Born in Calcutta, he was the son of William Ritchie, Advocate General of Bengal. At a young age he moved to Paris to be raised by his aunt. In 1862 he travelled to England for the first time, entering a private boarding school in Warwickshire, and then Winchester School from 1866-72. In 1873 he passed the entrance examinations for the Indian Civil Service. He took a two-year course in law, political economy, Indian history and three Indian languages at Trinity College, Cambridge. He died at his home in Chelsea in 1921 after a long illness and was buried at Kensal Green Cemetery.