Sir Alexander Young Spearman, 1st Baronet, PC (13 September 1793 – 20 November 1874) was a British civil servant. According to a later assessment, he was "one of the most remarkable public servants of his age, who did much to establish the reputation of the Civil Service and to influence its traditions in the critical phase of its development in the nineteenth century."

Biography

Spearman was born in Pentridge,

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

, the eldest son of Major Alexander Young Spearman, RA (1762–1808), of Thornley,

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England **County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham *Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States Durham may also refer to: Places ...

, and Agnes, daughter of James Morton, of Bonar Hill,

Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark (; ), is a Counties of Scotland, historic county, Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and registration county in the Central Lowlands and Southern Uplands of Scotland. The county is no l ...

. His paternal grandmother was the sister of Sir William Young, Lieutenant-Governor of Tobago. Spearman joined the public service in 1808, aged fifteen, as deputy assistant commissary-general. In 1816, he became chief clerk to

John Charles Herries John Charles Herries PC (November 1778 – 24 April 1855), known as J. C. Herries, was a British politician and financier and a frequent member of Tory and Conservative cabinets in the early to mid-19th century. Background and education Herri ...

, auditor of the

Civil List A civil list is a list of individuals to whom money is paid by the government, typically for service to the state or as honorary pensions. It is a term especially associated with the United Kingdom, and its former colonies and dominions. It was ori ...

. In 1822 he investigated irregularities in the Stationery Office, and in 1833 he was made controller of the Stationery Office. In 1824, he joined the

Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry; in a business context, corporate treasury. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be ...

as assistant clerk in the revenue department and clerk of parliamentary accounts. From 1827 to 1828, he was private secretary to Herries when the latter was

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 1831, he became auditor of the civil list. In 1836, he was promoted to Assistant Secretary to the Treasury. In 1840, he retired on health grounds and was created a

Baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

, of

Hanwell Hanwell () is a town in the London Borough of Ealing. It is about west of Ealing Broadway and had a population of 28,768 as of 2011. It is the westernmost location of the London post town. Hanwell is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. St ...

in the

County of Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the Thames in the south, the Lea to the east and the Colne to the west. A line of hi ...

. In 1850, he emerged from retirement to serve as secretary and comptroller of the National Debt Office. He also served as deputy chairman of the

Public Works Loan Board The Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) () was a statutory body of the UK Government that provided loans to public bodies from the National Loans Fund. In 2020, the PWLB was abolished as a statutory organisation, and its functions were allocated to HM T ...

and as one of the commissioners for the Exhibition of 1851. Sworn of the Privy Council in 1869, he retired in 1873. In 1826, Spearman married Jane Campbell (died 1877), daughter of Duncan Campbell of Inverawe,

Argyll Argyll (; archaically Argyle; , ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a Shires of Scotland, historic county and registration county of western Scotland. The county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975 and most of the area ...

, and of

Bedford Square Bedford Square is a garden square in the Bloomsbury district of the London Borough of Camden, Borough of Camden in London, England. History Built between 1775 and 1783 as an upper middle class residential area, the square has had many disti ...

, London; they had four sons.

References

* https://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-48790 {{DEFAULTSORT:Spearman, Alexander 1793 births 1874 deaths Civil servants in HM Treasury Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom

Biography

See also

References