Sir Alexander Kemp Wright KBE DL LLD (1859–1933) was a Scottish banker mainly associated with the Royal Bank of Scotland but with multiple banking roles. He founded the

National Savings Movement The National Savings Movement was a British mass savings movement that operated between 1916 and 1978 and was used to finance the deficit of government spending over tax revenues. The movement was instrumental during World War II in raising f ...

Life

He was born in Methven in Perthshire one of five children of Andrew Wright, a shoemaker, and his wife, Isabella Kemp. He was educated in Methven then at

Perth Academy Perth Academy is a state comprehensive secondary school in Perth, Scotland. It was founded in 1696. The institution is a non-denominational one. The school occupies ground on the side of a hill in the Viewlands area of Perth, and is within the P ...

. He studied Scots Law and Conveyancing at

Edinburgh University The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted ...

. In 1874 he obtained a post in the Perth branch of the Royal Bank of Scotland. In 1878 he was transferred to the head office at

Dundas House Dundas House is a Neoclassical building in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located at 36 St Andrew Square, in the city's first New Town. The building was completed in 1774 as a private town house for Sir Lawrence Dundas by the architect Sir Will ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

. In 1891 he became head of the bank's law department. Only at this stage does he appear as an independent home owner, living at a flat at 97 Marchmont Road. In 1900 he was living at 6 Cobden Road. In 1907 he became Secretary of the Bank. In 1911 he was living at 34 Hermitage Gardens in south west Edinburgh. In his role as Secretary he helped to set up the Scottish Savings Committee in 1916. In 1917 he replaced Adam Tait as General Manager. He liaised with the government regarding the call up of bank staff to join the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and set up the government's war savings initiative. This was based in

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional ser ...

s of the General Post Office, rather than banks, giving these a new function as the Post Office Savings Bank. In 1918 (with government approval) he began expanding the Royal Bank of Scotland into

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. For this role he was created a

Commander of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(CBE) in 1922. This expansion role mainly targeted merchant banks and their first successful acquisition in London was

Drummonds Bank Messrs. Drummond is a formerly independent private bank that is now owned by NatWest Group. The Royal Bank of Scotland incorporating Messrs. Drummond, Bankers is based at 49 Charing Cross in central London. Drummonds is authorised as a brand of ...

of Charing Cross in 1924. He sat on the Treasury Select Committee on banking set up in 1923 (The Montagu Committee) and the Lubbock Committee of 1925 set up to control payout of War Savings Certificates. He was knighted by

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

in 1926 as a

Knight of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(KBE). In 1929, at the suggestion of Montague Norman head of the Bank of England, the RBS under Wright, took over William Deacon's Bank in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. This was a requirement in order to take over the London branch at Burlington Gardens, which they acquired in August 1930. In 1931 he became Chairman of the Scottish Savings Committee. Later that year he was awarded an honorary doctorate (LLD) by

. He died suddenly in Edinburgh on the afternoon of Thursday 21 September 1933 whilst attending a funeral service of a friend in St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral. He had been working as usual in the bank that morning. He is buried in

Grange Cemetery The Grange (originally St Giles' Grange) is an affluent suburb of Edinburgh, just south of the city centre, with Morningside and Greenhill to the west, Newington to the east, The Meadows park and Marchmont to the north, and Blackford Hil ...

in the south of Edinburgh. The grave lies in the south-west extension close to the west wall. His position in RBS was filled by William Whyte who had been Deputy Manager since 1929.

Other roles

*Chairman of the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce 1919-1921 *President of the Institute of Bankers in Scotland (IBS) 1922-1924 *Vice President of the British Bankers Association (1924-1933?) *Manager of

Edinburgh Royal Infirmary The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, or RIE, often (but incorrectly) known as the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, or ERI, was established in 1729 and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest v ...

*Treasurer of the Earl Haig's Appeal from its outset in 1920 *Director of

P&O Bank P&O Banking Corporation, was a bank established in 1920, by Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company to develop its private banking business. Seven years later (in 1927) the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China (now Standard Char ...

for its duration (1920-1927) *Director of Scottish Equitable Life Assurance Society *Elder of St Andrews Church, Drumsheugh Gardens, Edinburgh

Other honorary titles and awards

*Medal of the Estonian Red Cross - September 1927 *Commander of the

Order of the White Rose of Finland The Order of the White Rose of Finland ( fi, Suomen Valkoisen Ruusun ritarikunta; sv, Finlands Vita Ros’ orden) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. ...

* Deputy Lieutenant of Edinburgh

Family

In 1895 he was married to Josephine Campbell Smith (d.1912).Grave of Sir Alexander Kemp Wright, Grange Cemetery They had two sons and three daughters. Their mother died while they were all young.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, Alexander Kemp 1859 births 1933 deaths People educated at Perth Academy Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Scottish bankers