Frederick Richard Saunders
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Sir Frederick Richard Saunders | |
|---|---|
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| Treasurer of Ceylon | |
| In office 18 October 1890 – 1897 | |
| Preceded by | George Thomas Michael O'Brien |
| Succeeded by | Lionel Frederick Lee |
| 2nd Inspector General of Police (Sri Lanka) | |
| In office 1872–1873 | |
| Preceded by | William Robert Campbell |
| Succeeded by | William Robert Campbell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 7 July 1838 Colombo, British Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) |
| Died | 30 March 1910 (aged 71) |
| Resting place | Leamington Spa, Warwickshire |
| Spouse(s) |
Mary Jane née Gibson
1837 (m. 1867; died 1895)Christina Sophia née Freshfield
1837 (m. 1900; died 1909) |
| Children | Louisa Caroline (b. 1868), Frederick William (b. 1870), Maud Mary (b. 1871), Neva Mary (b. 1872), Charles Reeves (b. 1876), Reginald Gibson (b. 1878). |
| Parent(s) | Frederick Saunders, Louisa Matilda née Tucker |
| Profession | Colonial administrator |
Sir Frederick Richard Saunders KCMG (7 July 1838 – 30 March 1910) was the Treasurer of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) (1890–1897), Commissioner of Stamps, a member of the Executive and Legislative Councils, and the second British colonial Inspector General of Police of British Ceylon from 1872 to 1873.
Frederick Richard Saunders was born in Colombo, Ceylon on 7 July 1838, the first son and second child of Frederick Saunders (1804–1870) and Louisa Matilda née Tucker (1814–1895).[1]
His father was the acting Postmaster General of Ceylon (1839), the eleventh Treasurer of Ceylon (1861–1865), and a member of both the Legislative Council and Governor's Executive Council, under the Robinson administration.
He was educated at the Royal College of Elizabeth, Guernsey, and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich.
Career
He entered the Ceylon Civil Service in 1857, and amongst the posts he held were those of Assistant Government Agent, District Judge, Inspector-General of Prisons, and Government Agent for the Western Province.
While Assistant Government Agent in In 1864, Sir Frederick supervised and personally carried out the capture of the noted brigand Utuwankande Sura Saradiel, a Ceylonese gang leader and bandit described as the 'Robin Hood of Sri Lanka', who was sentenced to death and hanged on 7 May 1864.
Sir Frederick organised elephant kraals on the occasion of the visits of the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Alfred, the Earl of Clarence, Prince Leopold, and the Duke of York who would later become King George, V of the United Kingdom and Emperor of India, to Ceylon.
In 1886, he represented Ceylon at the Royal Colonial Exhibition in London and in 1897 was the principal representative of Ceylon at the Diamond Jubilee Commemoration Celebrations in London, and presented the Ceylon address to Queen Victoria at Windsor.
He was appointed Treasurer of Ceylon and Commissioner of Stamps in 1890. He received the CMG in 1880 and was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George on 22 June 1897,[2] retiring from public service in 1897.
It was greatly due to his efforts whilst Chairman of the Northern Railway Commissions that the northern line railway to Jaffna was sanctioned, constructed, and opened in 1894.