Sir Joseph Bampfylde Fuller (20 March 1854 – 29 November 1935) was a British inventor, writer and first Lieutenant Governor of the new province of

Eastern Bengal and Assam Eastern Bengal and Assam was a Presidencies and provinces of British India, province of British India between 1905 and 1912. Headquartered in the city of Dacca, it covered territories in what are now Bangladesh, Northeast India and North Bengal, ...

, knighted for his service in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Early life and career

Fuller studied at

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...

. In 1885, he began his Indian Civil Service career as the Commissioner of Settlements and Agriculture of

Central Provinces The Central Provinces was a province of British India. It comprised British conquests from the Mughals and Marathas in central India, and covered parts of present-day Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra states. Nagpur was the primary ...

. He became an Additional member of the Viceroy's Council in 1899. He served as Secretary to

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

during the period 1901–02. He then served as Chief Commissioner of

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

during 1902–05. Fuller held office as Lieutenant Governor of Eastern Bengal and Assam from 16 October 1905 until he resigned on 20 August 1906 to Lord Minto over the (British) Government of India's refusal to support reprisals against school agitators in

Sirajganj Sirajganj is a city in north-western Bangladesh on the right bank of the Jamuna River, located in Rajshahi Division. It is the administrative headquarters of Sirajganj District, and with a population of 500000, it is the 14th largest city in Ba ...

. In 1907, an abortive attempt was made by Yugantar Group on his life which he escaped unharmed. Fuller initiated the building of the Governor's residence in

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

, which became Old High Court Building, Dhaka. "Fuller Road", an important road at the heart of the

University of Dhaka The University of Dhaka (), also known as Dhaka University (DU), is a public university, public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Established in 1921, it is the oldest active university in the country. The University of Dhaka w ...

is named after him. Fuller invented an anti-gas alarm widely used during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Published books

* ''Studies of Indian Life and Sentiment'' (1910) * ''The Empire of India'' (1913) * ''Life and Human Nature'' (1914) * ''Man as he is : essays in a new psychology'' (1916) * ''The Science of Ourselves'' (1921) * ''Causes and Consequences'' (1923) * ''The Law Within'' (1926) * ''Etheric Energies'' (1928) * ''Some Personal Experiences'' (1930) * ''The Tyranny of the Mind'' (1935)

Legacy

Fuller's chikila ('' Chikila fulleri''), a

fossorial A fossorial animal () is one that is adapted to digging and which lives primarily (but not solely) underground. Examples of fossorial vertebrates are Mole (animal), moles, badgers, naked mole-rats, meerkats, armadillos, wombats, and mole salamand ...

amphibian, is named for him. Fuller Road is a road in

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuller, Bampfylde 1854 births 1935 deaths People educated at Marlborough College British inventors Knights Commander of the Order of the Star of India Companions of the Order of the Indian Empire Indian Civil Service (British India) officers