Orphaned in India - Genealogists' Forum

Sue from Southend · #1 01-04-12, 15:13

I've been looking some distant twigs of OH's tree and it looks as though three children born 1822 - 1827 in India, to a soldier and his British wife in serving there, were orphaned by 1830.

Does anyone know what might have happened to them? Would they have been sent back to UK or put into an Anglo/Indian orphanage? I believe the two boys also ended up in the Army for a while but it's not clear from their papers whether they signed up in India or England.

Olde Crone · #2 01-04-12, 16:41

I think what happened to them would largely depend on his rank in the Army, although I guess some kind of provision for their (immediate) welfare would be made.

OC

Sue from Southend · #3 01-04-12, 17:18

Thanks OC. I don't have his Army records (in fact I think I've made a bit of an assumption that he was Army!) but his sons were Privates so I suspect that he was the same. There are some Napoleonic War Records that may be the father but FMP won't let me look at the images....

annswabey · #4 01-04-12, 20:41

If he died in service then in theory there shouldn't be any records for him on FMP - for records that early papers have only survived for those discharged to pension. The children may have gone to Royal Hibernian Miiltary School perhaps - records can be searched here although I think online records might be a bit too late for your dates

http://www.rma-searcher.co.uk/

Mary from Italy · #5 01-04-12, 21:16

There are a couple of children in my tree who were orphaned when both parents died in India in 1813 (father was a soldier). I'm assuming the children were with them in India, as their mother was there, but I don't have any actual proof. One child was born in England, but I can't find a birth for the other, so my guess is that she was born in India.

I found a document on TNA appointing their grandmother in England as their guardian in 1816, and they were evidently sent back to the UK at some stage, because they both married there.

Sue from Southend · #6 02-04-12, 07:34

Thanks Ann and Mary.

These children also found their way back to England - in 1841 the two boys are in the Citadel at Plymouth and the daughter married in Lincolnshire in the 1850. One of the boys died in 1845 at Cawnpore and the other ended up in Lincolnshire where the family originates.

I'm really intrigued at the logistics of returning three children to the UK from India in the 1820/30s. Perhaps they gave them into the care of a returning family....

Mary - I found all three of these children's births in India on Family Search. Not sure how early they go though.

Edit :
Ann - Many many thanks! They were in the RMA in Chelsea. They went in as "volunteers" in 1830 and 1832 and as Mum died in 1829 it looks as though they were sent home very quickly.