Sir William Curtis, 1st Baronet (25 January 1752 – 18 January 1829) was an English merchant, banker, and politician. Although he had a long political and business career (the two significantly intertwined), he was probably best known for the banquets he hosted.

Life

Born in

Wapping Wapping () is an area in the borough of Tower Hamlets in London, England. It is in East London and part of the East End. Wapping is on the north bank of the River Thames between Tower Bridge to the west, and Shadwell to the east. This posit ...

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 ...

, Curtis was the son of a sea biscuit manufacturer, Joseph Curtis, and his wife Mary Tennant. The family business was making ship's biscuit and other dry provisions for the Royal Navy. They were also shipowners whose vessels carried convicts to Australia and engaged in South Sea whaling. A lifelong

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

, he was elected as a Member of Parliament for the

City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...

at the 1790 general election. He held the seat continuously for 28 years until his defeat at the 1818 general election. He was returned to the Commons in February 1819 at a by-election for Bletchingley, and at the 1820 general election he was returned again for the

. He did not contest London again at the 1826 election, when he was returned for

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

.Stooks Smith, page 338 He resigned that seat later the same year. Curtis was also

Alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denotin ...

of the city, becoming

Sheriff of London Two Sheriffs of the City of London are elected annually by the members of the City livery companies. Today's Sheriffs have only ceremonial duties, but the historical officeholders held important judicial responsibilities. They have attended the ...

in 1788 and

Lord Mayor Lord mayor is a title of a mayor of what is usually a major city in a Commonwealth realm, with special recognition bestowed by the sovereign. However, the title or an equivalent is present in other countries, including forms such as "high mayor". A ...

in 1795–96. He was known for the lavish banquets he gave at his estate, Cullands Grove. He was created a Baronet of Cullonds Grove in 1802. Curtis died in 1829. His estate sale ran for a week, and included 370 dozen bottles of wine,

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...

, claret, East India Madeira,

sherry Sherry ( ) is a fortified wine produced from white grapes grown around the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is a drink produced in a variety of styles made primarily from the Palomino grape, ranging from light versio ...

(Wild's), Malaga, Hock, and

beer Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...

.Newby, Herbert W. (1949) ''"Old" Southgate''. London: T. Grove. pp. 17–29.

References

The Search for Billy Biscuit - The Man Who Coined The Three Rs by Nick Brazil. ISBN 9798879276771. Published by Brazil Peosuctions October 2024

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, William 1752 births 1829 deaths People from Wapping Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Sheriffs of the City of London 18th-century lord mayors of London 18th-century English politicians 19th-century English politicians Tory MPs (pre-1834) Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies British MPs 1790–1796 British MPs 1796–1800 Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies UK MPs 1801–1802 UK MPs 1802–1806 UK MPs 1806–1807 UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs 1818–1820 UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 British people in whaling 18th-century English slave traders

Life

See also

References

External links