Sir James Emerson Tennent | |
|---|---|
 James Tennent drawing by Andrew Nicholl | |
| 5th Colonial Secretary of Ceylon | |
| In office 1846–1850 | |
| Monarch | Queen Victoria |
| Preceded by | Philip Anstruther |
| Succeeded by | Charles Justin MacCarthy |
| Acting Governor of British Ceylon | |
| In office 19 April 1847 – 29 May 1847 | |
| Monarch | Queen Victoria |
| Preceded by | Colin Campbell |
| Succeeded by | The Viscount Torrington |
| Personal details | |
| Born | James Emerson 7 April 1804 Belfast, Ireland |
| Died | 6 March 1869 (aged 64) London |
| Citizenship | United Kingdom |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Whigs (until 1834) Conservatives (1834–1869) |
| Spouse | Letitia Tennent |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | Trinity College, Dublin |
| Occupation | Colonial administrator, politician |
| Profession | Lawyer |
Sir James Emerson Tennent, 1st Baronet, FRS (born James Emerson; 7 April 1804 – 6 March 1869) was a Conservative Member of the United Kingdom Parliament for the Irish seats of Belfast and of Lisburn, and a resident Colonial Secretary in Ceylon. Opposed to the restoration of a parliament in Dublin, his defence of Ireland's union with Great Britain emphasised what he conceived as the liberal virtues of British imperial administration. In Ceylon, his policies in support the growing plantation and wage economy met with peasant resistance in the Matale Rebellion of 1848. In recognition of his encyclopedic surveys of the colony, in 1862 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.