Eric Roll, Baron Roll of Ipsden (born Erich Roll; 1 December 1907 – 30 March 2005) was a British

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this field there are ...

, public servant and banker. He was made a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

in 1977.

Biography

Roll was born in Nowosielitza,

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with t ...

and grew up near Czernowitz in

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, which became part of

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and is now part of

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. His parents, Matthias and Fanny Roll, were of Middle European origin. His father was a bank manager, and his mother's brother was a distinguished member of the law faculty at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich h ...

. When

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saw

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n troops burned down the village, his family took refuge in

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. His parents then sent him to

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in the 1920s and he studied at Birmingham University. Shortly afterwards, he completed his

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and published his first book. He mixed with artistic and creative circles. By the age of 28, Roll became Professor of Economics and Commerce at University College, Hull, appointed with the backing of

John Maynard Keynes John Maynard Keynes, 1st Baron Keynes, ( ; 5 June 1883 – 21 April 1946), was an English economist whose ideas fundamentally changed the theory and practice of macroeconomics and the economic policies of governments. Originally trained in ...

and Lord Stamp. Perhaps his most enduring work from this time was the publication in 1938 of his book ''A

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'', which subsequently went through several editions. During

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, however, he was recruited to the

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as deputy head of the British Food Mission (1941–1946), where he was principally involved in the procurement of food supplies - most notably dried eggs. He made a number of contacts in the

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and rejected the offer to head the

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, instead joining the British Ministry of Food. His economic experience and contacts made him invaluable in the post-war government and he was the British representative in the

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discussions on Marshall aid. He played an important role in the setting up of European and trans-Atlantic institutions before rejoining the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. Roll was about to accept the vice-chancellorship of

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, but was asked to go to Washington, D.C. as economic minister at the British embassy from 1963 to 1964. Then, when Labour won the 1964 election, he became permanent secretary of the new Department of Economic Affairs, despite not agreeing with its development. Roll was also a director of the Bank of England between 1968 and 1977, chairman of the

merchant bank A merchant bank is historically a bank dealing in commercial loans and investment. In modern British usage it is the same as an investment bank. Merchant banks were the first modern banks and evolved from medieval merchants who traded in commodi ...

ers SG Warburg, and a director of ''

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''. Roll became Joint President of the

Policy Studies Institute The Policy Studies Institute (PSI) is a British think-tank and research institute. PSI began in 1931 as Political and Economic Planning and became the Policy Studies Institute in 1978 on its merger with the Centre for Studies in Social Policy (es ...

, London, in 1978. He was Chancellor of Southampton University 1974-84. He was chairman of the

Bilderberg meetings The Bilderberg meeting (also known as the Bilderberg Group) is an annual off-the-record conference established in 1954 to foster dialogue between Europe and North America. The group's agenda, originally to prevent another world war, is now defin ...

between 1986 and 1989.

Honours

Roll was appointed a

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in hono ...

(CMG) in 1949, a

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(CB) in 1956 and a

Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in hono ...

(KCMG) in 1962 and was made an of the

Legion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

. He was created a

as Baron Roll of Ipsden, of Ipsden in the County of Oxfordshire, on 19 July 1977.

Personal life

Roll married Winifred Taylor in 1934 and they had two daughters, Joanna and Elizabeth. Lady Roll died in 1998.

Major publications

* *''An Early Experiment in Industrial Organization: History of the Firm of Boulton and Watt 1775-1805'', Routledge, 1968 *''Crowded Hours'' (autobiography), 1985.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Roll, Eric 1907 births 2005 deaths Academics of the University of Hull Austrian emigrants to the United Kingdom Roll of Ipsden Chairmen of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group British economists Historians of economic thought Permanent Under-Secretaries of State for Economic Affairs Civil servants in the Ministry of Food Civil servants in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Companions of the Order of the Bath Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Members of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group Alumni of the University of Birmingham Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom People from Chernivtsi Chancellors of the University of Southampton Life peers created by Elizabeth II