Joseph Davey Cunningham (9 June 1812 – died 28 February 1851) was a British colonial soldier and the author of the book History of the Sikhs (1849) and an authority in Punjab historiography. His father was the Scottish poet and author Allan Cunningham and his brother was the archaeologist Sir Alexander Cunningham. His book was the first authentic English-language account of Sikh history. During the Anglo-Sikh wars, he was present at Bhaddowal, Aliwal and Sabhraon.
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Early life
Joseph Davey Cunningham was the eldest of five sons of Allan Cunningham. At an early age he was reported to have shown such an aptitude for mathematics that his father was advised to send him to Cambridge. However, since he desired to become a soldier, a cadetship in the British East India Company's service was procured for him, through the good offices of Sir Walter Scott. After a reported brilliant career at Addiscombe Military Academy (London Borough of Croydon, England), he sailed for India in 1834. Other sources state he migrated to India in 1832 or 1837.
Career in India
He was first employed on the staff of the chief engineer of Bengal Presidency in 1834. In 1837, he was appointed assistant to Colonel Claude Wade, the political agent in Ludhiana on the Sikh Empire and Anglo-Afghan ties. For the next eight years he held and occupied several political positions in this area under Colonel Wade and his successors until 1845. At time of the outbreak of the first Anglo-Sikh War (December 1845), he was a political agent in the state of Bahawalpur.