Francis Benedict Hyam Goldsmith (22 November 1878 – 14 February 1967) was a British Conservative Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1910 to 1918. He served in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. In 1918, he moved to France, where he entered the hotel business, building a large portfolio of hotels.

Life and career

He was born Franck Adolphe Benedict Goldschmidt in 1878 in

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

into the German Jewish

Goldschmidt family The Goldschmidt family is a family of German Jewish descent, originally from Frankfurt am Main, known for their success in banking and finance. With origins tracing back to the 15th century, most members were forced to leave Frankfurt after the ...

. He was the son of multi-millionaire Adolphe Benedict Hayum Goldschmidt, who permanently moved to London in 1895, and Alice Emma Moses Merton (1835–1898), daughter of Joseph Benjamin Moses aka Moses Merton. His grandfather was banker Benedict Hayum Salomon Goldschmidt, founder of the Bank and consul to the

Grand Duke of Tuscany Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), se ...

. Frank grew up on his family's country estate in

Cavenham Cavenham is a village and civil parish in Suffolk, England, northwest of Bury St Edmunds. It is in the local government district of West Suffolk, and the electoral ward of Manor. At the 2021 UK census, Cavenham Parish had a population of 141. ...

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

. Educated at

Magdalen College Magdalen College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by Bishop of Winchester William of Waynflete. It is one of the wealthiest Oxford colleges, as of 2022, and one of the strongest academically, se ...

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, he gained an

honours degree Honours degree has various meanings in the context of different degrees and education systems. Most commonly it refers to a variant of the undergraduate bachelor's degree containing a larger volume of material or a higher standard of study, ...

in law and was called to Bar by the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

in 1902. He was gazetted a lieutenant in the

Suffolk Yeomanry The Duke of York's Own Loyal Suffolk Hussars was a Yeomanry regiment of the British Army. Originally formed as a volunteer cavalry force in 1793, it fought in the Second Boer War as part of the Imperial Yeomanry. In World War I the regiment fough ...

in 1908. In 1903, he was elected to

Westminster City Council Westminster City Council is the local authority for the City of Westminster in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in London. The council has been under Labour majority control since 2022. Full council meetings ...

, remaining a member for four years. In 1904, he was elected a member of

London County Council The London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today ...

representing St Pancras South with W. H. H. Gastrell as Municipal Reformers, having defeated both

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 188 ...

and Sir William Geary, who were standing as

Progressives Progressivism is a left-leaning political philosophy and reform movement that seeks to advance the human condition through social reform. Adherents hold that progressivism has universal application and endeavor to spread this idea to human so ...

. From 1904 to 1910, Goldsmith was active on many committees showing great interest in education and

special school Special education (also known as special-needs education, aided education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, special ed., SDC, and SPED) is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates their individual d ...

ing, becoming whip of the

Municipal Reform Party The Municipal Reform Party was a local party allied to the parliamentary Conservative Party in the County of London. The party contested elections to both the London County Council and metropolitan borough councils of the county from 1906 to 194 ...

. He was also involved in many Jewish charities, assisting in the organisations involved in the emigration of Jews from the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

and became a member of the emigration committee of the Jewish Board of Guardians. At the

January 1910 general election The January 1910 UK general election was held from 15 January to 10 February 1910. Called amid a constitutional crisis after the Conservative-dominated House of Lords rejected the People's Budget, the Liberal government, seeking a mandate, los ...

, Goldsmith was elected as Conservative MP for the Stowmarket division of Suffolk, close to his family home of

Park. Although remaining an MP until

1918 The ceasefire that effectively ended the World War I, First World War took place on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of this year. Also in this year, the Spanish flu pandemic killed 50–100 million people wor ...

, his political career was ended by anti-German hysteria during

. During the war he served in

Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...

and

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

with the

, a part of the

54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division The 54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army. The division was raised in 1908 following the creation of the Territorial Force (TF) as the East Anglian Division. During the First World War the division f ...

.The Suffolk Yeomanry in the order of battle, 1914–18
/ref> After the war Goldsmith moved to France, where he set up a hotel business. He married Marcelle Moullier in June 1929. Goldsmith eventually built up a portfolio of 48 hotels, including the

Hôtel de Paris The Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo is a luxury hotel that is located at Place du Casino in Monte Carlo, Monaco. It was opened in 1864 as part of the development of Monaco by the Société des Bains de Mer de Monaco, Société des Bains de Mer. In M ...

Monte Carlo Monte Carlo ( ; ; or colloquially ; , ; ) is an official administrative area of Monaco, specifically the Ward (country subdivision), ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is located. Informally, the name also refers to ...

, the Carlton in

Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...

and the

Lotti Lotti may refer to any of the following: * Antonio Lotti (c.1667–1740), Italian composer * Brian Lotti, U.S. professional skateboarder * Carlo Lotti (1916–2013), Italian engineer and professor of hydraulic construction * Carola Lotti (1910� ...

in Paris. He was director of the

Savoy Hotel The Savoy Hotel is a luxury hotel located in the Strand in the City of Westminster in central London, England. Built by the impresario Richard D'Oyly Carte with profits from his Gilbert and Sullivan opera productions, it opened on 6 August 1 ...

company for many years and one of the founders of the

King David Hotel The King David Hotel (; ) is a 5-star hotel in Jerusalem and a member of The Leading Hotels of the World. Opened in 1931, it was built with locally quarried pink limestone and was founded by Ezra Mosseri, a wealthy Egyptian Jewish banker. It ...

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. He was Chevalier of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

He died in Paris on 14 February 1967, leaving a widow and two sons,

Edward Goldsmith Edward René David Goldsmith (8 November 1928 – 21 August 2009), widely known as Teddy Goldsmith, was an Anglo-French environmentalist, writer and philosopher. He was a member of the prominent Goldsmith family, the eldest son of Majo ...

, an

environmentalist Environmentalism is a broad Philosophy of life, philosophy, ideology, and social movement about supporting life, habitats, and surroundings. While environmentalism focuses more on the environmental and nature-related aspects of Green politics, g ...

and eco-philosopher, and

James Goldsmith Sir James Michael Goldsmith (26 February 1933 – 18 July 1997) was a French-British financier and politician who was a member of the Goldsmith family. His controversial business and finance career led to ongoing clashes with British media, fr ...

, businessman and founder of the Euro-sceptic

Referendum Party The Referendum Party was a Eurosceptic, single-issue party, single-issue political party that was active in the United Kingdom from 1994 to 1997. The party's sole objective was for a referendum to be held on the nature of the UK's membership ...

. His grandson,

Zac Goldsmith Frank Zacharias Robin Goldsmith, Baron Goldsmith of Richmond Park, (born 20 January 1975) is a British politician, life peer and journalist who served as Minister of State for Overseas Territories, Commonwealth, Energy, Climate and Environmen ...

, was a Conservative MP.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Goldsmith, Frank 1878 births 1967 deaths 19th-century German Jews Jewish British politicians Members of Westminster Metropolitan Borough Council Members of London County Council Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1910 UK MPs 1910–1918 Business families Suffolk Yeomanry officers British hoteliers Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford Members of the Inner Temple Municipal Reform Party politicians Frank German emigrants to the United Kingdom British Army personnel of World War I British emigrants to France