Gerald Robarts
Gerald Robarts | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 15, 1878 Buckinghamshire, England |
| Died | December 27, 1961 (aged 83) |
| Occupation(s) | British Army officer, banker, squash player |
| Years active | 1900–1931 |
| Known for | Director of Coutts & Co., British squash champion |
Gerald Robarts (15 April 1878 – 27 December 1961) was a distinguished British Army officer, banker, and notable squash athlete. He held a directorship at Coutts & Co. until 1931.
Early life
Robarts was born on 15 April 1878 in Buckinghamshire as the second son of Abraham John Robarts and the Hon. Edith Barrington, daughter of Percy Barrington, 8th Viscount Barrington. He had an elder brother named John and four sisters.
His father, who leased Lillingstone Dayrell, financed the parish church's restoration in 1868, served as High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire in 1869, and commissioned Tile House at Lillingstone Dayrell. This residence was designed by Ewan Christian and described by Nikolaus Pevsner as “Neo-Elizabethan, large and imposing with clusters of massive chimneys.” His grandson David later held the High Sheriff position in 1963.
On his paternal side, through grandmother Elizabeth Sarah Smyth, Robarts was descended from Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton, an illegitimate offspring of King Charles II. His great-grandfather John Smyth was a Whig politician married to Lady Georgiana Fitzroy. The family's aristocratic ties further extended through Diana Elizabeth Smyth’s marriage into the Lascelles family, connecting to George Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harewood, spouse of Mary, Princess Royal.
The name Abraham Robarts had been passed down for generations since the 17th century on his father’s side; however, this tradition did not continue with his own progeny.
Career
Banking was a longstanding tradition in the Robarts family, originating with the establishment of Robarts, Curtis & Co. in 1791, which evolved into Robarts, Lubbock & Co. In 1914, this institution merged with Coutts & Co.. Among its partners were Abraham John Robarts and John William Lubbock; the latter’s son John Lubbock was ennobled as Lord Avebury in 1900.
Gerald Robarts served on the board of Coutts & Co. until his retirement in 1931, when his son David took over his position. By 1927, he was appointed as a Land Tax Commissioner and lived at Lillingstone House in Buckingham.
As a committed member of the Bath Club, Robarts participated in a British squash delegation to the United States in 1924 and secured victory in the first-ever American Squash Racquets Singles Championship.
Military career
Robarts received his commission as a second lieutenant in the 7th Queen's Own Hussars on 24 March 1900 and was promoted to lieutenant within that same year. He actively served during the Second Boer War from 1901 to 1902, including combat at Springs in Transvaal.
In 1911, he joined the Royal Horse Guards, transferring to the Northamptonshire Yeomanry a year later. Throughout World War I, he served actively and achieved the rank of captain by 1917.
Personal life
On 18 July 1905, he wed Ethel Florence Fletcher at St George's, Hanover Square. The couple had three sons:
- David John Robarts (1906–1989), who attended Eton and Oxford; by 1954 he became chairman of the National Provincial Bank and subsequently served as second chairman of National Westminster Bank.
- Anthony Vere Cyprian Robarts (1910–1982), also an Eton alumnus; prior to WWII he served with the 11th Hussars and attained the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel.
- Peter Robarts (1915–1951), a squadron leader in the Royal Air Force, who tragically died in an aviation accident.
Robarts and his wife inherited a collection featuring Dutch paintings from the seventeenth century and made their garden at Lillingstone House accessible to visitors through the National Gardens Scheme. Their grounds were celebrated for an array of flowering shrubs and trees.
He passed away in Buckinghamshire on 27 December 1961 at age eighty-three and was interred at Lillingstone Dayrell.