Jim Corbett - Childhood

Born Edward James Corbett in 1875 in the Himalayan hill station of Naini Tal, Jim was the son of the local postmaster. His family had been in India for some time, and were what was called 'domiciled English', meaning colonists who were born and raised on the subcontinent. In the extreme class-consciousness of the British raj, these people were looked down upon by the English-born upper class, and often passed over for important jobs and denied entry to their social circles and clubs.

Nevertheless, Jim grew up with a certain disdain for these establishment types, who he felt were lazy and entitled, and considered their frequent cruel and inept slaughter of local wildlife with contempt. He preferred the company of local villagers, who inspired him with their brave, loyal and honest, if simple lifestyles. When the the 4-year-old Corbett's father died, his mother was left to raise 12 children on her own, though not without help from the locals and a small pension. Perhaps because of the crowded nature of his home life, Jim became a bit of a loner, spending most of his free time in the jungle that surrounded him, learning its lore and sussing out its secrets.

When he was old enough, Corbett began hunting to feed his large family. Due to their financial straits, the family could not afford to waste bullets, and so he became an expert marksman. As opposed to the wasteful and destructive habits of many Britishers around him, Jim never hunted for sport, but only to eat, much like the tigers that he would eventually come to champion.