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The first British to visit India is John Mildenhall. Vasco Da Gama was the first Portuguese to visit India. However, Columbus also tried his level best to find India which proved to be of no use as proven by Amerigo Vespucci. John Mildenhall later made himself, the ambassador of the British East India Company. Britishers sent him on the voyage to sell their goods in the Eastern Mediterranean. But he flew the British officials and got settled in Persia. Later, he came to India where the Ajmer governor helped Britishers to catch him and put him in jail.
Table of Contents
John Mildenhall’s Journey in India
John Mildenhall ditched his country which is why Britishers never accepted him. It led to fewer mentions of him in the records of the Britishers. So we have less information about the first British to visit India.
| Event | Date | Details |
| Letter to East India Company | Offered “privileges” from the Indies for 1500 pounds | |
| Appointed as Factor | Oct 1608 | Rejected due to further demands |
| Entrusted with Levant Sales | 1599 | After travelling through Persia and Afghanistan |
| Reached Lahore | 1603 | Goods confiscated received compensation |
| Deceived East India Company | 1599 | Escaped to Persia with company goods |
| Captured and Released | 1614 | Goods confiscated, received compensation |
| Reached Agra | Travelled with Richard Newman | |
| Met with Emperor Akbar | 1603 | Discussed but not officially sponsored |
Interesting facts About John Mildenhall
With whatever is provided in the records, the following is what can be read and understood.
- John Mildenhall is the first Britisher in India whose burial is recorded in Agra, a city in Uttar Pradesh, India.
- The Mughal emperor Akbar, was a well-known personality among all the people John Midenhall interviewed.
This is all about the first British to visit India. For more such interesting and informative topics on Indian History and more, stay tuned to our General Knowledge section. If you want to know more about studying abroad, reach out to our experts on Leverage Edu!