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Calouste Gulbenkian

From Alfawiki
Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian
BornTemplate:Birth date
Scutari (Üsküdar), Constantinople, Ottoman Empire
DiedJuly 20, 1955(1955-07-20) (aged 86)
Lisbon, Portugal
Occupation(s)Entrepreneur, philanthropist
Known forPioneer in Middle Eastern oil industry, founder of Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, art collector

Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian (23 March 1869 – 20 July 1955) was a British Armenian entrepreneur and philanthropist born in the Ottoman Empire. He was instrumental in facilitating Western access to oil reserves in the Middle East and is recognized as a pioneer in the exploitation of Iraqi oil fields. Allegedly the architect of the "Red Line Agreement", Gulbenkian secured a permanent 5% stake in the Turkish Petroleum Company—which later became the Iraqi Petroleum Company—earning him the moniker "Mr. Five Per Cent". Throughout his life, he resided in major cities such as Constantinople, London, Paris, and Lisbon.

In addition to his business achievements, Gulbenkian was a notable benefactor who established numerous educational institutions, healthcare facilities, and churches. The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, founded in Portugal in 1956 from his inheritance, stands as one of Europe's foremost philanthropic organizations, supporting initiatives across arts, education, science, and humanitarian causes worldwide. At his passing, Gulbenkian was among the wealthiest individuals globally and possessed one of the most extensive private art collections.

Ancestry

Gulbenkian descended from the distinguished Armenian Rshtuni lineage originating near Lake Van during the 4th century AD. By the 11th century, his ancestors had settled in Caesarea (present-day Kayseri), where they adopted the Byzantine title Vart Badrik. Following the Ottoman conquest, their surname evolved to Gülbenk. The family resided in Talas until mid-19th century before relocating to Constantinople (Istanbul). The Turkish government later seized their Talas estates.

By around 1860, Sarkis Gulbenkian—Calouste’s father—was engaged as an Armenian oil trader operating within the Caucasus region, primarily Baku, representing Alexander Mantashev’s oil enterprise. He also supplied oil to the Ottoman Sultan and obtained tax farming rights over Mesopotamia’s Privy Purse under Sultan Abdulhamid II.

Early years

Born on 23 March 1869 in Scutari (Üsküdar), Constantinople, Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian attended local Armenian and French schools before relocating at age fifteen to Marseille to enhance his proficiency in French.

Career in oil

Gulbenkian earned first-class honors studying petroleum engineering at King’s College London, graduating in 1887. He subsequently visited Baku to analyze Russia’s oil industry, publishing his findings initially in a French cultural journal and later as a book released in Paris.

In 1887, he conducted an oil survey of Mesopotamia commissioned by Ottoman Finance Minister Hagop Pasha, which influenced early development plans for regional oil fields. By 1895, Gulbenkian initiated his own ventures in oil but fled the Ottoman Empire amid Armenian massacres in 1896, first moving to Egypt and then settling in London by 1897. There he cultivated influential connections and became a British citizen in 1902.

In 1907, he played a key role facilitating the merger between Royal Dutch Petroleum and Shell Transport and Trading Company, becoming a significant shareholder. His approach of maintaining five percent ownership stakes across enterprises earned him the sobriquet "Mr Five Per Cent."

Following Turkey’s 1909 countercoup, Gulbenkian acted as financial adviser to Turkish diplomatic missions and subsequently to the government itself. He was pivotal in establishing the Turkish Petroleum Company (TPC) in 1912—a consortium of European oil firms created to manage Mesopotamian oil rights—with ownership divided among British, German, French interests and himself holding 15%. Although World War I interrupted progress, he secured French backing to safeguard his share.

After the Ottoman Empire collapsed, TPC obtained exclusive exploration privileges for Mesopotamia by 1925. The discovery of substantial reserves at Baba Gurgur culminated in the 1928 Red Line Agreement that outlined company investments while reserving five percent for Gulbenkian personally. The firm was renamed Iraq Petroleum Company in 1929. Strategically, Gulbenkian sold most of his concession shares to encourage corporate investment while retaining profits from his minority interest.

Anticipating global conflict in 1938, Gulbenkian formed a Panamanian entity—Participations and Explorations Corporation—to hold his oil holdings. This company later evolved into Partex Oil and Gas (Holdings) Corporation, operating under the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation based in Lisbon until 2019.

Art collection

Gulbenkian accumulated an immense wealth alongside a remarkable art collection, primarily kept in his Parisian residence. In 1950, Life magazine remarked that "No individual in recent times has possessed such an extensive array." His four-level home on Avenue d'Iéna was filled with artworks, a situation he somewhat eased in 1936 by loaning thirty paintings to London's National Gallery and Egyptian sculptures to the British Museum.

Throughout his life, Gulbenkian gathered over 6,400 artworks, including more than 140 pieces commissioned from René Lalique over nearly three decades. His collection covers periods from ancient times through the 20th century and includes acquisitions made during the Soviet sale of Hermitage artworks.

The majority of Gulbenkian's collection is displayed at the Museu Calouste Gulbenkian in Lisbon, Portugal, founded according to his testament and overseen by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. Of roughly 6,000 objects held by the museum, about 1,000 are exhibited permanently.

Philanthropy

Gulbenkian contributed generously to churches, educational scholarships, schools, and hospitals, with a particular emphasis on Armenian-related causes. He stipulated that 5% of profits from his oil interests be allocated to support Armenian families and required that Armenians constitute 5% of the workforce in oil production for the Iraq Petroleum Company.

He established St Sarkis Armenian Church in Kensington, London (1922–23), as both a tribute to his parents and a hub for the Armenian community. In 1929, he became the principal patron of the Gulbenkian Library at St. James Cathedral in Jerusalem, which contains more than 100,000 volumes.

Significant properties were also donated by Gulbenkian to Istanbul's Surp Pırgiç Armenian Hospital, including Selamet Han in 1954. Although confiscated in 1974, these assets were restored to the foundation in 2011. He financed a nurses' residence at the hospital through the sale of his wife's jewelry.

Between 1930 and 1932, he served as president of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) but resigned after a defamation campaign launched by Soviet Armenia. Furthermore, he was a key supporter of Nubarashen and Nor Kesaria settlements created for refugees from the Armenian genocide.

Later life and death

In 1937, Gulbenkian acquired a property near Deauville named Les Enclos, which became his private sanctuary. The Nobel laureate and close friend Saint-John Perse referred to him as the Sage of Les Enclos, calling it "the foundation of your achievements" and a refuge for his aspirations.

During World War II, holding diplomatic immunity as economic adviser to the Persian legation in Paris, he accompanied the French government to Vichy, where he assumed the role of Iran’s minister. Despite his British connections, he was briefly classified as an enemy alien by Britain; his UK oil holdings were seized but later returned with compensation. In late 1942, he departed France for Lisbon, residing there until his passing on 20 July 1955 at age 86 in a suite at the Aviz Hotel.

In 1952, Gulbenkian refused a knighthood offered by the Order of the British Empire. That year also marked the death of his wife Nevarte in Paris. The couple had two children: son Nubar and daughter Rita, who wed Iranian-Armenian diplomat Kevork Loris Essayan.

His remains were laid to rest at St Sarkis Armenian Church in London.

Legacy and fortune

At the time of his passing, Calouste Gulbenkian's wealth was valued between US$280 million and US$840 million. A portion of this estate was entrusted to his heirs, while the remainder—including his extensive art collection—was left to the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (). The foundation allocated US$400,000 specifically for the restoration of Armenia's Etchmiadzin Cathedral once diplomatic conditions with the Soviet Union permitted such work.

The foundation actively promotes initiatives across charitable, educational, artistic, and scientific fields. Among its trustees were Gulbenkian’s longtime associate Baron Radcliffe of Werneth, Lisbon-based lawyer José de Azeredo Perdigão, and his son-in-law Kevork Loris Essayan. The foundation’s headquarters in Lisbon also house the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum (), which displays his renowned art collection.

In 1962, the foundation sponsored an Oakley-class lifeboat for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, named Calouste Gulbenkian by his daughter during its christening at Weston-super-Mare Lifeboat Station. The vessel remained in service until 1969 and was preserved after being withdrawn from New Quay Lifeboat Station in 1991.

Writer William Saroyan included Gulbenkian as a character in a short story featured in his 1971 collection Letters from 74 rue Taitbout or Don't Go But If You Must Say Hello To Everybody.

Several University of Oxford facilities honor Gulbenkian’s legacy, such as the Gulbenkian Reading Room at St Antony's College, Oxford and the Gulbenkian Lecture Theater located within the St Cross Building.

Awards

Published works

  • La Transcaucasie et la péninsule d'Apchéron; souvenirs de voyage, Paris, Librairie Hachette, 1891.

See also

Sources

Further reading

Biography

  • Conlin, Jonathan. Mr Five Per Cent: The Many Lives of Calouste Gulbenkian. London: Profile Books, 2019.

For comprehensive insight into Gulbenkian and the Red Line Agreement governing Middle Eastern oil see

  • Black, Edwin. Banking on Baghdad: Inside Iraq's 7,000-Year History of War, Profit, and Conflict. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 2004.

For broader context on Middle Eastern petroleum industry development see

  • Blair, John Malcolm. The Control of Oil. New York: Pantheon, 1976.
  • Okumuş, Ali. Osmanlı Coğrafyası'nda Petrol Mücadesi, Kalust S.Gülbenkyan ve Türk Petrol Şirketi. ORDAF, 2015.
  • Yergin, Daniel. The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, and Power. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1991.
  • Sampson, Anthony. The Seven Sisters: The Great Oil Companies and the World They Made. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1991.

For information on Gulbenkian as an art collector see

  • Azeredo Perdigão, José de, and Ana Lowndes Marques. Calouste Gulbenkian, Collector. Lisbon: Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, 1979.

Articles

  • Manoukian, Jennifer. "GULBENKIAN, CALOUSTE." Encyclopaedia Iranica, 2016.
  • McClary, Richard Piran. "Calouste Gulbenkian, His Mīnāʾī Ware, and the Changing Islamic Art Market in the Early Twentieth Century." Muqarnas Online, 2020.

Videos

Books

  • Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian: The Man and His Work published by the Gulbenkian Foundation (full view)
  • The Gulbenkians in Jerusalem by the Gulbenkian Foundation (full view)
  • La Transcaucasie et la péninsule d'Apchéron: souvenirs de voyage authored by Calouste Gulbenkian (full view; French language)

Official websites

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