Armand Donon
Pierre Armand Donon | |
|---|---|
| Born | Error: Invalid birth date for calculating age Pontoise, France |
| Died | April 11, 1902 (aged 83) Neuilly-sur-Seine, France |
| Occupation(s) | Financier, banker, politician |
| Known for | Co-founder of Crédit Industriel et Commercial and Société des Dépôts et Comptes Courants; collaboration with Charles, duc de Morny; mayor of Lonrai |
Pierre Armand Donon (born 14 April 1818 in Pontoise, died 11 April 1902 in Neuilly-sur-Seine) was a prominent French financier recognized for his collaboration with Charles, duc de Morny, an influential figure during the Second French Empire, particularly in pioneering projects such as the establishment of Deauville.
Biography
Born to merchant Pierre-Amédée Donon and Marie-Caroline-Armande Morand, Pierre-Armand pursued his education at Collège Sainte-Barbe. By 1845, he had become a partner at the private banking firm Calon jeune & Cie. Following the 1851 French coup d'état, on 23 December 1851, he co-established the banking institution Donon, Aubry, Gautier & Cie alongside Maurice Aubry and Jules Gautier.
In 1853, Donon married Henriette-Félicité Staub, daughter of a notable Parisian tailor. The couple had three children: Jacques-Pierre (1854–1913), Thérèse-Jeanne-Marie (1857–1897), and Jeanne-Mathilde-Elisabeth (1860–1919).
Between 1853 and 1880, Donon held the position of consul-general for the Ottoman Empire, a role later assumed by his son. He was decorated as a Grand Officer and subsequently elevated to Grand Cross of the Ottoman Order of the Medjidie.
Donon was instrumental in the creation of the Crédit Industriel et Commercial (CIC) in 1859, an initiative supported by the Duke of Morny aimed at competing with the Pereire brothers's Crédit Mobilier. This institution drew inspiration from British deposit banks such as the London and Westminster Bank. Experiencing a decline in influence within CIC by 1863, Donon founded the Société des Dépôts et Comptes Courants (SDCC), where he assumed the role of chairman. As SDCC emerged as a competitor to CIC, Donon resigned from CIC’s board by 1871.
That same year, together with Morny and his physician Joseph Francis Olliffe, Donon purchased 177 hectares of coastal land near the Touques river in Normandy, which laid the foundation for what would become Deauville.
Starting in 1868, Donon served as mayor of Lonrai in Orne, where he had acquired a substantial country estate in 1863. He sought election as deputy for Orne in both 1871 and 1876 but was not successful.
In the late 1870s, Donon's management at SDCC involved risky financial maneuvers and a lack of transparency with the board regarding fiscal difficulties. His initial bank, Donon, Aubry, Gautier & Cie, entered liquidation in 1887. The SDCC encountered severe financial distress in 1891, necessitating intervention by the Bank of France and culminating in its liquidation on 7 April 1891. Subsequently, it was absorbed by the Comptoir national d'escompte de Paris in 1892. That year also saw Donon's resignation from his mayoral duties and the sale of his Lonrai estate.
On 22 July 1893, Donon was found guilty and sentenced to six months imprisonment at La Santé Prison along with a fine of three thousand francs. On 12 March 1894, he was officially deprived of the Legion of Honour, which had been bestowed upon him in 1855.