S. M. (Stephen Meredyth) Edwardes

Born in 1873, he served in the Indian Civil Service and became the first civilian Commissioner of Police in Bombay. Alongside his administrative career, he wrote extensively on Indian history and on Bombay in particular, producing works that mixed official knowledge, local history, and keen observation.

His books include By-ways of Bombay, The Rise of Bombay, and The Bombay City Police, and he also worked on the Gazetteer of Bombay City and Island. In his later years he was associated with the Indian Antiquary, helping continue his historical and scholarly interests beyond government service.

Edwardes died in 1927, but his writing remains useful for readers interested in Bombay’s past and in the way the city was described by an early 20th-century observer. Modern readers may also notice that his work reflects the outlook of the British colonial world in which he lived and wrote.