George Armitstead Vanity Fair 1882-10-28

George Armitstead, 1st Baron Armitstead MP (28 February 1824 in

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

Governorate of Livonia The Governorate of Livonia, also known as the Livonia Governorate, was a Baltic governorate of the Russian Empire, now divided between Latvia and Estonia. Geography The shape of the province is a fairly rectangular in shape, with a maximum ...

(now

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

) – 7 December 1915 in

London London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

) was a British businessman, philanthropist and

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

politician.

Background and education

Armitstead was born on 28 February 1824 at Riga, the second son of an English

jute Jute is a long, soft, shiny bast fiber that can be spun into coarse, strong threads. It is produced from flowering plants in the genus ''Corchorus'', which is in the mallow family Malvaceae. The primary source of the fiber is ''Corchorus olit ...

merchant living in Latvia. His grandfather was the vicar of

Easingwold Easingwold is a market town, electoral ward and civil parish in the Hambleton District in North Yorkshire, England. Historically, part of the North Riding of Yorkshire, it had a population of 4,233 at the 2001 census, increasing to 4,627 at the ...

East Riding of Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a ceremonial county and unitary authority area in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, South Yorkshire to t ...

and his great-grandfather was a farmer in

Austwick Austwick is a village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England, about north-west of Settle. The village is on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Before local government reorganisation in 1974, Austwick ...

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

. He was educated in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

and

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

, Germany.

Business career

He came to

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

in 1843 and established the George Armitstead & Co shipping line and jute business in which he was senior partner.

Political career

George Armitstead by John McLure Hamilton

Armitstead was

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for

between 1868 and 1873 and from 1880 to 1885. He held the office of

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

(JP) and of deputy lieutenant (DL) of

Forfarshire Angus ( sco, Angus; gd, Aonghas) is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Dundee City and Perth and Kinross. Main industries include agri ...

and Dundee. He was invested as a fellow of the

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

(F.R.G.S.). He donated £5,000 to the Prince of Wales Hospital Fund and shortly afterwards was created Baron Armitstead, of Castlehill in the city of Dundee, on 19 July 1906, by

Arthur Balfour Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour, (, ; 25 July 184819 March 1930), also known as Lord Balfour, was a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902 to 1905. As F ...

, having refused an offer in 1893 by his great friend

William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...

. This friendship was significant for both of them, but more comfortable than influential, which is probably why it worked so well. He paid for Gladstone's holidays abroad in

Biarritz Biarritz ( , , , ; Basque also ; oc, Biàrritz ) is a city on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the French Basque Country in southwestern France. It is located from the border with Spain. ...

and

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions I ...

and often accompanied him almost as a paid companion except that Armitstead footed the bill. He is mentioned frequently in Gladstone's diary but without elaboration and was a

pallbearer A pallbearer is one of several participants who help carry the casket at a funeral. They may wear white gloves in order to prevent damaging the casket and to show respect to the deceased person. Some traditions distinguish between the roles of ...

at Gladstone's

state funeral A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of Etiquette, protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive ...

Personal life

He married Jane Elizabeth Baxter, daughter of Edward Baxter and Euphemia Wilson, (and sister of

William Edward Baxter William Edward Baxter (24 June 1825 – 10 August 1890) was a Scottish businessman, Liberal politician and travel writer. Background and education Born in Dundee, Angus, Baxter was educated at the High School of Dundee and the University of E ...

MP) in 1848 but they separated shortly afterwards following a scandalous affair with the daughter of the 15th chieftain of the Clan of MacPherson of Cluny. They had leased

Castle Huntly Castle Huntly is a castle in Scotland, now used as a prison under the name '' HMP Castle Huntly''. It is located approximately west of Dundee in the Carse of Gowrie, Perth and Kinross, close to the shore of the Firth of Tay, and can be seen f ...

in Longforgan, near Dundee. According to one account, when MacPherson learned of his daughter's affair, he threw her out of the house. Having nowhere else to turn the girl was taken to Castle Huntly by Armitstead. When Lady Armitstead gave her husband an ultimatum, he accepted it and she walked in her nightgown to the lodge where she spent the night. Nevertheless, they remained married until her death on 6 January 1913. After the collapse of his marriage, Armitstead bought a large house at 4 Cleveland Square in London. Lord Armitstead died at his London residence on 7 December 1915 at the age of 91 and, after cremation at

Golders Green Crematorium Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £135,987 in 2021), ...

, his ashes were buried at

Western Cemetery, Dundee The Western Cemetery in Dundee, Scotland, is a still-operational cemetery founded in the mid 19th century. It rises northwards from the Perth Road, with terraces in its upper sections. It views over the Firth of Tay to the Tay Rail Bridge ...

He was without issue and on his death, the barony became extinct. He bequeathed money for a chair of Philosophy at the

University of Dundee The University of Dundee; . Abbreviated as ''Dund.'' for post-nominals. is a public university, public research university based in Dundee, Scotland. It was founded as a University college#United Kingdom, university college in 1881 with a donation ...

and a ward in a hospital. There are several benevolent trusts in the city of Dundee from both Lord and Lady Armitstead. One such trust, founded in 1882, was to support the

Botanical Gardens A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

at the University of Dundee. and the Armitstead Lectures. His nephew, also George Armitstead (''Džordžs Armitsteds'' in Latvian) (1847–1912), was Mayor of Riga from 1901 to 1912. In 2006,

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

unveiled a statue of him while on tour in Latvia, in the presence of his great grandson. His monument is in the gardens close to the

Latvian National Opera The Latvian National Opera and Ballet (LNOB) is an opera house and opera company at Aspazijas boulevard 3 in Riga. Its repertoire includes performances of opera and ballet presented during the season which lasts from mid-September to the end of Ma ...

. Another nephew, Henry Alfred Armitstead, served as a diplomat in Russia and seems to have been involved in an attempt to rescue Tsar Nicholas II after the Russian Revolution.

Arms

References

External links

*
Friends of Dundee City Archives page on George Armitstead
{{DEFAULTSORT:Armitstead, George, 1st Baron Armitstead 1824 births 1915 deaths People from Riga People from Kreis Riga Businesspeople from Dundee Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Dundee constituencies UK MPs 1868–1874 UK MPs 1880–1885 UK MPs who were granted peerages Scottish Liberal Party MPs Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Deputy Lieutenants of Dundee Peers created by Edward VII 19th-century Scottish businesspeople