Sir John Banks, 1st Baronet FRS (1627 – 18 October 1699) was an English merchant and MP, who rose from relatively humble beginnings to be one of the wealthiest merchants in London and owner of several properties.

Life

Banks was the son of Caleb Bankes (died 1669) of Maidstone, Kent, gent, and Martha Dann. He was educated at

Emmanuel College, Cambridge Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay, Chancellor of the Exchequer to Elizabeth I. The site on which the college sits was once a priory for Dominican mo ...

. About 1657, Banks married Elizabeth Dethick, daughter of Sir John Dethick. They had several children. His son Caleb was MP for various constituencies, but predeceased him without issue in 1696. Banks 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 ...

by King Charles II in 1661. He was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

in 1668. He invested in the overseas trade with the East and with Africa and in 1677 was financially involved in an expedition to search for a North-east trade route. He was Governor of the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

in 1673–74. Banks was Member of Parliament (MP) several times; for

Maidstone Maidstone is the largest Town status in the United Kingdom, town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town, l ...

1654–1659, for

Winchelsea Winchelsea () is a town in the county of East Sussex, England, located between the High Weald and the Romney Marsh, approximately south west of Rye and north east of Hastings. The current town, which was founded in 1288, replaced an earli ...

1678, for Rochester 1679–1690, for Queenborough 1690–1695 and again for Maidstone 1695–1698. In 1672, he advocated for the rights of non-conformist congregations to be allowed to meet. On Banks death in 1699 the baronetcy became extinct. He was survived by two married daughters (Mary, who had married John Savile and Elizabeth, who had married Heneage Finch) who were co-heiresses to his estate.

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Banks, John, 1st Baronet 1627 births 1699 deaths Alumni of Emmanuel College, Cambridge 17th-century English merchants Directors of the British East India Company Fellows of the Royal Society Baronets in the Baronetage of England English MPs 1654–1655 English MPs 1656–1658 English MPs 1659 English MPs 1661–1679 English MPs 1679 English MPs 1681 English MPs 1685–1687 English MPs 1689–1690 English MPs 1695–1698