Edward Terry (1590–1660) was an English chaplain at the English embassy to the

Great Mogul Grand Mughal or Mogul, also Great Mughal (), is a title coined by Europeans for the ruler of the Mughal Empire of India. The Mughals themselves used the title ''Padishah''. The title is especially associated with the third in the line, Akbar the Gr ...

and an author who wrote about the Mogul empire and

South Asian South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...

cuisine.

History

In 1616, the

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

appointed Terry as one of its fleet chaplains for a trip to India. While en route in the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...

, the fleet engaged and destroyed a Portuguese

carrack A carrack (; ; ) is a three- or four- masted ocean-going sailing ship that was developed in the 14th to 15th centuries in Europe, most notably in Portugal and Spain. Evolving from the single-masted cog, the carrack was first used for Europea ...

. Terry later described this battle in his work, ''A Voyage to East-India''. When Terry arrived in India,

Sir Thomas Roe Sir Thomas Roe ( 1581 – 6 November 1644) was an English diplomat of the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods. Roe's voyages ranged from Central America to India; as ambassador, he represented England in the Mughal Empire, the Ottoman Emp ...

, the English ambassador, asked Terry to become the new chaplain for the English embassy. Terry's predecessor had just recently died. Terry spent the next two and half years with Row as they followed the Mogul court around what is today

Gujarat, India Gujarat () is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

and

Bihar, India Bihar ( ) is a state in Eastern India. It is the second largest state by population, the 12th largest by area, and the 14th largest by GDP in 2024. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Ben ...

. After returning to England, Terry served as rector of the Church at Great Greenford, in

Middlesex, England Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the Thames in the south, the Lea to the east and the Colne to the west. A line of hi ...

until his death in 1660.

Published work

Terry wrote ''A Voyage to East-India'' as an expanded version of a

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand or typewritten, as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in some indirect or automated way. More recently, the term has ...

that was first published in '' Purchas his Pilgrimes'' in 1625. What distinguished ''Voyage'' was Terry's detailed descriptions of the different

ethnic groups An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, rel ...

in the region, including their cultures, languages, and religious beliefs. Terry was one of the first writers to describe Indian-style

vegetarianism Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...

Early Modern England Early modern Britain is the history of the island of Great Britain roughly corresponding to the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. Major historical events in early modern British history include numerous wars, especially with France, along with the ...

. Given that Terry only visited two regions of the

Indian Subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

, much of his commentary was probably based on other research. ''Voyage'' was a popular work in England that was later translated into other languages. It was included in the ''Travels'' of Pietro della Valle.Page 271 in

References

Bibliography

* * (William Henry, Prince of Orange later reigned as

William III of England William III (William Henry; ; 4 November 1650 – 8 March 1702), also known as William of Orange, was the sovereign Prince of Orange from birth, Stadtholder of County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, Zeeland, Lordship of Utrecht, Utrec ...

) * * (For the title word, see

Eleutheria The Greek word "ἐλευθερία" (capitalized Ἐλευθερία; Attic Greek pronunciation: ), transliterated as eleutheria, is a Greek term for, and personification of, liberty. Eleutheria personified had a brief career on coins of Alexan ...

)

External links

* * 1590 births 1660 deaths 17th-century English Anglican priests English travel writers {{England-nonfiction-writer-stub