The Knight on a Shining Voyage

A renowned name in the Indian mercantile history that holds an important distinction in the British Empire, he is famously known to be the greatest son of Bombay from the 19th century.

The king of merchants; Image Source: Wikimedia Commons

The year was 1783 when the greatest son of Bombay was born to a Parsi-Indian family of textile merchants, on this day. He was known to be big on living a completely lavish and rich life but generous enough to remain close to his roots. As fate would lead him, he became the richest merchant to be conferred with the award of Baronetcy, under British Rule.

This is Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy, who went up on an uphill battle to reach where he was. A man, who holds a significant account in Indian history and how he led his life with a change.

As a child, he lived a hard-pressed and depreciated life with the irreparable grief of losing both his parent at a very tender age. His life was in delusion until he was brought to the tutelage of his maternal uncle, Framjee Nasserwanjee Battliwala. Even though he remained devoid to hold any formal education, but his entrepreneurial mind was like a fire that got ignited when he visited Calcutta for the first time.

During the British Raj, the production of opium became so imperative that both the demand and supply were moving at a great pace and yielded huge profits through global trading. While China had the largest market for opium by the British, India emerged as a fertile ground for its cultivation.

Inspired by Hirji Readymoney, the first Parsi trader to visit China in 1756, Sir Jeeteebhoy began his journey to enter into the trading world of, then, biggest market and went on to visit China for the trade of cotton and opium. It made his first voyage successful and then one after the other he went on a spree to establish his name in the market and made at least five trips to China. Even though each voyage in itself was packed with innumerable hardships and difficulties, but on his fourth voyage, he was imprisoned by the French personals for a considerable time. However, the undaunted and fearless Jeejeebhoy managed to even escape this.

With the gained reputation, these trips turned out to be profitable as he was making big in the industry. Yet, he settled down with his wife in Bombay and flourished with the business while partnering with traders from around the world. He earned approximately two-crore rupees, by the age of 40. He later owned a fleet of ships for trading purposes and sought out his offices in east and west, too.

In 1818, he established his own trading and shipping firm "Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy & Co." along with a long and successful trading partnership with the Canton-based company Jardine Matheson & co. resulted from the trips, celebrated even today.

A man who was essentially self-made and marked his name in Indian mercantile history made sure to use all his established wealth for people. It is quite visible that he wasn't money-minded with his exceptionally valuable philanthropic and humanitarian contribution. Even today, when roaming around the streets of Bombay, one can find Sir JJ School of Art, JJ Hospital, and Mahim causeway that connects the island of Mahim to Bandra, among many more.

Hence, there were a number of institutions developed and formed under Sir Jamsetjee, that donated to many notable trusts, contributed to the development fronts of the country as well as had a good hold on global events. To be precise, it has been estimated that he has donated over £230,000 to charity by the time of his death in 1859.

Sir Jamsetjee was even recognized by the British Empire twice, which conferred him with the title of Knighthood and Baronetcy that are considered supreme and distinctive in the British Empire. Thus, he is known to be the first Baronet of the British Empire from India. His portrait still hangs in Jardine's Hong Kong office as a tribute to remember his contribution to their establishment.

Hence, for a life that inspires one to believe in themselves and for the work that continues to improve the lives of people even after centuries, he was someone with an unflinching aura that spreads in every street of Bombay.