John Child

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For the Canadian Beach Volleyball player see John Child (athlete).

Sir John Child (d. 1690) was a governor of Bombay, and de facto (although not officially) the first governor-general of the British settlements in India.

Born in London, Child was sent as a young boy to his uncle, the chief of the factory at Rajapur. In 1682, he was appointed chief of the East India Company's affairs at Surat and Bombay, while at the same time his brother, Sir Josiah Child, was governor of the company at home.

The two brothers guided the affairs of the company through the period of struggle between the Moguls and Mahrattas. They have been credited by history with the change from unarmed to armed trade on the part of the company; however, both were actually loathe to quarrel with the Mogul. War broke out with Aurangzeb in 1689, but in the following year Child had to sue for peace, one of the conditions being that he should be expelled from India. He escaped this expulsion by his death.

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• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.