John Gordon Lorimer CIE (14 June 1870 – 8 February 1914), also known as J. G. Lorimer, was a British

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

and

colonial administrator Colonialism is the control of another territory, natural resources and people by a foreign group. Colonizers control the political and tribal power of the colonised territory. While frequently an Imperialism, imperialist project, colonialism c ...

. Working for the

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

and the

Northwest frontier province The North-West Frontier Province (NWFP; ) was a province of British India from 1901 to 1947, of the Dominion of Pakistan from 1947 to 1955, and of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan from 1970 to 2010. It was established on 9 November 1901 from ...

, he later served in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

region as British Political Resident. He is most famous for his encyclopedia, the ''

Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman and Central Arabia The ''Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman and Central Arabia'' (nicknamed ''Lorimer'') is a two-volume encyclopedia compiled by John Gordon Lorimer. The ''Gazetteer'' was published in secret by the British government in India in 1908 and 1915 a ...

''.

Biography

Early life and career

John Gordon Lorimer was born in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

in 1870, a son of the Reverend Robert Lorimer (1840–1926) a Free Church minister, and his wife Isabella Robertson.Ewing, William ''Annals of the Free Church'' The Lorimer family was intimately associated with colonial service; his maternal uncle (who served as a judge) was killed during the

Indian mutiny The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the form ...

of 1857. His younger brother

David Lockhart Robertson Lorimer Lieutenant-Colonel David Lockhart Robertson Lorimer CIE (24 December 1876 in Dundee – 26 February 1962) was a member of the British Indian Army, a political agent in the British Indian government and a noted linguist. The Indian Political ...

served as British vice-consul in Arabistan. His other brother Robert worked in the

Indian civil service The Indian Civil Service (ICS), officially known as the Imperial Civil Service, was the higher civil service of the British Empire in India during British Raj, British rule in the period between 1858 and 1947. Its members ruled over more than 3 ...

until he was dismissed for refusing to participate in a

flogging Flagellation (Latin , 'whip'), flogging or whipping is the act of beating the human body with special implements such as whips, rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails, the sjambok, the knout, etc. Typically, flogging has been imposed ...

. His younger brother William Lorimer and younger sister Hilda Lockhart Lorimer were scholars. Educated at the

High School of Dundee The High School of Dundee is a private, co-educational, day school in Dundee, Scotland, which provides nursery, primary and secondary education to just over one thousand pupils. Its foundation has been dated to 1239, and it is the only private sc ...

, and the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, Lorimer trained at

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

for the Indian Civil Service. He was stationed first in

and later in the restive

. Passionate about languages, he authored a book on the grammar of Waziri

Pashto Pashto ( , ; , ) is an eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family, natively spoken in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan. It has official status in Afghanistan and the Pakistani province of Khyb ...

in 1902. In 1903, he was commissioned by the British Raj to compile a handbook for British diplomats and agents in the Persian Gulf region. Initially given only six months, he insisted on being granted more time to ensure the handbook was thorough. The result was the 5,000 page two-volume

. Its geography portion was only completed in 1908 and the history portion was finished & published in 1915, a year after Lorimer's death. Due to the secrecy of the document, it was not acknowledged in his obituaries and public knowledge of the document only became apparent when the document was declassified in 1955.

Death

On the 8 February 1914, while serving as the British Political Resident in

Bushire Bushehr (; ) is a port city in the Central District of Bushehr County, Bushehr province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. Etymology The roots of the name "Bushehr" are uncertain. It is unlikely that it ...

, Lorimer was found dead from a self-inflicted gun wound in the abdomen at age 43. A contemporary report stated that he was examining his pistol after supposedly emptying the magazine when he apparently overlooked a bullet present. The gunshot pierced major blood vessels, resulting in the loss of consciousness and death. His funeral took place the next day and he was buried at the Indo-European Telegraph Department cemetery. He was survived by his wife Marian Agnes MacLean (d. 1959). He is memorialised with his siblings in

Warriston Cemetery Warriston Cemetery is a cemetery in List of graveyards and cemeteries in Edinburgh, Edinburgh. It lies in Warriston, one of the northern suburbs of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was built by the then newly-formed Edinburgh Cemetery Company, and o ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

and on his wife's grave in

Dean Cemetery The Dean Cemetery is a historically important Victorian cemetery north of the Dean Village, west of Edinburgh city centre, in Scotland. It lies between Queensferry Road and the Water of Leith, bounded on its east side by Dean Path and o ...

. His death was mourned in the Persian Gulf region, particularly in

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

where the British Agency was closed as a sign of respect on the following day. Bahraini noblemen, merchants, and foreigners alike made their way at the Agency to offer their condolences. In an offer of commiseration, the ruler of Bahrain,

Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa (1848 – 9 December 1932) was the ruler of Bahrain from 1869 until his death. His title was Hakim of Bahrain. He is one of the longest reigning monarchs of the region, a reign lasting 63 years. He was forced by the B ...

, ordered the flags at his residence and at the customs house lowered, while his son Abdullah traveled to the Agency to pay his respects.

Bibliography

*Customary Law of the Main Tribes in the Peshawar District (1899) *Grammar and Vocabulary of Waziri Pashto (1902) *

(1908, 1915)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lorimer, John Gordon (1870-1914) 1870 births 1914 deaths Diplomats from Glasgow People educated at the High School of Dundee Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford British historians Deaths by firearm in Iran Accidental deaths in Iran Firearm accident victims Indian Political Service officers Indian Civil Service (British India) officers British people in colonial India