William Thomas Pritchard, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

William Thomas Pritchard

British consul and adventurer

Date of Birth: 13-Oct-1829

Place of Birth: Papeete, French Polynesia, France

Date of Death: 01-Nov-1907

Profession: diplomat

Zodiac Sign: Libra

William Thomas Pritchard (13 October 1829 – 1 November 1907) was a British consul and adventurer. Pritchard was born in Papeete, Tahiti, the son of George Pritchard and Eliza Aileen.
He was educated in Britain before returning to join his father, the British consul in Samoa.
In Samoa, he acquired an exceptional knowledge of the Polynesian language and traditions.
In 1858 he was appointed the first British consul at Fiji, and in the same year traveled to England with an offer from Seru Epenisa Cakobau to cede Fiji to the British crown.
He was dismissed from his post in 1863. He is commemorated in the name of the Polynesian megapode Megapodius pritchardii and the plant genus Pritchardia.