Sir David Yule, 1st Baronet (4 August 1858 – 3 July 1928) was a Scottish businessman based in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

. The ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...

'' judged him "arguably the most important businessman in India" and quoted his obituary in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' as "one of the wealthiest men, if not the wealthiest man, in the country".

Early life

David was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

, the son of David Yule and his wife Margaret. His father was a writer who also worked as a cashier at the Sasine Office, Register House. David was educated in Britain and went into the family business, which was trade with India, then the " jewel in the crown" of the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

Career

David joined Andrew Yule and Company, a conglomerate with diversified interests, which was founded by both his uncles,

Andrew Yule Andrew Yule (2 November 1834 – 18 July 1902) was a businessman who founded Andrew Yule and Company Ltd., Andrew Yule and Co. Early life Andrew was born in Stonehaven-Fetteresso Castle, Fetteresso, Scotland, the third and youngest son of Robert ...

and George Yule. The principal business of the company was the export of

jute Jute ( ) is a long, rough, shiny bast fibre that can be Spinning (textiles), spun into coarse, strong threads. It is produced from flowering plants in the genus ''Corchorus'', of the mallow family Malvaceae. The primary source of the fiber is ...

fiber. Over time the Yules became progressively integrated in India from plantation to textile mills. His uncle George died childless in 1892. His uncle Andrew had a daughter, Annie Henrietta, whom David

married Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

in 1900. Andrew died in 1902 and at this point, the entire Yule conglomerate came under David's control. In 1919, David Yule and

Thomas Catto, 1st Baron Catto Thomas Sivewright Catto, 1st Baron Catto, CBE, PC (15 March 1879 – 23 August 1959) was a Scottish businessman and later Governor of the Bank of England. Early life and education Catto was born in Newcastle upon Tyne, to William and Isabella ...

formed Yule Catto and Company Ltd, which is now known as Synthomer and is listed on the

London Stock Exchange The London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange based in London, England. the total market value of all companies trading on the LSE stood at US$3.42 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Paul's Cath ...

. Among his other business interests were directorships of

Midland Bank Midland Bank plc was one of the Big Four (banks)#United Kingdom, Big Four banking groups in the United Kingdom for most of the 20th century. It is now part of HSBC. The bank was founded as the Birmingham and Midland Bank in Union Street, Birming ...

, Mercantile Bank of India,

Vickers Limited Vickers Limited was a British engineering conglomerate. The business began in Sheffield in 1828 as a steel foundry and became known for its church bells, going on to make shafts and propellers for ships, armour plate and then artillery. Entir ...

, the Royal Exchange Assurance Company and ownership of the ''

Daily Chronicle The ''Daily Chronicle'' was a left-wing British newspaper that was published from 1872 to 1930 when it merged with the '' Daily News'' to become the '' News Chronicle''. Foundation The ''Daily Chronicle'' was developed by Edward Lloyd out of a ...

'' newspaper, which he purchased from

Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. A Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, he was known for leadi ...

. David Yule was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

in India on 4 January 1912 and was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

, of Hugli River in

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

, on 30 January 1922. He died on 3 July 1928. His baronetcy lapsed at his death for lack of an eligible heir. ''The New York Times'' reported that his daughter inherited $100 000 000 on his death, equivalent to $1.6 billion in 2022 money.

Personal life

David and Annie Yule had one child, a daughter called Gladys Yule (1903–1957). In 1925, the two women commissioned, as their family home, Hanstead House in Bricket Wood,

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

. Here, they set up a very successful

horse breeding Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given Horse breed, breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired chara ...

farm for the Arabian breed, known as the Hanstead Stud. Annie Yule also commissioned one of the largest private yachts ever built in the UK, '' Nahlin'', which measured 1,574 tons

Thames measurement Thames Measurement, also known as Thames Tonnage, is a system for measuring ships and boats. It was created in 1855 as a variation of Builder's Old Measurement by the Royal Thames Yacht Club, and was designed for small vessels, such as yachts. It ...

, was long and was said to have cost £250,000. Descendants of the Yule family are still alive today in England.

References

External links

* at the Yule Family website
Andrew Yule & Co LtdYule Catto & Co plc
1858 births 1928 deaths Nobility from Edinburgh Businesspeople from Edinburgh Scottish company founders Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom 19th-century Scottish merchants 20th-century Scottish businesspeople Scottish knights Scottish expatriates in India Indian baronets Businesspeople from Kolkata Businesspeople from British India

David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...

British people in colonial India {{Scotland-business-bio-stub