Sir Frederick Wills, 1st Baronet (22 November 1838 – 18 February 1909) was a businessman, philanthropist and politician in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. He was a director of W. D. & H. O. Wills, a famous tobacco company headquartered in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

which later merged into the

Imperial Tobacco Company Imperial Brands plc (originally the Imperial Tobacco Company of Great Britain & Ireland, and subsequently Imperial Tobacco Group plc) is a British multinational tobacco company headquartered in Bristol, England. It is the world's fourth-larges ...

. Wills was educated at

Amersham Hall Amersham Hall was a "school for the sons of dignified gentlemen" in England. From 1829 to 1861 it was in Elmodesham House in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, relocating in 1861 to Caversham in Oxfordshire. The Caversham site, a suburb in the north ...

and served as the

Liberal Unionist The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a political ...

Member of Parliament (MP) for Bristol North from 1900 to 1906. He was made 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 ...

in 1897, of Northmoor in the County of

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, & Manor Heath in the County of

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

. He also served as the president of the

Anchor Society The Anchor Society CIO is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation based in Bristol, England which supports older people in need in the Bristol and Bath, Somerset, Bath region (BS, BA and GL Postcodes). Its work primarily centres around grants to ...

in 1882, and was a governor of

Guy's Hospital Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital founded by philanthropist Thomas Guy in 1721, located in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the Kin ...

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 ...

until his death in 1909. The Wills Library at the

GKT School of Medical Education King's College London GKT School of Medical Education (often referred to simply as GKT) is the medical school of King's College London. The school has campuses at three institutions, Guy's Hospital (Southwark), King's College Hospital (Denmar ...

is named in his honour; he was its primary benefactor.

Family

Frederick Wills was a son of Henry Overton Wills II & Isabella Board. He married Annie, daughter of Reverend James Hamilton, in 1867. He died in February 1909, and was succeeded in the baronetcy by his son Gilbert, who was created

Baron Dulverton Baron Dulverton, of Batsford in the County of Gloucester, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1929 for the businessman Sir Gilbert Wills, 2nd Baronet. He was President of the Imperial Tobacco Company and also sat ...

in 1929. Annie, Lady Wills, died in 1910. Sir Frederick's third son was

Frederick Noel Hamilton Wills Frederick Noel Hamilton Wills of Miserden House, Gloucestershire, (1887) - (1927), was the youngest son of Sir Frederick Wills Bt. of Northmoor, Dulverton and Anne (née Hamilton). Sir Frederick Wills was a director of W D & H O Wills, a me ...

. He was a brother of

Henry Overton Wills III Henry Overton Wills III (22 December 1828 – 4 September 1911) of Kelston Knoll, near Bath in Somerset, was a prominent and wealthy member of the Bristol tobacco manufacturing family of Wills which founded the firm of W. D. & H. O. Wills. A ...

, Sir Edward Payson Wills, a half brother of Sir Frank William Wills, and a cousin of

William Henry Wills William Wills may refer to: * William Wills, 1st Baron Winterstoke (1830–1911), British businessman and peer * William Gorman Wills (1828–1891), Irish dramatist and painter * William Henry Wills (journalist) (1810–1880), journalist, newspaper ...

Lord Winterstoke. Seats - Northmoor, Dulverton,

, & Manor Heath,

Bournemouth Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...

. London residence - 9

Kensington Palace Gardens Kensington Palace Gardens is an exclusive street in Kensington, west of central London, near Kensington Gardens and Kensington Palace. Entered through gates at either end and guarded by sentry boxes, it was the location of the London Cage, t ...

References

1838 births 1909 deaths Liberal Unionist Party MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1900–1906 British businesspeople in the tobacco industry 19th-century English businesspeople

Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Given name Nobility = Anhalt-Harzgerode = * Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) = Austria = * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fro ...

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