George Colebrooke
Sir George Colebrooke, 2nd Baronet | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth date Chilham, Kent, England |
| Died | August 5, 1809 (aged 80) |
| Occupation(s) | Merchant, banker, politician |
| Years active | 1754–1774 |
| Known for | Chairman of the East India Company (1769, 1770, 1772); Member of Parliament for Arundel (1754–1774) |
Sir George Colebrooke, 2nd Baronet (14 June 1729 – 5 August 1809) was a prominent British merchant, banker, and politician who represented Arundel in the British House of Commons from 1754 until 1774. Originating from Chilham, Kent, he was a stockjobber and nabob with close ties to figures like Robert Clive and Alexander Fordyce. Colebrooke held the position of chairman of the East India Company on three occasions—in 1769, 1770, and 1772. His wealth was initially built through ownership of slave plantations in the West Indies, but poor speculative ventures during the British credit crisis of 1772–1773 ultimately led to his bankruptcy.
Early life
Born on 14 June 1729 in Chilham, Kent, George Colebrooke was the third son of the London financier James Colebrooke. Around 1745, he pursued studies at Leiden University, where he was contemporaries with notable individuals such as John Wilkes and Charles Townshend. Following his father’s passing in 1752, he acquired Arnos Grove house.
His older siblings included Robert Colebrooke, who served as Member for Maldon, Essex from 1741 to 1761, and James Colebrooke, who secured control over a parliamentary seat in the rotten borough of Gatton by purchasing it for £23,000 in 1751. Originally aligned with the Opposition Whigs, the brothers shifted loyalty to the Duke of Newcastle’s administration by 1754. This political realignment resulted in James receiving a baronetcy in 1759 with a special remainder designated for George. Upon James’s death and Robert’s appointment as ambassador to Switzerland, George inherited both the baronetcy and Gatton Park estate, including control over one parliamentary seat at Gatton. Between 1762 and 1768, he commissioned Capability Brown to enhance the landscaping at Gatton Park. Additionally, he provided accommodation on his estate for philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau.
Career
In 1761, George took exclusive control over the family banking enterprise located in Threadneedle Street. He also invested in securing influence over the Sussex borough of Arundel, where his family resided. Although Arundel was known as a corrupt borough dependent on bribery rather than being a traditional pocket borough, Colebrooke maintained dominance over its parliamentary representation for twenty years, serving as its Member of Parliament from 1754 through 1774.
More significantly, Colebrooke’s backing of Newcastle’s government earned him lucrative contracts by 1762, including responsibilities for remitting funds and provisioning British troops stationed in the American colonies. However, Newcastle’s political downfall resulted in these contracts being lost or not renewed by 1765. When offered compensation under the Rockingham administration, Colebrooke instead accepted a well-compensated appointment as chirographer to the Court of Common Pleas, which led to a reduction in his parliamentary engagement.
In 1764, he entered into a banking partnership based in Dublin. His commercial ventures were extensive and included land speculation involving large estates in Lanarkshire, as well as ownership stakes in slave plantations across Antigua, Grenada, and Dominica. He was also part of a syndicate involved in settling the Ohio Valley region in 1768 and had interests in New England, where the town of Colebrook, New Hampshire bears his name. Nevertheless, his financial downfall was largely due to speculative activities connected with the British East India Company and raw material markets.
By 1771, Colebrooke had engaged Robert Adam to design interiors for his property at 23 Arlington Street, with plans for extensive remodeling and furnishings. These ambitions were likely abandoned as financial troubles surfaced around that period.
1773
Colebrooke held a full-time directorship at the East India Company from 1767 through 1771, served as deputy chairman between 1768 and 1769, and was chosen as chairman on three occasions (1769, 1770, and 1772). His final year in office proved calamitous: the company encountered severe financial troubles that culminated in the enactment of the Regulating Act 1773. During his chairmanship, Colebrooke faced allegations of engaging in speculative activities involving the company's shares. He amassed significant debts to influential company members, partially linked to arrangements for securing votes. In 1771, together with Sir William Pulteney and Sir James Cockburn, he borrowed a total of £66,000 from Hope & Co..
In addition to stock speculation, Colebrooke incurred substantial losses trading commodities such as hemp, flax, lead, logwood, and alum. Specifically, his hemp dealings alone resulted in losses amounting to £190,000 in 1771. Beginning in 1772, he sought to monopolize the alum market worldwide by acquiring mining operations in Yorkshire and Lancashire. However, the subsequent downturn triggered by the financial crisis of 1772 significantly diminished his wealth.
Though initially receiving support from the Bank of England, his bank suspended payments on 31 March 1773 and ultimately ceased operations permanently on 7 August 1776 after being managed by trustees appointed by creditors for three years. To satisfy outstanding debts, most of his holdings—including his stake in the Gatton rotten borough and his art collection—were liquidated in 1774. A bankruptcy commission was subsequently issued in 1777. Concurrently, Colebrooke invested heavily in renovating his London home at 32 Soho Square, which was later sold to Sir Joseph Banks in 1779.
Later life
Between 1777 and 1778, Colebrooke withdrew to Boulogne-sur-Mer, facing considerable financial hardship that led the East India Company to grant him a pension. Following the death of Robert, he moved to Soissons. With the outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789, he returned to England where he ultimately repaid all creditors completely, thereby securing an inheritance for his heirs. He also engaged actively in charitable initiatives based in Bath, Somerset.
Marriage
In 1754, he wed Mary Gayner, daughter of Peter Gayner from Antigua. They had six children: three sons and three daughters:
- Mary Colebrooke (1757–1813), who married Chevalier de Peyron (parents of Charles Adolphus Peyron) and subsequently William Traill (parents of diplomat George William Traill)
- George Colebrooke (1759–1809)
- James Edward Colebrooke (1761–1838), heir to the baronetcy
- Harriet Colebrooke (1762–1785)
- Louisa Colebrooke (born 1764)
- Professor Henry Thomas Colebrooke (1765–1837)
Additionally, he took responsibility for raising his brother James' two daughters, Mary and Emma Colebrook, until their respective marriages.
References and sources
References
Sources
- Edward Kimber and Richard Johnson, The Baronetage of England (London, 1771)
- Survey of London: volumes 33 and 34: St Anne Soho (1966), available online at www.british-history.ac.uk