Sir William Paterson (April 1658 - 22 January 1719) was a Scottish trader and

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

. He was one of the founders of the

Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government of ...

and was one of the main proponents of the catastrophic

Darien scheme The Darien scheme was an unsuccessful attempt, backed largely by investors of the Kingdom of Scotland, to gain wealth and influence by establishing ''New Caledonia'', a colony on the Isthmus of Panama, in the late 1690s. The plan was for the co ...

. Later he became an advocate of Union with England.

Biography

Early life

William Paterson was born in his parents' farmhouse at Tinwald in Dumfriesshire, Scotland, and lived with them until he was seventeen, when he emigrated first (briefly) to

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

and then to the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

, although accounts differ as to the duration of his stays. During his time in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

he first conceived the idea of the

Darién scheme The Darien scheme was an unsuccessful attempt, backed largely by investors of the Kingdom of Scotland, to gain wealth and influence by establishing ''New Caledonia'', a colony on the Isthmus of Panama, in the late 1690s. The plan was for the c ...

, his plan to create a colony on the isthmus of

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

, facilitating trade with the

Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...

. While in the West Indies, it is said that he acted as a merchant, developing a reputation for business acumen and dealings with local buccaneers.

Career

Paterson returned to

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

by the middle of the 1680s, and attempted to convince the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

government under James II to undertake the Darién scheme. When they refused, he tried again to persuade the governments of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

and the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

to establish a colony in Panama, but failed in both cases. Paterson then went to London in 1687 and made his fortune with foreign trade (primarily through the

slave trade Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

with the

) in the

Merchant Taylors' Company ] The Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors is one of the 110 Livery company, livery companies of the City of London. The Company, originally known as the ''Guild and Fraternity of St John the Baptist in the City of London'', was founded prio ...

. He also helped to found a company for supplying water to North London from the Hampstead Hills, known as the Hampstead Water Company which existed until the late 19th century. In 1694, he co-founded the

. It was said that the project originated with him in 1691, as described in his pamphlet ''A Brief Account of the Intended Bank of England'', to act as the English government's banker. He proposed a loan of £1.2m to the government; in return the subscribers would be incorporated as The Governor and Company of the Bank of England with banking privileges including the issue of notes. The Royal Charter was granted on 27 July 1694. On the foundation of the bank in 1694 he became a director. In 1695, owing to a disagreement with his colleagues, he withdrew from the board and devoted himself to the colony of Darien, unsuccessfully planted in 1698.

Darien scheme

Paterson relocated to

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, where he was able to convince the Scottish government to undertake the Darién scheme, a failed attempt to found an independent Scottish Empire in what is today Panama. Paterson personally accompanied the disastrous Scottish expedition to Panama in 1698, where his wife and child died while he himself became seriously ill.Orr, Julie (2018), ''Scotland, Darien and the Atlantic World, 1698 - 1700'', Edinburgh University Press, On his return to Scotland in December 1699, he became instrumental in the movement for the

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

of Scotland and England, culminating in his support of the

Act of Union 1707 The Acts of Union ( gd, Achd an Aonaidh) were two Acts of Parliament: the Union with Scotland Act 1706 passed by the Parliament of England, and the Union with England Act 1707 passed by the Parliament of Scotland. They put into effect the te ...

. He spent the last years of his life in

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

, and died in January 1719. A mystery still surrounds the burial site of Paterson. Many (including officials at the Bank of England), believe he is buried in

Sweetheart Abbey The Abbey of Dulce Cor, better known as Sweetheart Abbey ( Gaelic: ''An Abaid Ur''), was a Cistercian monastery founded in 1275 in what is now the village of New Abbey, in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire in Dumfries and Galloway, ...

New Abbey New Abbey ( gd, An Abaid Ùr) is a village in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is south of Dumfries. The summit of the prominent hill Criffel is to the south. History The village has a wealth ...

Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland and is located in the western Southern Uplands. It covers the counties of Scotland, historic counties of ...

Publications

* ''Proposals and Reasons for Constitulating a Council of Trade'' (1701), a plan to create a Scottish council of Trade which would stimulate the

Scottish economy The economy of Scotland is an Open economy, open mixed economy which, in 2020, had an estimated nominal gross domestic product (GDP) of $205 billion including oil and gas extraction in Scottish waters. Since the Acts of Union 1707, Scotland's ...

and trade, partly by abolishing

export duties Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting tariffs and for controlling the flow of goods, including animals, transports, personal effects, and hazardous items, into and out of a country. Traditionally, customs ...

. * ''A Proposal to plant a Colony in Darién to protect the Indians against Spain, and to open the Trade of South America to all Nations'' (1701), a broader version of the Darién scheme intended to bring

free trade Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econo ...

to all of Central and South America. * ''Wednesday Club Dialogues upon the Union'' (1706), a series of imaginary dialogues in which Paterson expressed his beliefs that Scotland had to be guaranteed equal taxation, freedom of trade and proportionate representation in

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

if union with England was to succeed.

References

External links

*
Famous Scots - William PatersonThe Darien Venture, Dr Mike Ibeji (BBC)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paterson, William 1658 births 1719 deaths People from Dumfries and Galloway Scottish bankers Scottish economists People associated with the Bank of England West Indies merchants 17th-century Scottish businesspeople Cloth merchants 18th-century Scottish businesspeople Burials at Sweetheart Abbey