Alexander Davison (1750–1829) was an English businessman and government contractor. He was a close friend of Admiral Lord Nelson.

Life

Davison was born on 2 April 1750 at a farm in Lanton,

Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...

.Dickinson His business career began in a

counting house Counting is the process of determining the number of Element (mathematics), elements of a finite set of objects; that is, determining the size (mathematics), size of a set. The traditional way of counting consists of continually increasing a (men ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

before being sent by his employer to the former French colony of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. He worked as a merchant in the province of Quebec before and during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. By the time the war ended, Davison had purchased his own ship and amassed a fortune, working with his younger brother, George.Dickinson He had gained a reputation as a merchant, and was a respected member of the community. He and his brother both held seats on the

legislative council A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...

.White p. 109 At his pinnacle he owned various interests from textile factories to shipping. He also worked as a supply agent for the British government procuring coal and other supplies for the military. Additionally his close friendship with Admiral Nelson brought him business as a prize agent after the

Battle of the Nile The Battle of the Nile (also known as the Battle of Aboukir Bay; ) was fought between the Royal Navy and the French Navy at Abu Qir Bay, Aboukir Bay in Ottoman Egypt, Egypt between 1–3 August 1798. It was the climax of the Mediterranean ca ...

and the Battle of Copenhagen. He was imprisoned for

fraud In law, fraud is intent (law), intentional deception to deprive a victim of a legal right or to gain from a victim unlawfully or unfairly. Fraud can violate Civil law (common law), civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrato ...

in May 1804 as a result of his attempt to bribe the voters in one of England's

rotten boroughs A rotten or pocket borough, also known as a nomination borough or proprietorial borough, was a parliamentary borough or constituency in England, Great Britain, or the United Kingdom before the Reform Act of 1832, which had a very small electo ...

of Ilchester. He spent a year inside the

King's Bench Prison The King's Bench Prison was a prison in Southwark, south London, England, from the Middle Ages until it closed in 1880. It took its name from the King's Bench court of law in which cases of defamation, bankruptcy and other misdemeanours were he ...

. In 1809 Davison was again tried and found guilty on charges of fraud. This time though the accusations related to his activity as a supply agent for the British government. During these dealings he fraudulently (or at least carelessly) charged the government agency fees for goods supplied from his own factories. These fees were meant to compensate agents for the expense and effort of finding the cheapest supplier for the government's contract but Davison earned them as well as the usual profit margins on the goods he supplied from his factory. He served a sentence of twenty-one months inside

Newgate Prison Newgate Prison was a prison at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey, just inside the City of London, England, originally at the site of Newgate, a gate in the Roman London Wall. Built in the 12th century and demolished in 1904, the pr ...

starting in May 1809. Battle of the Nile Medal Gold

Davison is responsible for several acts that glorified Nelson's public image. These included the creation of a medal commemorating the victory at the

and the creation of the Nelson Memorial at his estate at Swarland, Northumberland. As a close friend of the Admiral he acted as an intermediary when Nelson's marriage to his wife, Frances Nelson fell apart due in large part to his affair with Emma Hamilton. Davison died in 1829 in

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Family

Davison married Harriett, daughter of the banker Robert Gosling. They had three sons and three daughters.Nicolas p. 42 The children included the equerry Sir William Davison (died 1873), the second son.Morning Post The second daughter, Dorothy, married

Samuel Edward Widdrington Samuel Edward Cook (178711 January 1856) was an English people, English writer. Life In 1840, he took the name of Widdrington, his mother being the Beneficiary, heiress of some of the estates of that family. Having served in the Royal Navy he li ...

Citations

References

* * * Martyn Downer, ''Nelson's Purse'' (2004) * * * *

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davison, Alexander English businesspeople English fraudsters 1750 births 1829 deaths English prisoners and detainees