TORRENS, Henry D’Oyley. Meerut 24.2.1833 — London 1.12.1889. Sir. British Colonial Officer in India. Son of —> H. W. Torrens (1806–1852) and Eliza Mary Roberts (1808–1834). Joined army in 1849, Colonel 1864, Major-General 1869 and Lieutenant-General 1884. Served in Crimean war and 1857 uprising. Travels in Ladakh, etc. during the…
SCHÖNBERG, Wolf Erich, Baron von. Herzogswalde, Sachsen 30.4.1812 — Herzogswalde 14.5.1883. German Traveller. Son of Friedrich August Wolf von Schönberg (1780–1830) and Henriette von Bühnau (1784–1812, died in childbed). Studied forestry at the academies of Tharandt and Dreissigacker. Travelled in India and Persia in the 1840s, then also in Africa. Married 1854…
SALT, Henry. Lichfield, Staffordshire 14.6.1780 — Desouk 80 km east of Alexandria, Egypt 30.10.1827. British Diplomat, Traveller, Collector of Antiquities and Pioneer of Egyptology. Son of physician Thomas Salt and Alice Butt, educated in Lichfield, Market Bosworth and Birmingham. Trained as portrait-painter and went to London in 1797, but soon…
ROBERTS, Emma. Methley near Leeds 1793? — Poona 16.9.1840. British Journalist and Poet in India. Daughter of Captain William Roberts, who died before her birth, and his wife Eliza, grew up with her mother in Bath. Moved in literary circles and studied historical material in British Museum. In 1828 went…
REGEL, Johann Albert von (Russian Ioann-Al’bert Regel’). Zürich 12.12.1845 — Odessa 6.7.1908. Swiss Physician, Botanist and Exporer in Russia. Son of Eduard Regel (1815–1892, 1873 Russian title of nobility), a garden architect and botanist, and Elisabeth Locher. The family moved in 1855 to St.Petersburg. Studied medicine at St.Petersburg, Göttingen, Vienna and Dorpat…
PIRES, Tomé. Lisbon or Leiria 1468? — China 1540? or little earlier. Portuguese Traveller. Son of an apothecary, followed his father on this profession. Came to India in 1511, as apothecary and not very young, obtained soon official position under Albuquerque and went to Malacca. From there he also visited…
PORTNJAGIN, Pavel Konstantinovič. Vladivostok 1903 — Samarkand 1977. Russian Traveller. Interested early in Theosophy and eastern religions. In 1925-26 travelled in China and Mongolia, in 1926 joined in Urga the Roerich Central Asian expedition, until 1928, then with I. A. D’jakov in Burma. After a while as teacher in Harbin…
PHILIPPUS A SANCTISSIMA TRINITATE (Philippe de la Très Sainte-Trinité, lay Julien Esprit). Malaucène near Avignon 1603 — Naples 28.2.1671. French Discalced Carmelite Theologian and Missionary. Joined the order in Lyon, 1621, studied in Paris and Rome for missionary career. In 1629 left for Palestine and proceeded then via Persia to…
PELSAERT, Francisco. 1595? — Batavia ?.9.1630. Dutch Factor in India and Indonesia. Born in a wealthy family of Antwerpen, Roman Catholic. In 1618 sailed to the East as Assistant, the lowest grade of the Dutch E.I.C.’s service. In 1620 promoted to junior factor (onderkoopman) and posted to India. Travelled overland…
PAPI, Carmelo Dionisio Lazzaro. Pontito near Pescia, Tuscany 23.10.1763 — Lucca 25.12.1834.Italian Traveller. Son of Alberto Papi and Fiora Pierini. For a while studied in a seminary, then served briefly in Neapolitan army, worked as tutor and studied medicine at Lucca and Pisa. In the early 1790s went to India, arriving…