Jeejeebhoy

Jeejeebhoy, Sir Jamsetjee, Bart. (1783-1859), the Parsee philanthropist, was born at Bombay. As a merchant's clerk he made several voyages to China, in one of which, during the French War, he was captured and sent to the Cape. After his return in 1807 he gradually accumulated by trading a large fortune. This he used to pay the debts of the Bombay prisoners in 1822, to relieve the sufferers from the Surat fires and rebuild houses there in 1824 and 1837, to provide endowments for the Parsee worship in Bombay and Poonah, and to found the hospital there (1843) which bears his name. He also gave large sums for other purposes subsequently, and in recognition of his munificence was created a baronet in 1857, having some years before been knighted.