Josiah Child - Career With The East India Company

Career With The East India Company

Child's advocacy, both by speech and by pen, under the pseudonym Philopatris, of the East India Company's claims to political power, as well as to its right of restricting competition to its trade, brought him to the notice of the shareholders, and he was appointed a Director in 1677, rising to Deputy-Governor and finally Governor. In this latter capacity he directed the Company's policy as if it were his own private business. He and Sir John Child, president of Surat and governor of Bombay (no relation according to the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, arms: "Vert, 2 bars engrailled between 3 leopards' faces or") are sometimes credited with the change from unarmed to armed traffic, but the actual renunciation of the Roe doctrine of unarmed traffic by the Company was resolved upon in January 1686, under Governor Sir Joseph Ash, when Child was temporarily out of office.

Child died on 22 June 1699, and was buried at Wanstead, Essex. His will dated 22 February 1696 was proved on 6 July 1699.

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