Sir Edward Hopkinson Holden, 1st Baronet (11 May 1848 – 23 July 1919) was a British banker and Liberal politician, most notable for his role in developing the

Midland Bank Midland Bank plc was one of the Big Four (banks)#United Kingdom, Big Four banking groups in the United Kingdom for most of the 20th century. It is now part of HSBC. The bank was founded as the Birmingham and Midland Bank in Union Street, Birming ...

into the largest bank in the world.

Family

Hopkinson was born at the ''Bull's Head'', Tottington,

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

. He was the eldest son of Henry Holden, a

calico Calico (; in British usage since 1505) is a heavy plain-woven textile made from unbleached, and often not fully processed, cotton. It may also contain unseparated husk parts. The fabric is far coarser than muslin, but less coarse and thick than ...

bleacher and Ann Hopkinson. He was educated at Summerseat Methodist Primary School. After working as a clerk in local businesses, he entered banking in 1866 as an

apprentice Apprenticeship is a system for training a potential new practitioners of a Tradesman, trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study. Apprenticeships may also enable practitioners to gain a license to practice in ...

at the

Bolton Bolton ( , locally ) is a town in Greater Manchester in England. In the foothills of the West Pennine Moors, Bolton is between Manchester, Blackburn, Wigan, Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury and Salford. It is surrounded by several towns and vill ...

branch of the Manchester and County Bank. At the same time he was continuing his education by attending evening classes at

Owen's College The Victoria University of Manchester, usually referred to as simply the University of Manchester, was a university in Manchester, England. It was founded in 1851 as Owens College. In 1880, the college joined the federal Victoria University. Af ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, studying political economy, logic and law.''Death of Sir Edward Holden: a Great Banker'', The Times, 24 July 1919, p.10 In 1877 he married Annie Cassie of

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

, and they had three children. They made their home at ''The Grange'', Thorpe, near

Chertsey Chertsey is a town in the Borough of Runnymede, Surrey, England, southwest of central London. It grew up around Chertsey Abbey, founded in AD 666 by Earconwald, St Erkenwald, and gained a municipal charter, market charter from Henry I of Engla ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

. His wife died in 1905.

Banking career

In 1881 he became accountant at the Birmingham and Midland Bank, and in 1883 he was promoted to secretary. He was involved in the bank's expansion, as it absorbed a large number of banks in central and northern England. He continued to be promoted: to sub-manager in 1887, general manager in 1890, and joint general manager in 1891. In 1898 he personally negotiated the merger with the

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

-based City Bank, and was to be managing director of the resulting London, City and Midland Bank until his death. He was also appointed chairman of the renamed

in 1908 and continued the policy of expansion and acquisition. By 1918, with deposits of £335 million, it ranked as the largest bank in the world.

Political career

1906 Events January–February * January 12 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: A nationalistic coalition of merchants, religious leaders and intellectuals in Persia forces the shah Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar to grant a constitution, ...

Holden was elected as Liberal Member of Parliament for Heywood, Lancashire. In 1908 he was considered for the post of

Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and the head of HM Treasury, His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, t ...

in succession to

H. H. Asquith Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith (12 September 1852 – 15 February 1928) was a British statesman and Liberal Party (UK), Liberal politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1908 to 1916. He was the last ...

. However, the office was given to

David Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. A Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, he was known for leadi ...

, following his threat to resign from the cabinet. Holden did not contest the next general election in 1910. In 1909 Holden was created a baronet, "of the Grange in the County of Surrey". He declined the offer of a

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

on two occasions. Despite his retirement from parliamentary politics, Holden remained an economic adviser to the government. He was part of a commission sent to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

in 1915 to help stabilise exchange rates, and helped raise a loan negotiated by the

Anglo-French Financial Commission The Anglo-French Financial Commission was a special delegation to the United States from the governments of the United Kingdom and France in 1915 during the First World War. The Commission, led by Lord Reading, secured the single largest loan from ...

in 1915. Holden developed heart disease in his final year, and died suddenly at Duff House Sanatorium in Banff,

Banffshire Banffshire (; ; ) is a historic county in Scotland. The county town is Banff, although the largest settlement is Buckie to the west. The historic county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975. Since 1996 the area has been spli ...

(now

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire (; ) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Aberdeenshire (historic), Aberdeenshire, which had substantial ...

) of cerebral thrombosis and heart failure.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Holden, Edward, 1st Baronet English bankers Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1906–1910 People from Tottington, Greater Manchester 1848 births 1919 deaths People from the Borough of Runnymede Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom 19th-century English businesspeople