Sir Geoffrey Cecil Ryves Eley (18 July 1904 – 17 May 1990) was a British businessman and writer. He served as a director of the Bank of England, and as High Sheriff of both the County of London and the City of London.

Early life and education

Eley was born in

East Bergholt East Bergholt is a village in the Babergh District of Suffolk, England, just north of the Essex border. The nearest town and railway station is Manningtree, Essex. East Bergholt is north of Colchester and south of Ipswich. Schools includ ...

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include L ...

, one of four sons born to Charles Cuthbert Eley, a barrister and noted gardener, and Ethel Maxwell Ryves. His great-grandfather William Eley co-founded the Eley Brothers. He was the younger brother of

Maxwell Eley Charles Ryves Maxwell Eley (16 September 1902 – 15 January 1983) was a British rower who competed in the 1924 Summer Olympics, winning a gold medal with the British coxless four. Family Eley was born in Samford, Suffolk, the eldest of ...

, a gold medalist in rowing at the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1924), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIIe olympiade) and also known as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The op ...

. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI of England, Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. i ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

(BA, 1925; MA, 1947). He also studied at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

in 1925 and 1926.

Career

He was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(CBE) in the

1947 Birthday Honours The 1947 King's Birthday Honours were appointments by many of the Commonwealth Realms of King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made "on the occasion o ...

for his services following the war, when he was Director of Overseas Disposals,

Ministry of Supply The Ministry of Supply (MoS) was a department of the UK government formed in 1939 to co-ordinate the supply of equipment to all three British armed forces, headed by the Minister of Supply. A separate ministry, however, was responsible for air ...

. He was appointed to the Court of Directors for the Bank of England in 1949. He was knighted in the

1964 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1964 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made to celebrate ...

. He was chairman of the Brush Group, Ltd., Heinemann Group of Publishers Ltd.,

Richard Thomas and Baldwins Richard Thomas and Baldwins Ltd (RTB) was a major iron, steel and tinplate producer, primarily based in Wales and formed in 1948 by the merger of Richard Thomas & Co Ltd with Baldwins Ltd. It was absorbed into British Steel Corporation in 1967. The ...

and Thomas Tilling. He also served as

High Sheriff of the County of London Below is a list of sheriffs of the County of London, from the creation of the county in 1889 to its abolition in 1965: *1889–1890: Alfred de Rothschild, of Senmore Place *1890–1891: Sir James Whitehead, Bart, of Highlield House, Ca ...

in 1954 and 1955, and

High Sheriff of Greater London The office of high sheriff, as the monarch's representative in a county, is over 1,000 years old, with its establishment before the Norman Conquest. The office of high sheriff remained first in precedence in each county until the reign of Edward ...

in 1966 and 1967. In 1979 the book ''The Birmingham Heritage'' was published. He had co-written this with Joan Zuckerman. The book carried a foreword written by the politician, Roy Jenkins.

Personal life

In 1937, he married Penelope Hughes Wake-Walker, daughter of Admiral Sir

Frederic Wake-Walker Admiral Sir William Frederic Wake-Walker KCB CBE (24 March 1888 – 24 September 1945) was a British admiral who served in the Royal Navy during World War I and World War II, taking a leading part in the destruction of the , and in Operation '' ...

and Muriel, daughter of Sir Collingwood Hughes, 10th Baronet. They had two sons and two daughters. His youngest daughter, Chloë Sarabella, married Richard Christian Wynne Fremantle, grandson of

Thomas Fremantle, 3rd Baron Cottesloe Thomas Francis Fremantle, 3rd Baron Cottesloe, 4th Baron Fremantle (5 February 1862 – 9 July 1956) was a British peer and sportsman who competed in the shooting event at the 1908 Summer Olympics. Biography Early life Thomas Francis Fremantle ...

. He is buried in the cemetery at

in Suffolk. Geoffrey Eley grave

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eley, Geoffrey Cecil Ryves 1904 births 1990 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge English bankers Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Knights Bachelor People associated with the Bank of England High Sheriffs of the County of London English non-fiction writers High Sheriffs of Greater London People from East Bergholt 20th-century English businesspeople