Henry Prevost Babbage (1824–1918) was a soldier in the

Bengal Army The Bengal Army was the army of the Bengal Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire. The presidency armies, like the presidencies themselves, belonged to the East India Company (EIC) until the Gover ...

of the

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 ...

. After retiring with the rank of major general, he continued the work of his father,

Charles Babbage Charles Babbage (; 26 December 1791 – 18 October 1871) was an English polymath. A mathematician, philosopher, inventor and mechanical engineer, Babbage originated the concept of a digital programmable computer. Babbage is considered ...

, whom he had assisted as a student. He organised and edited his father's papers and prototypes and arranged for their publication and completion. These works included ''Babbage's Calculating Engines'' (1889) and a working Analytical Engine Mill – a simplified portion of the full Analytical Engine design.

Military career

He was brevetted as a

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

in the Bengal Staff Corps on 10 June 1874.

References

1824 births 1918 deaths Alumni of University College London British computer scientists British soldiers Major generals People educated at University College School {{UK-mil-bio-stub