Robert Clayton (City of London MP)
Sir Robert Clayton | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1629 Northamptonshire, England |
| Died | 1707 |
| Occupation(s) | Merchant banker, politician |
| Years active | 1650s–1707 |
| Known for | Lord Mayor of London, founder of Clayton & Morris Co., president of St Thomas' Hospital, director of Bank of England |
Sir Robert Clayton (1629–1707) was a prominent English merchant banker, political figure, and Lord Mayor of London.
Life
Originating from Northamptonshire, Clayton began his career apprenticing with his uncle, a London scrivener, where he encountered John Morris. Together, they established the banking firm Clayton & Morris Co.
Between 1679 and 1707, Clayton represented London and Bletchingley as a Whig Member of Parliament. Having been knighted in 1671, he accumulated considerable wealth, including a notable loan of £30,000 to the monarch in 1697 to support military expenses. In the mid-1650s, he purchased Brownsea Island along with its castle.
As president of London's St Thomas' Hospital, then situated in the Borough, Clayton commissioned architect Thomas Cartwright to reconstruct both the hospital and the adjacent St Thomas Church.
His public service encompassed membership in the Worshipful Company of Scriveners and Worshipful Company of Drapers, serving as Alderman for Cheap Ward from 1670 to 1683, Sheriff in 1671, Lord Mayor during 1679–1680, Colonel of the Orange Regiment within the London Trained Bands from 1680 to 1702, President of the Honourable Artillery Company between 1690 and 1703, Commissioner of Customs from 1689 to 1697, Assistant to the Royal African Company from 1672 to 1681, and director at the Bank of England from 1702 until his death in 1707.
During the 1690s, Clayton presided over one of London's earliest Freemason lodges composed exclusively of non-operative masons.
Links to slavery
Clayton held a position on the Court of Assistants governing the Royal African Company, serving on its board. This company was historically the largest transporter of African slaves to the Americas within the context of the Atlantic slave trade. He married Martha Trott, daughter of a merchant from Bermuda, where he also fulfilled duties as a Factor.
Legacy
The final resting place of Sir Robert and Lady Clayton is situated in St Mary's church at Bletchingley.
A statue honoring Clayton was located at the North Entrance to Ward Block of North Wing at St Thomas' Hospital and is recognized as Grade I listed. On 11 June 2020, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust declared that this statue, alongside that of Thomas Guy, would be taken down from public display.