Guardian of the East India Company : the life of Laurence Sulivan /George K. McGilvary.

A biography of Laurence Sulivan (1713-1786), for many years a director, Deputy Chairman and Chairman of the East India Company. Deeply involved in British and Indian affairs, Sulivan was a sponsor and protector of Warren Hastings and changed from being a friend to opponent of Chatham, Clive, Burke and Pitt the Younger when the Company was threatened with change. Born in Ireland, he travelled to Bombay in 1739 as a private merchant and following his marriage to Elizabeth Owen was hired by the East India Company to run its administration in Bombay. Returning to London, he was appointed to the Court of Directors of the Company in 1755. He was insistent the Company should remain an independent mercantile operation rather than an instrument of foreign policy. He was also elected Member of Parliament for firstly Taunton and then Ashburton and frequently spoke on East India Company issues. Bibliography included.