 1897 he was awarded one of the [[Royal Medal]]s of the Royal Society, of which he became a fellow in 1854; and in the same year he was created [[Order of the Star of India|GCSI]]. He died on 12 February 1908. | ||
Strachey did much good work for the Royal Society, served on its council four times, from 1872 to 1874, 1880 to 1881, 1884 to 1886, and 1890 to 1891, and was twice a vice-president ; he was a member of its meteorological committee (which controlled the meteorological office) in 1867, and he was a member of the council which replaced the committee in 1876, and from 1883 to 1895 was its chairman. From 1873 he was on the committee of the Royal Society for managing the Kew observatory. The royal medal of the society was bestowed upon him in 1897 for his researches in physical and botanical geography and in meteorology, and the Royal Meteorological Society awarded him the Symons medal in 1906. His most important scientific contributions to knowledge were made in meteorology. He laid the foundations of the scientific study of Indian meteorology, organising a department whose labours have been of use in assisting to forecast droughts and consequent scarcity and of no little advantage to meteorologists generally. For years he served on the committee of solar physics. A sound mathematician, Strachey delighted in mechanical inventions and especially in designing instruments to give graphic expression to formulas he had devised for working out meteorological problems. In 1884 he designed an instrument called the 'sine curve developer' to show in a graphic form the results obtained by applying to hourly readings of barograms and thermograms his formula for the calculation of harmonic coefficients. In 1888 and 1890 he designed two 'slide rules,' one to facilitate the computation of the amplitude and time of maximum of harmonic constants from values obtained by applying his formula to hourly readings of barograms and thermograms ; the other to obtain the height of clouds from measurements of two photographs taken simultaneously with cameras placed at the ends of a base line half a mile in length. A further invention was a portable and very simple instrument, called a '[[nephoscope]],' for observing the direction of motion of high cirrus clouds, whose movement is generally too slow to allow of its direction being determined by the unaided eye.<ref name="dictionary">{{cite web |title=Dictionary of National Biography, 1912 supplement |url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Strachey,_Richard_(DNB12)}}</ref> | Strachey did much good work for the Royal Society, served on its council four times, from 1872 to 1874, 1880 to 1881, 1884 to 1886, and 1890 to 1891, and was twice a vice-president ; he was a member of its meteorological committee (which controlled the meteorological office) in 1867, and he was a member of the council which replaced the committee in 1876, and from 1883 to 1895 was its chairman. From 1873 he was on the committee of the Royal Society for managing the Kew observatory. The royal medal of the society was bestowed upon him in 1897 for his researches in physical and botanical geography and in meteorology, and the Royal Meteorological Society awarded him the Symons medal in 1906. His most important scientific contributions to knowledge were made in meteorology. He laid the foundations of the scientific study of Indian meteorology, organising a department whose labours have been of use in assisting to forecast droughts and consequent scarcity and of no little advantage to meteorologists generally. For years he served on the committee of solar physics. A sound mathematician, Strachey delighted in mechanical inventions and especially in designing instruments to give graphic expression to formulas he had devised for working out meteorological problems. In 1884 he designed an instrument called the 'sine curve developer' to show in a graphic form the results obtained by applying to hourly readings of barograms and thermograms his formula for the calculation of harmonic coefficients. In 1888 and 1890 he designed two 'slide rules,' one to facilitate the computation of the amplitude and time of maximum of harmonic constants from values obtained by applying his formula to hourly readings of barograms and thermograms ; the other to obtain the height of clouds from measurements of two photographs taken simultaneously with cameras placed at the ends of a base line half a mile in length. A further invention was a portable and very simple instrument, called a '[[nephoscope]],' for observing the direction of motion of high cirrus clouds, whose movement is generally too slow to allow of its direction being determined by the unaided eye.<ref name="dictionary">{{cite web |title=Dictionary of National Biography, 1912 supplement |url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Strachey,_Richard_(DNB12)}}</ref> | ||
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[[File:LadyStrachey.jpg|thumb|upright|Lady Strachey]] | [[File:LadyStrachey.jpg|thumb|upright|Lady Strachey]] | ||
[[File:StracheyFamily.jpg|thumb|Sons and daughters of Sir Richard and Lady Strachey. Left to right: Marjorie, [[Dorothy Bussy|Dorothy]], [[Lytton Strachey|Lytton]], Joan Pernel, [[Oliver Strachey|Oliver]], Dick, Ralph, [[Pippa Strachey|Philippa]], Elinor, [[James Strachey|James]].]] | [[File:StracheyFamily.jpg|thumb|Sons and daughters of Sir Richard and Lady Strachey. Left to right: Marjorie, [[Dorothy Bussy|Dorothy]], [[Lytton Strachey|Lytton]], Joan Pernel, [[Oliver Strachey|Oliver]], Dick, Ralph, [[Pippa Strachey|Philippa]], Elinor, [[James Strachey|James]].]] | ||
Strachey was about 37 years old when he married Caroline Bowles, who died in 1855, within a year of their wedding. | |||
Nearly four years were to pass before he married again. On 4 January 1859, the 42-year-old Richard married 18-year-old [[Jane Maria Strachey|Jane Maria Grant]], to be known henceforth as Jane, Lady Strachey (1840–1928). His wife was to become a well-known author and supporter of [[women's suffrage]], who would co-lead the [[Mud March (Suffragists)|Mud March]] of 1907 in London. Sir Richard and Lady Strachey were the parents of thirteen children, of whom ten survived to adulthood; among them were:<ref name=odnb>Rita McWilliams Tullberg, ‘Strachey, (Joan) Pernel (1876–1951)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/48467, accessed 6 March 2017]</ref> | Nearly four years were to pass before he married again. On 4 January 1859, the 42-year-old Richard married 18-year-old [[Jane Maria Strachey|Jane Maria Grant]], to be known henceforth as Jane, Lady Strachey (1840–1928). His wife was to become a well-known author and supporter of [[women's suffrage]], who would co-lead the [[Mud March (Suffragists)|Mud March]] of 1907 in London. Sir Richard and Lady Strachey were the parents of thirteen children, of whom ten survived to adulthood; among them were:<ref name=odnb>Rita McWilliams Tullberg, ‘Strachey, (Joan) Pernel (1876–1951)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/48467, accessed 6 March 2017]</ref> | ||
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*[[Pippa Strachey]] (1872–1968), [[suffragist]] and feminist | *[[Pippa Strachey]] (1872–1968), [[suffragist]] and feminist | ||
*[[Oliver Strachey]] (1874–1960), writer and cryptoanalyst; worked at [[Bletchley Park]] during [[WWII]]. His wives were Ruby Mayers and the feminist [[Ray Strachey|Ray Costelloe Strachey]] (1887–1940). | *[[Oliver Strachey]] (1874–1960), writer and cryptoanalyst; worked at [[Bletchley Park]] during [[WWII]]. His wives were Ruby Mayers and the feminist [[Ray Strachey|Ray Costelloe Strachey]] (1887–1940). | ||
*[[Pernel Strachey]] ( | *[[Pernel Strachey]] (1876–1951), scholar and educationist; principal of [[Newnham College, Cambridge]] | ||
*[[Lytton Strachey]] ( | *[[Lytton Strachey]] (1880–1932), writer and thinker; among his prominent works are ''[[Eminent Victorians]]'' and a celebrated biography of Queen Victoria | ||
* Marjorie Strachey (1882–1964), [[Newnham College, Cambridge|Newnham]] graduate and author | * Marjorie Strachey (1882–1964), [[Newnham College, Cambridge|Newnham]] graduate and author | ||
*[[James Strachey]] (1887–1967), psychoanalyst and biographer of Sigmund Freud; husband of psychoanalyst [[Alix Strachey]] (1892–1973) | *[[James Strachey]] (1887–1967), psychoanalyst and biographer of Sigmund Freud; husband of psychoanalyst [[Alix Strachey]] (1892–1973) | ||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
*[[Strachey | *[[Strachey baronets]] | ||
==Notes== | ==Notes== | ||
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==Other sources== | ==Other sources== | ||
*{{DNB12|first=Robert Hamilton|last=Vetch|wstitle=Strachey, Richard|volume=3}} | *{{DNB12|first=Robert Hamilton|last=Vetch| authorlink=Robert Hamilton Vetch|wstitle=Strachey, Richard|volume=3}} | ||
*{{EB1911|wstitle=Strachey, Sir Richard|volume=25|page=976}} | *{{EB1911|wstitle=Strachey, Sir Richard|volume=25|page=976}} | ||
* Sabyasachi Bhattacharya (2005) The Financial Foundations of the British Raj. Orient Longman. {{ISBN|81-250-2903-6}}. | * Sabyasachi Bhattacharya (2005) The Financial Foundations of the British Raj. Orient Longman. {{ISBN|81-250-2903-6}}. | ||
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[[Category:Royal Medal winners]] | [[Category:Royal Medal winners]] | ||
[[Category:Strachey family|Richard]] | [[Category:Strachey family|Richard]] | ||
[[Category:Members of the Council of the Governor General of India]] | |||
[[Category:Members of the Council of India]] | |||