John Russell Colvin (29 May 1807 – 9 September 1857) was a British administrator of the East India Company, and Lieutenant-Governor of the North-Western Provinces from 1853 until his death from cholera during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

In 1857, at the start of the Indian Rebellion of 1857, Colvin was at Agra with only a weak British regiment and a native battery, not enough force to prevail against the mutineers.

Colvin married Emma Sophia, daughter of Wetenhall Sneyd, a vicar in England; they had ten children,[3] many of whom continued the family connection with India.

[citation needed] Colvin's granddaughter Brenda (1897–1981)[7] was an important landscape architect, author of standard works in the field and a force behind its professionalisation.

The most recent generation is the Australian journalist Mark Colvin and Major General James Balfour CBE of the Royal Green Jackets.