Raikes Currie
Encyclopedia
Raikes Currie was Member of Parliament
(MP) for Northampton
from 1837 to 1857. He was a partner of the bank Curries & Co, Cornhill, City of London, and had several interests in the newly developing colony of South Australia. He restored Minley Manor
and made substantial improvements to the estate, work which was continued by his son and grandson.
, Berwickshire. His mother, Mary Anne Raikes, was the daughter of William Raikes and grand-daughter of Robert Raikes, another partner of the bank. Her uncle Thomas Raikes
was Governor of the Bank of England
from 1797 to 1799.
On 28 June 1825 Raikes Currie married the Hon. Laura Sophia Wodehouse, with whom he had four sons and two daughters. She was a daughter of John Wodehouse, 1st Baron Wodehouse
of Kimberley, and Sophia Berkeley. Their four sons were George Wodehouse Currie (1826), Bertram Raikes Wodehouse Currie (1827–1896), the Reverend Maynard Wodehouse Currie (1829–1887) and Philip Henry Wodehouse Currie
(1834–1908), 1st Baron Currie of Hawley.
William Currie
of East Horsley, Member of Parliament for Gatton
, was his uncle and Vice-Admiral Mark John Currie
and Sir Frederick Currie
were his cousins.
, in Hampshire, England. He bought the land in 1846 and, as the manor house and the estate needed attention, commissioned Henry Clutton
to design a new house, which was built between 1858 and 1860. During the next three years attention turned to the estate, with the creation of formal gardens around the house and a kitchen garden. The remainder was landscaped as pleasure gardens by F W Meyer, working with the horticulturists Veitch & Sons
of Exeter. On Raikes' death, his son Bertram continued the development, employing Messrs Veitch to lay out a Winter Garden and extensions to the pleasure gardens, which included Hawley Lake. Grandson Laurence Currie built a water tower, created a new complex of walled gardens and further extended the ornamental planting and woodland.
at the 1837 general election
, and held the seat until he stood down twenty years later at the 1857 general election
. He was a Whig and took an active part in debates and committees. He made contributions to debates on banking and currency and South Australia. He was a vigorous supporter of his party and on one occasion made a long speech chastising the leader of his party for crossing the floor and supporting the Tory
party.
In 1849, with Richard Cobden
and Lord Dudley Stuart
, Currie offered financial aid and support in Parliament for the stream of Hungarian émigrés who arrived in England in the wake of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848
as the forces of repression in Hungary intensified.
Currie was a founder director of the South Australian Company and a director of the Van Diemen's Land
Company. He was also a Member of the Provisional Committee of the South Australian Association and of the South Australia Literary and Scientific Association. He was one of four donors in 1859 of the Silver Bowl from which the annual Adelaide City Council 'toast to Colonel Light' is drunk.
He was a religious man and was Treasurer of the South Australian District Committee of the Incorporated Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts. As a member of the South Australian Church Society, Currie befriended and supported Charles Beaumont Howard
, who had been appointed colonial chaplain to South Australia and was one of the first settlers in Adelaide.
Currie started an important collection of books, manuscripts and works of art, which was considerably enlarged by his son Bertram and grandson Laurence. ". . . this eclectic collection embraced everything from Dresden porcelain, English portraits and clocks, and Italian old masters, to the French Decorative Arts of the eighteenth century".
Some of the paintings, including a portrait by Peter Paul Rubens of the Marchesa Brigida Spinola Doria, are now in the National Gallery of Art
, Washington, DC, USA.
The 1881 British Census found him at Minley Manor with his son Philip, his daughter Mary and her husband William Deacon, his niece Laura Wodehouse and 14 servants.
He died on 16 October 1881 at age 80.
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for Northampton
Northampton (UK Parliament constituency)
Northampton was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Northampton which existed until 1974.It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until its representation was reduced to one member for the 1918 general election...
from 1837 to 1857. He was a partner of the bank Curries & Co, Cornhill, City of London, and had several interests in the newly developing colony of South Australia. He restored Minley Manor
Minley Manor
Minley Manor is a Grade 2 listed country manor house, built in the French style by Henry Clutton in the 1860s with further additions in the 1880s. The Manor is situated 2 miles north of junction 4A of the M3 between Farnborough and Yateley in Hampshire, England and is situated in 38 hectares of...
and made substantial improvements to the estate, work which was continued by his son and grandson.
Family
His father, Isaac Currie (1760–1843), of Bush Hill, Middlesex, England, was a senior partner of the bank Curries & Co. and the son of William Currie, Distiller and Banker, of Gatton Park, Surrey. The Curries belonged to an old Scottish family descended directly from the Curries of DunsDuns
Duns is the county town of the historic county of Berwickshire, within the Scottish Borders.-Early history:Duns law, the original site of the town of Duns, has the remains of an Iron Age hillfort at its summit...
, Berwickshire. His mother, Mary Anne Raikes, was the daughter of William Raikes and grand-daughter of Robert Raikes, another partner of the bank. Her uncle Thomas Raikes
Thomas Raikes
Thomas Raikes was a British merchant particularly trading from London with Russia, a banker and newspaper proprietor...
was Governor of the Bank of England
Governor of the Bank of England
The Governor of the Bank of England is the most senior position in the Bank of England. It is nominally a civil service post, but the appointment tends to be from within the Bank, with the incumbent grooming his or her successor...
from 1797 to 1799.
On 28 June 1825 Raikes Currie married the Hon. Laura Sophia Wodehouse, with whom he had four sons and two daughters. She was a daughter of John Wodehouse, 1st Baron Wodehouse
John Wodehouse, 1st Baron Wodehouse
John Wodehouse, 1st Baron Wodehouse , known as Sir John Wodehouse, 6th Baronet, from 1777 to 1797, was a British peer and Member of Parliament....
of Kimberley, and Sophia Berkeley. Their four sons were George Wodehouse Currie (1826), Bertram Raikes Wodehouse Currie (1827–1896), the Reverend Maynard Wodehouse Currie (1829–1887) and Philip Henry Wodehouse Currie
Philip Currie, 1st Baron Currie
Philip Henry Wodehouse Currie, 1st Baron Currie GCB , known as Sir Philip Currie between 1885 and 1899, was a British diplomat. He was Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire from 1893 to 1898 and Ambassador to Italy from 1898 to 1902.-Background and education:Currie was the son of Raikes Currie, Member...
(1834–1908), 1st Baron Currie of Hawley.
William Currie
William Currie (British politician)
William Currie, , was a land owner, distiller, banker and Member of Parliament for Gatton and Winchelsea.On his father's death in 1781, he inherited his father's 75% interest in the distilling partnership his father had started with Nathaniel Byles...
of East Horsley, Member of Parliament for Gatton
Gatton (UK Parliament constituency)
Gatton was a parliamentary borough in Surrey, one of the most notorious of all the rotten boroughs. It elected two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons from 1450 until 1832, when the constituency was abolished by the Great Reform Act...
, was his uncle and Vice-Admiral Mark John Currie
Mark John Currie
Captain Mark John Currie RN played a significant role in the exploration of Australia and the foundation of the Swan River Colony, later named 'Western Australia'....
and Sir Frederick Currie
Sir Frederick Currie, 1st Baronet
Sir Frederick Currie, 1st Baronet was an English diplomat.He was educated at Charterhouse and had a distinguished career in the British East India Company and the Indian Civil Service...
were his cousins.
Minley Manor
Currie's home was at Minley Manor, near Blackwater and HawleyBlackwater and Hawley
Blackwater and Hawley is a civil parish in the Hart district of Hampshire, England, on the border with Surrey. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 5,849. The parish includes Minley, Blackwater and Hawley, which are both part of the Aldershot Urban Area. It was once part of the...
, in Hampshire, England. He bought the land in 1846 and, as the manor house and the estate needed attention, commissioned Henry Clutton
Henry Clutton
Henry Clutton was an English architect and designer and a student of Edward Blore and also worked with William Burges.-Work:* Battle Abbey, Sussex* Cliveden, Buckinghamshire* Hoar Cross Hall, Staffordshire...
to design a new house, which was built between 1858 and 1860. During the next three years attention turned to the estate, with the creation of formal gardens around the house and a kitchen garden. The remainder was landscaped as pleasure gardens by F W Meyer, working with the horticulturists Veitch & Sons
Veitch Nurseries
The Veitch Nurseries were the largest group of family-run plant nurseries in Europe during the 19th century. Started by John Veitch sometime before 1808, the original nursery grew substantially over several decades and was eventually split into two separate businesses - based at Chelsea and...
of Exeter. On Raikes' death, his son Bertram continued the development, employing Messrs Veitch to lay out a Winter Garden and extensions to the pleasure gardens, which included Hawley Lake. Grandson Laurence Currie built a water tower, created a new complex of walled gardens and further extended the ornamental planting and woodland.
Political and other activities
Currie was elected as MP for NorthamptonNorthampton (UK Parliament constituency)
Northampton was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Northampton which existed until 1974.It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until its representation was reduced to one member for the 1918 general election...
at the 1837 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1837
The 1837 United Kingdom general election saw Robert Peel's Conservatives close further on the position of the Whigs, who won their fourth election of the decade....
, and held the seat until he stood down twenty years later at the 1857 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1857
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* British Electoral Facts 1832-1999, compiled and edited by Colin Rallings and Michael Thrasher *...
. He was a Whig and took an active part in debates and committees. He made contributions to debates on banking and currency and South Australia. He was a vigorous supporter of his party and on one occasion made a long speech chastising the leader of his party for crossing the floor and supporting the Tory
Tory
Toryism is a traditionalist and conservative political philosophy which grew out of the Cavalier faction in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It is a prominent ideology in the politics of the United Kingdom, but also features in parts of The Commonwealth, particularly in Canada...
party.
In 1849, with Richard Cobden
Richard Cobden
Richard Cobden was a British manufacturer and Radical and Liberal statesman, associated with John Bright in the formation of the Anti-Corn Law League as well as with the Cobden-Chevalier Treaty...
and Lord Dudley Stuart
Lord Dudley Stuart
Lord Dudley Coutts Stuart was a British politician.Stuart was the youngest son of John Stuart, 1st Marquess of Bute and Frances Coutts.In 1820, he was admitted to Christ Church, Oxford....
, Currie offered financial aid and support in Parliament for the stream of Hungarian émigrés who arrived in England in the wake of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848
Hungarian Revolution of 1848
The Hungarian Revolution of 1848 was one of many of the European Revolutions of 1848 and closely linked to other revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas...
as the forces of repression in Hungary intensified.
Currie was a founder director of the South Australian Company and a director of the Van Diemen's Land
Van Diemen's Land
Van Diemen's Land was the original name used by most Europeans for the island of Tasmania, now part of Australia. The Dutch explorer Abel Tasman was the first European to land on the shores of Tasmania...
Company. He was also a Member of the Provisional Committee of the South Australian Association and of the South Australia Literary and Scientific Association. He was one of four donors in 1859 of the Silver Bowl from which the annual Adelaide City Council 'toast to Colonel Light' is drunk.
He was a religious man and was Treasurer of the South Australian District Committee of the Incorporated Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts. As a member of the South Australian Church Society, Currie befriended and supported Charles Beaumont Howard
Charles Beaumont Howard
Charles Beaumont Howard was a colonial clergyman in South Australia.Howard was born in St Peter's Parish, Dublin, Ireland, the son of William Howard, a lieutenant in the Dublin City Corps of the Liberty Rangers. Howard graduated from Trinity College, Dublin with an M.A. in 1836.Howard was ordained...
, who had been appointed colonial chaplain to South Australia and was one of the first settlers in Adelaide.
Currie started an important collection of books, manuscripts and works of art, which was considerably enlarged by his son Bertram and grandson Laurence. ". . . this eclectic collection embraced everything from Dresden porcelain, English portraits and clocks, and Italian old masters, to the French Decorative Arts of the eighteenth century".
Some of the paintings, including a portrait by Peter Paul Rubens of the Marchesa Brigida Spinola Doria, are now in the National Gallery of Art
National Gallery of Art
The National Gallery of Art and its Sculpture Garden is a national art museum, located on the National Mall between 3rd and 9th Streets at Constitution Avenue NW, in Washington, DC...
, Washington, DC, USA.
The 1881 British Census found him at Minley Manor with his son Philip, his daughter Mary and her husband William Deacon, his niece Laura Wodehouse and 14 servants.
He died on 16 October 1881 at age 80.