Cecil Holliday was the Chairman of the

Shanghai Municipal Council The Shanghai International Settlement () originated from the merger in the year 1863 of the British Concession (Shanghai), British and American Concession (Shanghai), American list of former foreign enclaves in China, enclaves in Shanghai, i ...

in 1906. He also served as commandant of the

Shanghai Volunteer Corps The Shanghai Volunteer Corps (SVC) (1853−1942) was a multinational, mostly volunteer force controlled by the Shanghai Municipal Council which governed the Shanghai International Settlement. History The Shanghai Volunteer Corps was created on 1 ...

Biography

Holliday was born in Kersemoor,

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 ...

in 1857, the youngest son of John Holliday. Holliday moved to Shanghai in the early 1877 to join Messrs Holliday, Wise & Co., a partnership that had been established by his father soon after China opened to trade in 1842. He was a member of the

and was promoted through its ranks eventually becoming

commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...

on two occasions. He was elected to and became chairman of the

in January 1906. He resigned with effect from 24 August 1906 due to difference with other members of the council over management of the city, in particular it seems the management of the Mixed Court Gaol. He was replaced as Chairman by Henry Keswick Holliday campaigned for greater transparency in council meetings proposing resolutions to allow the public access to their records and to allow the press to attend meetings. He died on 31 July 1924 at St Marie's Hospital in the

French Concession The Shanghai French Concession; ; Shanghainese pronunciation: ''Zånhae Fah Tsuka'', group=lower-alpha was a foreign concession in Shanghai, China from 1849 until 1943, which progressively expanded in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Th ...

in Shanghai and was buried at the Bubbling Well Road Cemetery at a funeral attended by the British Consul-General,

Sidney Barton Sir Sidney Barton (26 November 1876 – 20 January 1946) was a British barrister and diplomat, serving as consul-general in Shanghai and as minister to Ethiopia. Early life Sidney Barton was born in Exeter, Devonshire, England on 26 November ...

, and the British

Crown Advocate Crown advocate is a title used in some former British colonies (and until recently in Britain) for a government prosecutor. In former British Colonies and certain British extraterritorial courts the title is (or was) used by the senior government ...

for China,

Hiram Parkes Wilkinson Hiram Parkes "Harrie" Wilkinson, KC (9 June 1866 – 1 April 1935) served as Crown Advocate of the British Supreme Court for China and Japan from 1897 to 1925. He was also Acting Assistant Judge of the British Court for Siam from 1903 to 1905 a ...

. The pall bearers were Sir Edward Pearce and Messrs A.W. Burkill, C.R. Burkill, Calder Marshall, C.H. Arnhold and C.W. Porter.

Marriage

Holliday was married to Eliza. She died in April 1920. They had one son, John Cecil Hamilton Holliday, who served in the army. John married Eileen Mabel Howden in 1914.North China Herald, Sept 26, 1914, p1032

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holliday, Cecil History of Shanghai Chairmen of the Shanghai Municipal Council 1857 births 1924 deaths Burials in Shanghai