Charles Collingwood Roberts (6 July 1900 – 17 May 1980) was a British entrepreneur. He was a former Chairman of the

Butterfield & Swire Swire Group () is a Hong Kong- and London-based British conglomerate. Many of its core businesses can be found within the Asia Pacific region, where traditionally Swire's operations have centred on Hong Kong and mainland China. Within Asia ...

and an unofficial member of the

Legislative Council of Hong Kong The Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (LegCo) is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong. It sits under China's " one country, two systems" constitutional arrangement, and is the power centre of Hong Kong ...

Biography

Roberts joined

Butterfield and Swire Swire Group () is a Hong Kong- and London-based British conglomerate. Many of its core businesses can be found within the Asia Pacific region, where traditionally Swire's operations have centred on Hong Kong and mainland China. Within Asia ...

in October 1922, responsible for sugar traveling from Shanghai from 1925-1926, shore management for China Navigation Company in Hankow from 1926–28, and responsible for Chinese Staff Shanghai from 1932-34. On 1 October 1932, Roberts married to Constance May Mitchell at the St. John's Cathedral. During the

Japanese occupation of Hong Kong The Imperial Japanese occupation of Hong Kong began when the Governor of Hong Kong, Mark Aitchison Young, Sir Mark Young, surrendered the British Crown colony of British Hong Kong, Hong Kong to the Empire of Japan on 25 December 1941. The surr ...

, he was among many other British local figures who were held at the Block 8 of the St. Stephen College and participated in the camp councils. After the war, Roberts became the first chairman of the

Cathay Pacific Airways Cathay Pacific Airways Limited (CPA), more widely known as Cathay Pacific (), is the flag carrier of Hong Kong, with its head office and main hub located at Hong Kong International Airport. The airline's operations and subsidiaries have s ...

, the airline which was acquired by Butterfield & Swire and its associated shipping interests in 1948. At that time, he co-founded the

Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company Limited (HAECO) is a leading independent aircraft engineering and maintenance group with its head office located at Hong Kong International Airport. Established in 1950, the HAECO Group comprises 16 operat ...

with David F. Landale, taipan of the

Jardine Matheson Jardine Matheson Holdings Limited (also known as Jardines) is a Hong Kong-based Bermuda-domiciled British multinational conglomerate. It has a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange and secondary listings on the Singapore Exchange and ...

and founder of the

Hong Kong Airways Hong Kong Airways was a flag carrier of British Hong Kong during the late 1940s and 1950s. Context of launch In 1946 Jardine Air Maintenance Company (JAMCo) had been formed to serve the rapidly expanding portfolio of airlines serving Hong ...

in 1950. In 1948 and 1950, he was the chairman of the

Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce (HKGCC; ) was founded on 29 May 1861, and is the oldest and one of the largest business organizations in Hong Kong. It has around 4,000 corporate members, who combined employ around one-third of Hong Kon ...

. After the resignation of R. D. Gillespie, he was elected by the chamber to be the representative on the

on 6 May, until he stepped down in August and was replaced by P. S. Cassidy. He was also deputy chairman of the

Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (), commonly known as HSBC (), was the parent entity of the multinational HSBC banking group until 1991, and is now its Hong Kong-based Asia-Pacific subsidiary. The largest bank in Hong K ...

in 1940-41 and director of the bank.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Charles Collingwood 1900 births 1980 deaths 20th-century British businesspeople British expatriates in China British expatriates in Hong Kong Hong Kong businesspeople Cathay Pacific Swire Group HSBC people Members of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong