James Francis Tennant

Who was James Francis Tennant?

Lieutenant-General James Francis Tennant was a noted soldier and astronomer.

He was born in Calcutta to Scottish parents. The son of Brigadier-General Sir James Tennant and Elizabeth, he was educated at the East India Company's Military Seminary at Addiscombe from 1845 to 1847, and began his military career with the Bengal Engineers in Calcutta in 1847.

His mathematical skills landed him with the Great Trigonometric Survey where he was engaged in triangulation of the great longitudinal series until 1857, when he was diverted to garrison duties during the Indian Mutiny. In 1859, when he rejoined the survey, he was given the directorship of the Madras Observatory where his interest in astronomy started.

He was noted for being an observer for the Royal Astronomical Society for the solar eclipse of 17 August 1868 across the Indian peninsula, and that of 11 December 1871 across Southern India, and later the transit of Venus of 1874.

It is during these observations that photographic equipment was used extensively for the first time, Tennant was a practiced expert in photography and his skill aided the observations of the eclipses, in particular that of the corona.