Robert Cowan

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article does not cite any references or sources. (May 2008) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.

Robert Cowan (died 1737) was a British colonial administrator and the British East India Company's Governor of Bombay from 1729 to 1734. He was also a collateral ancestor of the Marquesses of Londonderry through the marriage of his sister, Mary Cowan, to Alexander Stewart, father of the first Marquess. He was descended from Anglo-Irish Presbyterian stock, and his father, John Cowan, was an Alderman of the City of Londonderry. He entered the service of the East India Company some time before 1720, and retired in 1735, two years before his death. In 1721, he was involved in an unsuccessful campaign against Kanhoji Angre. His personal fortune, amassed as Governor, became part of the basis of the wealth of the Stewart family for generations.