Jim Corbett (hunter)

Edward James "Jim" Corbett (25 July 1875 in Nainital, India – 19 April 1955 in Nyeri, Kenya) was a British hunter, conservationist, author and naturalist, famous for slaying a large number of man-eating tigers and leopards in India.

Corbett held the rank of colonel in the British Indian Army and was frequently called upon by the government of the United Provinces, now the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, to slay man-eating tigers and leopards who had killed people in the villages of the Garhwal and Kumaon region. His success in slaying the man-eaters earned him much respect and fame amongst the people residing in the villages of Kumaon, many of whom considered him a sadhu (saint).

Corbett was an avid photographer and after his retirement, authored the Man-Eaters of Kumaon, Jungle Lore and other books recounting his hunts and experiences, which enjoyed much critical acclaim and commercial success. Corbett spoke out for the need to protect India's wildlife from extermination. The Jim Corbett National Park in Kumaon was named in his honour in 1957.

Early life

Edward James Corbett was born of Irish ancestry in the town of Nainital near the Kumaon foothills of the Himalayas (now in the Indian state of Uttarakhand). Jim grew up in a large family of 13 children and was the eighth child of Willam Christopher and Mary Jane Corbett. His parents had moved to Nainital in 1862, after Christopher Corbett had been appointed postmaster of the town. In...
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