Alexander Cunningham Biography 
Alexander Cunningham was an archeologist and British army engineer with the Bengal Engineer Group who founded and organised an organization, which later came to be known as Archaeological Survey of India. He took deep interest in the history and archaeology of India, and was appointed as archaeological surveyor to the government of India in 1861 which resulted in the founding of the organization. He also authored numerous books, did research works, prepared monographs and made extensive collections of artefacts. His collections include gold and silver coins, apart from Buddhist sculptures and jewellery. He lived in the 19th century during the period, 23 January 1814 – 28 November 1893.
Sir Alexander Cunningham was born on 23 January 1814 in London. He is the son of famous Scottish poet Allan Cunningham and Jean Walker. He had three brothers. He had one elder brother, Joseph Cunningham who was a writer and the author of the book History of the Sikhs (1849). His younger brothers - Francis Cunningham was an Indian Army officer and Peter Cunningham, a British writer. His education was completed in London, and he moved to India with his family in 1833. Thus at the age of 19, he joined the Bengal Engineers as a Second Lieutenant and spent the next 28 years in the service of British Government of India in military field. He also served as the ADC to Lord Auckland, the Governor-General of India during 1836-1840. His interest in Indian archaeology and antiquity developed after his meeting with English scholar, James Prinsep.
He developed a keen interest in antiquities early in his career. Excavations became a regular activity among British antiquarians during British rule in India. By early 1850s, he communicated with William Henry Sykes and the East India Company on the value of an archaeological survey in India. Following his retirement from the Royal Engineers in 1861, he was appointed as the archaeological surveyor to the government of India. He returned to England in 1865 when his department was dismissed, and later authored the first part of his Ancient Geography of India (1871). The first volume of Corpus inscriptionum Indicarum (1877), Stupa of Bharhut (1879) and Book of Indian Eras (1883) are other major works. His son, Allan J. C. Cunningham was a British mathematician.
Published: N/A
Updated: July 13, 2018
