Sir John Ellerman, 1st Baronet
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Sir John Reeves Ellerman, 1st Baronet, CH (15 May 1862 – 16 July 1933) was an English shipowner and investor, believed to be the richest man in England. An accountant by training, he learned to identify underpriced companies and acquired them, often as sole stakeholder. His shipping interests were combined into the Ellerman Lines, and he also invested in newspapers, breweries, coal, and London property. Despite his wealth, his personal life was modest and private.


Early life

Ellerman was born in
Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually shortened to Hull, is a historic maritime city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Est ...
, the only son of a
Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
ship broker and corn merchant who had emigrated to England from
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
, Germany in 1850, and an English mother.Was this the richest (and most secretive) British tycoon ever?
Daily Telegraph, 22 May 2006. Retrieved 20 January 2010
His father died when he was nine, leaving an estate of £600 (). Ellerman spent part of his childhood in France and briefly attended King Edward VI School in
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
. Ellerman did not get on with his mother and lived independently from the age of fourteen, when he was articled to a Birmingham chartered accountant. After passing his articles he moved to London, where he turned down a partnership in one of the leading firms of the day to found his own practice, J. Ellerman & Co, in the
City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...
in 1886. He was one of the first important British businessmen with a professional qualification in accountancy. He was also one of the first businessmen to use modern accounting methods to identify under-priced companies that should be well suited for takeover. The secretive billionaire
''BBC News'', 20 August 2009. Retrieved 20 January 2010
From 1890, Ellerman began to create major business groups by buying up established businesses, typically ones which had a good product but were in managerial decline after the death of the founder. Most of these businesses flourished under his management. He raised funds from other investors where necessary, but held large stakes personally. The first of these groups was the Brewery and Commercial Investment Trust which appreciated by 1,300% in nine years.


Shipping

In 1892, Ellerman made his first move into shipping by leading a consortium which purchased the Leyland Line from the late Frederick Richards Leyland, one of the largest shipowners in Britain. In 1901 Ellerman sold this business to J. P. Morgan for £1.2 million (), who immediately folded it into the International Mercantile Marine Co. Ellerman, however, immediately began to buy other shipping lines, and in 1902 he combined his interests into
Ellerman Lines Ellerman Lines was a UK cargo and passenger shipping company that operated from the late nineteenth century and into the twentieth century. It was founded in the late 19th century, and continued to expand by acquiring smaller shipping lines u ...
. He continued to expand the business, making inroads into the South African, Atlantic and Indian routes while buying rival lines on a regular basis. In 1916 he paid £4.1 million () for Thomas Wilson Sons & Co. of Hull, which had once been the largest privately owned shipping line in the world. The newly acquired company was renamed Ellerman's Wilson Line and it operated as a separate entity from the other Ellerman Lines, maintaining the red funnels with black tops of Thomas Wilson Sons & Co. with most of their vessels having very distinctive dark green hulls. By 1917, Ellerman owned 1.5 million tons of shipping, equivalent to the entire French merchant navy. Ellerman far surpassed his rivals in shipping; through his shrewd decision-making, assets flourished under his management.


Other business interests

At the same time Ellerman expanded his brewing interests and by 1918 he held shares in more than seventy breweries. In many cases he improved the financial performance of these businesses rapidly. From around 1904 he also invested in newspapers, owning stakes in the ''
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'', the ''
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'', ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'', the ''
Illustrated London News ''The Illustrated London News'', founded by Herbert Ingram and first published on Saturday 14 May 1842, was the world's first illustrated weekly news magazine. The magazine was published weekly for most of its existence, switched to a less freq ...
'', ''
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'', '' The Sphere'' and other publications at various times. He sold most of his press interests in the 1920s. Another field in which Ellerman was a major player was coal. In the 1920s he held shares in at least 22 collieries. After the First World War he also became a major owner of property in London. Aristocrats such as the
Duke of Bedford Duke of Bedford (named after Bedford, England) is a title that has been created six times (for five distinct people) in the Peerage of England. The first creation came in 1414 for Henry IV's third son, John, who later served as regent of Fran ...
, Lord Howard de Walden and
Earl Cadogan Earl Cadogan is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of Great Britain for the Cadogan family. The second creation, in 1800, was for Charles Cadogan, 1st Earl Cadogan, Charles Cadogan, 3rd Baron Cadogan. History Of Welsh origin ...
were increasingly selling off slices of the freehold West End estates which had been in their families for centuries and Ellerman was often the buyer.


Personal life

Ellerman had little interest in public recognition. He 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 Connaught Square in the
Metropolitan Borough of Paddington Paddington was a Civil parishes in England, civil parish and Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London, metropolitan borough in London, England. It was an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, governed by an administrative vestry. The p ...
on 11 December 1905 in appreciation of his contribution to British shipping needs during the
Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic an ...
, but he could readily have obtained a higher honour if he had wanted one. His lifestyle was not ostentatious. In 1916, he stated that he was worth £55 million (). This may well have been correct, as he had no reputation for self-aggrandisement. The following year, a journalist estimated that his shipping interests alone were worth £35 million. At this time, the
Duke of Westminster Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ...
was generally reckoned to be the second-richest man in the United Kingdom, with a fortune of around £14 million. When Ellerman died in 1933, his estate was assessed for
probate In common law jurisdictions, probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased; or whereby, in the absence of a legal will, the e ...
in 1936 at . (). The previous record was £13.5 million left by
Lord Iveagh Earl of Iveagh (pronounced —especially in Dublin—or ) is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1919 for the businessman and philanthropist Edward Guinness, 1st Earl of Iveagh, Edward Guinness, 1st Viscount Iveagh. He was ...
of the
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Brewery in 1927. Ellerman had negotiated the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
skillfully, but his wealth at death must have been well below its 1920s peak. Ellerman lived a secretive life in
Mayfair Mayfair is an area of Westminster, London, England, in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. It is between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane and one of the most expensive districts ...
and
Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. It is also a non-metropolitan district, local government district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, bor ...
. Although he did purchase New Slains Castle in Scotland in 1916, he subsequently dismantled it and removed its roof to avoid roof tax, leaving it a ruin by 1925. He made no attempt to join high society or enter politics. One possible reason is that from the early 1890s he lived with a woman called Hannah Glover, and had a daughter by her in 1894, but did not marry her until 1908, the year before the birth of his only son, who was also called John Ellerman. Ellerman was appointed
Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded on 4 June 1917 by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements. It was founded on the same date as the Order of the British Empire. The orde ...
(CH) in the 1921 New Year Honours. He was buried at Putney Vale Cemetery.


Descendants

Ellerman's daughter Annie Winifred Glover, later Annie Winifred Ellerman, was a published writer under the pen name Bryher. Her autobiography, ''The Heart to Artemis'' (1963), gives an account of her father. On his death in July 1933, Ellerman left about £900,000 to Bryher, but the majority of his wealth – around £20 million after death duties – was inherited by his only son
John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...
.


Legacy

* His prominent position in commercial shipping earned him the City of Antwerp naming a street for him, the Ellermanstraat near the former Docks Parcel station.


Footnotes


References

* J. Taylor, ''Ellermans: A Wealth of Shipping'', (1976) * D. J. Jeremy, (editor), ''Dictionary of Business Biography'', (1984–86) * Bryher, ''The Heart to Artemis'', (1963)


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellerman, John 1862 births 1933 deaths English businesspeople in shipping Burials at Putney Vale Cemetery 1 Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour Businesspeople from Kingston upon Hull People educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham English accountants English people of German descent