Douglas Lapraik (7 October 1818,
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
– 24 March 1869,
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
) was a
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
watchmaker
A watchmaker is an artisan who makes and repairs watches. Since a majority of watches are now factory-made, most modern watchmakers only repair watches. However, originally they were master craftsmen who built watches, including all their part ...
,
shipbuilder
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...
and
shipping magnate
A business magnate, also known as a tycoon, is a person who has achieved immense wealth through the ownership of multiple lines of enterprise. The term characteristically refers to a powerful entrepreneur or investor who controls, through pers ...
of
Scottish origins, most famous for his business empire and his role in the founding of many of
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
's early conglomerates such as
HSBC.
Biography
Early life
Douglas Lapraik was born in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
,
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 ...
on 7 October 1818 to George Rankine Lapraik and his wife, Susan Lapraik (Black).
Though born in England, Lapraik's family was of
Scottish origin, likely descended from the Lickprivick noble house of
East Kilbride
East Kilbride (; gd, Cille Bhrìghde an Ear ) is the largest town in South Lanarkshire in Scotland and the country's sixth-largest locality by population. It was also designated Scotland's first new town on 6 May 1947. The area lies on a rais ...
in the
Shire of Lanark whose main holdings were
Lickprivick Castle and, from the reign of
Robert III in 1397,
Lords of Killbride and owners of the relevant emoluments associated with the lordship. George Rankine Lapraik was originally from
Muirkirk
Muirkirk ( gd, Eaglais an t-Slèibh) is a small village in East Ayrshire, southwest Scotland. It is located on the north bank of the River Ayr, between Cumnock and Glenbuck on the A70.
Conservation
The Muirkirk & North Lowther Uplands Specia ...
,
Ayrshire in western
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
and worked as an expat in London for Scottish trading firm William Mathieson & Company. The couple had five children including John Lapraik (1814-1839), Douglas Lapraik and George Rankin Lapraik.
Douglas Lapraik was baptised on 2 March 1819 at the Scotch Church on
London Wall
The London Wall was a defensive wall first built by the Romans around the strategically important port town of Londinium in AD 200, and is now the name of a modern street in the City of London. It has origins as an initial mound wall and ...
in the
City of London
The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...
.
Career
Macao
Lapraik arrived in
Macao
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a po ...
in 1839 and became apprentice to a
Scottish watch and clockmaker named Leonard Just at his company, Just & Son. In 1842, Just sent Lapraik to
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
in order to open a new branch of that company in the
newly founded colony.
Hong Kong
Lapraik arrived in the
crown colony of
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
in 1842 from
Macao
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a po ...
, following the
cession
The act of cession is the assignment of property to another entity. In international law it commonly refers to land transferred by treaty. Ballentine's Law Dictionary defines cession as "a surrender; a giving up; a relinquishment of jurisdictio ...
of
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
to the
British Crown in perpetuity after the
First Opium War the previous year. Soon after arriving in the colony, Lapraik established himself with his own business as a
watchmaker
A watchmaker is an artisan who makes and repairs watches. Since a majority of watches are now factory-made, most modern watchmakers only repair watches. However, originally they were master craftsmen who built watches, including all their part ...
by 1846, apparently concurrently while executing similar duties for Just & Son.
Due to his trade in chronometers and watchmaking and given the need in the colony for shipping companies to register a local address, Lapraik soon found himself drafted as a shipping agent.
Lapraik became established as a wealthy Hong Kong
taipan
Taipans are snakes of the genus ''Oxyuranus'' in the elapid family. They are large, fast-moving, highly venomous, and endemic to Australia and New Guinea. Three species are recognised, one of which, the coastal taipan, has two subspecies. Taipa ...
during the 1850s and 1860s, taking part in the founding of many of the colony's business ventures and expanding his business interests to many sectors of the colony's economy.
Starting in 1855 with its founding, Lapraik served on the committee of the colony's first English-language public school, the
St. Andrew's School, on
Staunton Street, which closed in 1861.
In 1858, John Steward Lapraik, the son of Lapraik's eldest brother arrived in Hong Kong to join his uncle's business. Steward Lapraik would go on to later largely inherit his uncle's business empire after Lapraik's death in 1869.
In 1861, Lapraik became one of the founders of the
Hong Kong Chamber of Commerce.
In 1862, Lapraik made significant contributions to the erection of the
Pedder Street Clock Tower
Pedder Street is a major thoroughfare in the core of Hong Kong's Central District. It runs south–north from Queen's Road Central, continues through Des Voeux Road Central, and ends at its intersection with Connaught Road Central.
History
Th ...
. The tower, which stood at the corner of Pedder Street and Queen's Road Central, could be seen from Victoria Harbour and debuted on
New Year's Eve 1862, standing until 1913. One of the clock's faces was later incorporated into the
Kowloon-Canton Railway Clock Tower at
Tsimshatsui.
In 1863, after acquiring a shipyard off
Queen's Road East and building two more at
Aberdeen
Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...
and
Whampoa, Lapraik
co-founded the
Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock Company together with
Jardine Matheson & Company and
Thomas Sutherland, the
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
agent of the
Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company
P&O (in full, The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company) is a British shipping and logistics company dating from the early 19th century. Formerly a public company, it was sold to DP World in March 2006 for £3.9 billion. DP World c ...
. The company's incorporation was announced in the ''
Hong Kong Daily Press'' on 4 January 1864.
The dockyard would go on to become the largest shipyard in Asia at its zenith.
The resulting company also became the first
limited company
In a limited company, the liability of members or subscribers of the company is limited to what they have invested or guaranteed to the company. Limited companies may be limited by shares or by guarantee. In a company limited by shares, the lia ...
to be
registered in Hong Kong, prompting
the government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
to begin work on the
Companies Ordinance of 1865.
In 1864, Lapraik went on to be appointed as a member of the provisional founders committee 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 ...
which would be founded in 1865. Later in 1864, Lapraik also oversaw the completion of his
Gothic style
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
** Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken ...
mansion at
Pok Fu Lam
Pok Fu Lam or Pokfulam is a residential area on Hong Kong Island, at the western end of the Southern District. It is a valley between Victoria Peak and Mount Kellett, around Telegraph Bay.
Pok Fu Lam can claim several ''firsts'' in the his ...
, dubbed as
Douglas Castle and today known as Nazareth House, a university house of the
University of Hong Kong
The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest tertiary institution in Hong Kong. HKU was also the f ...
. Lapraik leased the 310,227-
sqft. plot, then known as Rural Building Lot 32 from the government for a period of 75 years in 1861 and had been building his home and base of operations at the castle since that time, though he would not long enjoy its use.
Lapraik was also a founding director of the
Hongkong, Canton & Macao Steamboat Company which was incorporated as company number 0000002 in the
Hong Kong Companies Registry in 1865 when the registry was also first formed. 1865 was also the year that Lapraik began his involvement as a founding Director in the
Hongkong Hotel Company together with
Dutchman Charles Henri Maurice Bosman (father of
Ho Fook
Ho Fook (; 30 November 1863 – 29 August 1926), alias Ho Chak-sang, JP, was a prominent Hong Kong Eurasian compradore and philanthropist.
Early life
Ho was born in Hong Kong in 1863 to Charles Henri Maurice Bosman and Sze Sze.
Educati ...
and
Robert Hotung
Sir Robert Ho Tung Bosman, (22 December 1862 – 26 April 1956), also known as Sir Robert Ho Tung, was a businessman and philanthropist in British Hong Kong. Known as "the grand old man of Hong Kong" (), he was knighted in 1915 (Knight Bache ...
), a Director of the
Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock Company and a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
,
Baron Gustav von Overbeck, the
Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...
n and
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
n
Consul in Hong Kong. The company opened the Hongkong Hotel in 1868 on
Pedder Street
Pedder Street is a major thoroughfare in the core of Hong Kong's Central District. It runs south–north from Queen's Road Central, continues through Des Voeux Road Central, and ends at its intersection with Connaught Road Central.
History
...
and
Queen's Road Central
Queen's Road is a collection of roads along the northern coast of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong, within the limit of Victoria City. It was the first road in Hong Kong, constructed by the British between 1841 and 1843, spanning across Victoria ...
, then the first luxury hotel in the city. The hotel group would go on to become the
Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels
The Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, Limited (HSH) is the holding company of a hotel group. It is engaged in the ownership, development and management of The Peninsula Hotels; commercial and residential properties in Asia, the United States and Eur ...
Group.
Lapraik left Hong Kong and returned to London in mid 1866, apparently due to health issues. In 1855, Lapraik transferred all interest in his watchmaking company, Douglas Lapraik China to his colleague,
George Falconer, with whom he had previously apprenticed in his youth at Just & Son. The company was renamed as George Falconer & Company, sold to the
Lee Hing Group in 1997.
Death
Lapraik retired and returned to
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 ...
in 1866 after settling a trust in favour of his longtime
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
mistress
Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to:
Romance and relationships
* Mistress (lover), a term for a woman who is in a sexual and romantic relationship with a man who is married to a ...
. After returning, married 28-year-old Julia Hearn in November 1866. The couple had no children. He died in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
in March 1869 without any legitimate
heir and is buried at
Highgate Cemetery
Highgate Cemetery is a place of burial in north London, England. There are approximately 170,000 people buried in around 53,000 graves across the West and East Cemeteries. Highgate Cemetery is notable both for some of the people buried there as ...
(West Side).
Family and descendants
Lapraik married 28 year old Julia Hearn, a daughter of the lord of
Carisbrooke Castle
Carisbrooke Castle is a historic motte-and-bailey castle located in the village of Carisbrooke (near Newport), Isle of Wight, England. Charles I was imprisoned at the castle in the months prior to his trial.
Early history
The site of Carisb ...
, in November 1866.
The couple had no children and Lapraik died in March 1969.
After Lapraik's death, his nephew,
John Steward Lapraik founded the
Douglas Steamship Company in 1883 which continued to run Lapraik's steamer business and which also took up management of other assets owned by Douglas Lapraik & Company.
In 1867, Jane Lapraik, Lapraik's niece and sister of John Steward Lapraik was married in Hong Kong to Robert Ellis Baker. John Steward Lapraik continued his uncle's business activities in Hong Kong until his death in 1893, having two children named John Douglas Lapraik (1866) and Thomas Steward Lapraik (1867) who also continued in the business.
Legacy
Law
Between 1856 and 1861, Lapraik together with George Chape brought a suit as
plaintiff
A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of t ...
s against the
Respondent,
Silas Enoch Burrows, in a suit which traveled from the lower
Vice Admiralty Court
Vice Admiralty Courts were juryless courts located in British colonies that were granted jurisdiction over local legal matters related to maritime activities, such as disputes between merchants and seamen.
American Colonies
American maritime ac ...
before finally in 1859, being heard before the
High Court of Hong Kong
The High Court of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is a part of the legal system of Hong Kong. It consists of the Court of Appeal and the Court of First Instance; it deals with criminal and civil cases which have risen beyond th ...
concerning the disputed ownership of the
steamer SS ''Australia''. The ship arrived at
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
in around 1852, badly damaged and in need of repairs. Costs of the repairs in question exceeded the actual value of the ship, exacerbated by the debts accrued for wages and expenses owed. Permission for the
master
Master or masters may refer to:
Ranks or titles
* Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans
*Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...
to sell the ship would have taken up to four months to obtain from its
American owners and there was no available financial options for the ship's master. The circumstances necessitated that the master sell the ship without waiting for the relevant permission to do so. The case helped to develop the concept of
''agency by necessity'' in
case law as it relates to
commercial law which grants the master of the ship the responsibility of
acting as agent for the owner of any vessel in the existence of emergency situations, inability to communicate with the principal and provided that such agent is acting in
good faith.
Namesakes
*
Douglas Street, Central, Hong Kong
*
Douglas Lane, Central, Hong Kong
*
Douglas Castle
Douglas Castle was a stronghold of the Douglas (later Douglas-Home) family from medieval times to the 20th century. The first castle, erected in the 13th century, was destroyed and replaced several times until the 18th century when a large man ...
, Pok Fu Lam
* Douglas Villas, Central Mid-Levels, Hong Kong
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lapraik, Douglas
1818 births
1869 deaths
Burials at Highgate Cemetery
British businesspeople
British expatriates in China
History of foreign trade in China
19th-century Hong Kong people
Hong Kong shipping businesspeople
Hong Kong real estate businesspeople
Hong Kong hoteliers
Hong Kong industrialists
Hong Kong Freemasons
Hong Kong people of Scottish descent
19th-century Scottish businesspeople