William Fraser, 1st Baron Strathalmond,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(3 November 1888 – 1 April 1970), was a Scottish businessman and a leading expert on the oil industry. He served as chairman of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (known as British Petroleum from 1954) from 1941 to 1956. William Fraser Jr

Biography

Fraser was the second son of William Fraser, of

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, the founder of the Pumpherston Oil Company, and his wife Janet Loch. He joined his father's firm in 1909 and became a director in 1913 and joint managing director in 1915. He was appointed Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(CBE) in 1918 for his work in increasing oil supply during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Fraser joined the board of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company in 1923. He became deputy chairman (to John Cadman) in 1928, and played a great role in expanding the oil production in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

and

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

, becoming known as a leading expert on

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...

oil. In 1941 he succeeded Cadman as chairman, a post he retained until 1956 (the firm was renamed the British Petroleum Company in 1954). Fraser was also an adviser on oil affairs to the British government for many years, notably as petroleum adviser to the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

and as chairman of the Oil Advisory Committee.

Honours

After being appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1918, Fraser was knighted in 1939 and in 1955 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Strathalmond, of Pumpherston in the County of Midlothian.

Marriage & Children

Lord Strathalmond married Mary Roberton McLintock (born 11 April 1892, died 17 October 1963), daughter of Thomas McLintock, in 1913. They had one son and one daughter:The Peerage, entry for 1st Lord Strathalmond
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William Fraser, 2nd Baron Strathalmond William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

(born 8 May 1916, died 27 October 1976) * Hon Mary Joan Fraser (born 29 Oct 1922, died 6 March 2004) Lord Strathalmond died in April 1970, aged 81. He was succeeded in the barony by his only son, William. He is buried at

Putney Vale Cemetery Putney Vale Cemetery and Crematorium in southwest London is located in Putney Vale, surrounded by Putney Heath and Wimbledon Common and Richmond Park. It is located within of parkland. The cemetery was opened in 1891 and the crematorium in 1938 ...

in South West London.

Arms

References

*William, E. T., Nicholls, C. S (editors). ''The Dictionary of National Biography, 1961-1970''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1981. *Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, {{DEFAULTSORT:Strathalmond, William Fraser, 1st Baron 1888 births 1970 deaths Anglo-Persian Oil Company Burials at Putney Vale Cemetery British businesspeople in the oil industry Chairmen of BP Commanders of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century Scottish businesspeople Hereditary barons created by Elizabeth II