Robert Atherton CCS, JP (1801 – 1855) was a 19th-century British colonial official in British Ceylon (present day Sri Lanka) for more than 25 years.[1] After a distinguished career in the Royal Navy, and recipient of the Burma Medal, he held various administrative and judicial roles in the Northern Province of Ceylon from 1825 until 1835. He was appointed as Assistant Government Agent (A.G.A), Eastern Province of Ceylon, in 1835, 1839, and 1845; A.G.A Northern Province, in 1836, and acted as District Judge, Batticaloa in 1841, and Justice of the Peace (JP), Eastern Province (1848–1855).[2][3][4][5]