Frederick Banbury, Vanity Fair, 1913-04-16

Frederick George Banbury, 1st Baron Banbury of Southam (2 December 1850 – 13 August 1936), known as Sir Frederick Banbury, 1st Baronet, from 1903 to 1924, was a British businessman and Conservative Member of Parliament.

Early life

Frederick Banbury was born on 2 December 1850. He was the eldest son of Frederick Banbury and Cecilia Laura (née Cox) of Shirley House

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

., and was educated at Winchester College.

Business career

Banbury was admitted to the London Stock Exchange in 1872 and was head of Frederick Banbury and Sons, stockbrokers, of London, between 1879 and 1906, as well as chairman of the Great Northern Railway (GNR) and a director of the

London and Provincial Bank The London and Provincial Bank, originally known as the Provincial Banking Corporation, was established in 1864. It took over Day, Nicholson and Stone in 1864, and the Bank of Wales in 1865. It was reorganised in 1870 and became the London and P ...

Politics

Banbury was elected to represent Camberwell, Peckham in the House of Commons at the 1892 general election, and held the seat in

1895 Events January–March * January 5 – Dreyfus affair: French officer Alfred Dreyfus is stripped of his army rank, and sentenced to life imprisonment on Devil's Island. * January 12 – The National Trust for Places of Histor ...

and

1900 As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...

. At the

1906 general election The following elections occurred in the year 1906. Asia * 1906 Persian legislative election Europe * 1906 Belgian general election * 1906 Croatian parliamentary election * Denmark ** 1906 Danish Folketing election ** 1906 Danish Landsting ele ...

he lost the seat as the Liberal Party won a large majority. Later in the year he returned to parliament when he was returned unopposed in a by election for the City of London. He held the seat until 1924. He was a diligent member of the Commons, and was known for his formal attire and punctuality. Although he remained on the back benches he was regarded as an institution in the House. Banbury was created a baronet, "of Southam in the County of Warwick", in 1903, and admitted to the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

in 1916. When the bill which led to the initial extension of the franchise to women was passing through parliament, Banbury said during a debate:

"Women are likely to be affected by gusts and waves of sentiment. Their emotional temperament makes them so liable to it. But those are not the people best fitted in this practical world either to sit in this House ... or to be entrusted with the immense power which this bill gives them."

After his retirement from the House of Commons in January 1924, he was raised to the peerage as Baron Banbury of Southam, of Southam in the County of Warwick.

Railways

He was the last chairman of the GNR, which lost its identity when, under the

Railways Act 1921 The Railways Act 1921 (c. 55), also known as the Grouping Act, was an Act of Parliament enacted by the British government and intended to stem the losses being made by many of the country's 120 railway companies, by "grouping" them into four la ...

, it was grouped with several other railways on 1 January 1923 to become a constituent of the

London and North Eastern Railway The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) was the second largest (after LMS) of the " Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain. It operated from 1 January 1923 until nationalisation on 1 January 1948. At th ...

(LNER). Sir Frederick was a strong opponent of the railway grouping, and had voted against the Bill during its passage through Parliament; he wanted no part of the future LNER, and decided to retire from railway service at the end of 1922. In late September 1922, the GNR honoured Sir Frederick by naming its newest express passenger locomotive no. 1471 ''Sir Frederick Banbury''. This locomotive belonged to

GNR Class A1 The London and North Eastern Railway LNER Gresley Classes A1 and A3 locomotives represented two distinct stages in the history of the British "Pacific" steam locomotives designed by Nigel Gresley. They were designed for main line passenger se ...

, was built in July 1922 and remained in service until November 1961.

Personal life

Banbury married Elizabeth Rosa, daughter of Thomas Barbot Beale, of

Brettenham, Suffolk Brettenham is a village and civil parish in the Babergh district of Suffolk, England. In 2005 it had a population of 270, She died in 1930. Banbury survived her by six years and died in August 1936 at his home,

Warneford Place Warneford Place, also known as Sevenhampton Place, is a Grade II listed country house in Sevenhampton, south of Highworth, in Wiltshire, England. The main house is modern but is listed because it incorporates some features from the original 18t ...

, Highworth, Wiltshire aged 85. He was buried in Sevenhampton. He was succeeded in the barony by his grandson Charles, his only son Captain Charles William Banbury having been killed in the First World War. Banbury was an animal lover, and for years was on the council of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and served as its chairman.

Notes

References

* *

Sources

*Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Banbury, Frederick George Banbury of Southam, Frederick Banbury, 1st Baron Banbury of Southam, Frederick Banbury, 1st Baron People educated at Winchester College Banbury of Southam, Frederick Banbury, 1st Baron Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1892–1895 UK MPs 1895–1900 UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs 1906–1910 UK MPs 1910 UK MPs 1910–1918 UK MPs 1918–1922 UK MPs 1922–1923 UK MPs 1923–1924 UK MPs who were granted peerages Directors of the Great Northern Railway (Great Britain) Members of Parliament of the United Kingdom for the City of London Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Barons created by George V