LILLIE, George Arthur Howard. North End, Fulham, London 24.2.1831 — Kensington, London 28.11.1911. British Colonial Officer in India and a Lay Scholar. Lieutenant. Son of Lieutenant-Colonel Sir John Scott L. and Louisa Sutherland. After Addiscombe came to India in 1848. Served in the Regiment of Lucknow. In India he is said to have adopted Buddhism. In the early 1860s living in London. Also known as landscape painter. Unmarried, living with his aunt and after her death with his sister (both also unmarried).

His works, full of speculative ideas, were deemed poor and inaccurate even by contemporary critics (1882) and have long enjoyed well deserved oblivion. With Theosophy he was critical, calling Blavatsky a fake and plagiarist.

Publications: Buddha and Early Buddhism. 14+256 p. L. 1881; The popular life of Buddha containing an answer to the “Hibbert lectures” of 1881. 14+340 p. L. 1883; The Influence of Buddhism on Primitive Christianity. 8+184 p. L. 1893, rev. ed. as India in Primitive Christianity. 299 p. L. 1909; Rama and Homer. An argument that in the Indian Epics Homer found the theme of his two great poems. 15+284 p. L. 1912; and other books.

– “Buddhist Saint Worship”, JRAS 14, 1882, 218-226.

Sources: suffolkartists.co.uk; Wikipedia.