Louis Dane

Sir Louis William Dane (1856–1946) was an administrator during the time of the British raj.^[1]

Early life

He was born on 21 March 1856 at Chichester, the fifth son of Richard Martin Dane, an army staff surgeon, and Sophia Eliza, the daughter of Colonel Charles Griffiths who had served in the First Anglo-Afghan War. He was educated at Dr Stackpole's school in Kingstown, Dublin and passed his examinations for the Indian Civil Service in 1874.

Civil service

In 1876 he was posted to the Punjab as assistant commissioner in Dera Ghazi Khan. In 1879 he became private secretary to Sir Robert Egerton, lieutenant-governor of the Punjab. In 1904, the Dane Mission, named for his leadership, was sent by the British to Afghanistan to negotiate the friendship agreement with the country's new Amir, Habibullah Khan. The mission resulted in a reinforcement of the agreements between the British and Abdur Rahman, Habibullah's father and predecessor as Amir.^[2] Afghanistan was a key player in The Great Game, and Dane's mission confirmed Britain's control over Afghanistan's foreign policy, and therefore gave the British the upper hand over the Russians. In 1908 he was appointed Lieutenant-governor in the Punjab, a post from which he retired in 1913.

Death

He died at his home in South Kensington, London, on 22 February 1946.

References