| Sir Charles Justin MacCarthy | |
| Order: | 12th |
| Office: | Governor of British Ceylon |
| Term Start: | 22 October 1860 |
| Term End: | 1 December 1863 |
| Predecessor: | Charles Edmund Wilkinson (Acting governor) |
| Successor: | Terence O'Brien (Acting governor) |
| Termlabel2: | Acting |
| Term Start2: | 18 January 1855 |
| Term End2: | 11 May 1855 |
| Predecessor2: | George William Anderson |
| Successor2: | Henry George Ward |
| Monarch2: | Queen Victoria |
| Termlabel3: | Acting |
| Term Start3: | 18 October 1850 |
| Term End3: | 27 November 1850 |
| Predecessor3: | The Viscount Torrington |
| Successor3: | George William Anderson |
| Monarch3: | Queen Victoria |
| Order4: | 12th |
| Office4: | Accountant General and Controller of Revenue |
| Term Start4: | 28 May 1847 |
| Term End4: | 1 October 1851 |
| Predecessor4: | Henry Wright |
| Successor4: | W. C. Gibson |
| Birth Place: | Brighton, England |
| Death Place: | Spa, Belgium |
Sir Charles Justin MacCarthy (1811–1864)[1] was the 12th Governor of British Ceylon and the 12th Accountant General and Controller of Revenue. He was appointed on 22 October 1860 and was Governor until 1 December 1863. He also served as acting governor on two separate occasions. He was first appointed in 1850.[2] [3]
His parents were Donough and Mary MacCarthy, and he was born in Brighton.[4] [5] He was a relation of Nicholas Wiseman, and in the early 1830s was in Rome, with a view to entering the Roman Catholic priesthood. Under the influence of the ideas of Lamennais, however, he ceased theological studies. In Rome through Wiseman he met Monckton Milnes, who became a lifelong friend. Milnes then helped him into a colonial career.[1] [6]
MacCarthy was knighted in 1857.[1] In office he adopted a policy of financial retrenchment. His main aim was to promote railway construction.[7] He left Ceylon in December 1863, in poor health.[8] He died at Spa, Belgium, on 15 August 1864.[9]
MacCarthy married in 1848 Sophia Brunel Hawes, botanist and eldest daughter of Sir Benjamin Hawes.[5] [10] They had a son, Charles Philip.