William Nairn Forbes

Major-General William Nairn Forbes (3 April 1796 – 1 May 1855) was a British architect and military engineer in the Bengal Army. He was responsible for the design of the Anglican St Paul's Church, Calcutta (1839–47) in Bengal during Company rule in India, now the cathedral of the Diocese of Calcutta and sited in Kolkata, India. Forbes's design for the spire and crossing tower of St Paul's, Calcutta was inspired by Norwich Cathedral, in Norfolk, England. After damage in successive earthquakes in 1897 and 1934 the tower and spire were redesigned on the model of the "Bell Harry" Tower – designed by John Wastell – on the crossing of Canterbury Cathedral in Kent, the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the mother church of the Anglican Communion. Forbes was also architect in 1831 of the Greek Revival Calcutta Silver Mint and drew inspiration for the portico from the Parthenon in Athens. Education and early life William Nairn Forbes was the sixth son of John Forbes, of Blackford in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, where William Forbes was born. He was mostly educated by a tutor at home, though for two consecutive winters (1808–1809) he studied mathematics and natural philosophy at King's College, Aberdeen. He showed an early aptitude for constructing model machines. In 1811 he commenced study in mathematics and natural philosophy at the University of Edinburgh, where he lived with Rev. Archibald Alison – a relative of Forbes's – and his sons, William Alison – later professor of medicine at Edinburgh – and Archibald Alison – historian and later 1st Baronet Alison. At university he was taught by Professor John Playfair, co-founder of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and by Professor John Leslie.