Jump to content

Samuel Martin Burke

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Samuel Martin Burke
Born3 July 1906
Lyallpur, Punjab, British India
Died9 October 2010(2010-10-09) (aged 104)
Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
Occupations
  • Diplomat
  • writer
  • professor
FamilySee Singh-Burke family
HonoursSitara-e-Pakistan

Samuel Martin Burke or S. M. Burke (3 July 1906, Martinpur – 9 October 2010)[1][2] was a Pakistani civil servant, diplomat, writer and professor.[1][2]

He was honoured with Sitara-e-Pakistan by the Government of Pakistan.

Early life and education

[edit]

Samuel Burke was born in a Punjabi Christian family of twelve brothers and sisters in Martinpur, a village in the Punjab Province of British India (now in Pakistan).

His grandfather Chaudhry Allah Ditta was a convert to Christianity, while his father Janab Khairuddin, the first graduate from his village, was a school headmaster who wrote Urdu poetry under the pen name Burq (lightning), which later would be Anglicized as Burke.[3] His sister was the Indian Hindi and Punjabi film actress Chand Burke, who appeared in several films in the 50s and 60s, including Raj Kapoor's award winning film Boot Polish (1954), thus making him the grand uncle of Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh.[4][5]

Having passed his matriculation in the first division and secured a government scholarship, Samuel Burke studied at the Government College, Lahore specializing in subjects such as History, Philosophy, Persian and Urdu, earning an BA (Hons) and later his MA in History.[3]

After completing the Indian Civil Service exam he trained for two years in England in administration and law, tasked with administrative as well judicial positions (including being a high court judge), before becoming a diplomat.[6]

Career

[edit]

Civil servant

[edit]

He was a member of the Indian Civil Service until 15 August 1947, when he became the only Asian to retire.[1][7] After Pakistan's independence, he joined the Foreign Service of Pakistan and was appointed as a counselor at the Pakistani High Commission in London.

Diplomat

[edit]

Martin Burke served as a minister in the Pakistani embassy in Washington, D.C. in 1952.[8] In 1953, he became the first Pakistani Christian head of a diplomatic mission when he was appointed Minister to Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark.[1] He also served as chargé d’ affaires in Rio de Janeiro, deputy high commissioner in London, followed by being appointed as Pakistan's ambassador to Thailand, and finally as the High Commissioner to Canada between 1959 and 1961, following which he retired.[8]

Academic

[edit]

Upon retirement he became professor at the University of Minnesota from 1961 to 1975.[2] Burke has authored a number of books covering Pakistan's history and foreign policy.[8]

Awards

[edit]

Books

[edit]
  1. Pakistan's Foreign Policy: An Historical Analysis (1973)
  2. Mainsprings of Indian and Pakistani Foreign Policy (1974)
  3. Akbar, the Greatest Mogul (1989)
  4. Bahadur Shah, the Last Mogul Emperor of India (1995)
  5. The British Raj in India: An Historical Review (1995). Co-written with Salim al-Din Quraishi.
  6. Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah: His Personality and his Politics (1997)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e Professor Samuel Burke The Telegraph 17 November 2010. Retrieved 16 August 2015
  2. ^ a b c Samuel Martin Burke Obituary The Guardian 14 November 2010 Retrieved 16 August 2015
  3. ^ a b Massey, Reginald (1 March 2009). "The grand old man of Pakistan". Dawn News. Archived from the original on 1 January 2025.
  4. ^ "Did you know that Ranveer Singh's grandmother Chand Burke was a popular Bollywood actress?". The Times of India. Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. 8 May 2020. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  5. ^ "Did you know Ranveer Singh's grandmother Chand Burke was an actress". Filmfare. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  6. ^ Azad, Arif (16 April 2017). "Remembering a forgotten hero". The News International. Archived from the original on 1 January 2025.
  7. ^ a b Samuel Martin Burke (1906-2010): Civil Servant, Diplomat, Historian Pakistaniat 1 December 2010 Retrieved 16 August 2015
  8. ^ a b c Bangash, Yaqoob Khan (10 November 2019). "When Christians were partitioned in the Punjab -- I". The News. Retrieved 15 April 2020.


Stub icon

This Pakistani diplomat-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Flag of PakistanWriter icon

This biographical article about a Pakistani historian is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://wiki.riteme.site/w/index.php?title=Samuel_Martin_Burke&oldid=1267080219"