Michel Emmanuel Rodocanachi (; 1821–1901) was a Greek trader and banker of

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. His parents were wealthy merchants in their home at

Chios Chios (; , traditionally known as Scio in English) is the fifth largest Greece, Greek list of islands of Greece, island, situated in the northern Aegean Sea, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, tenth largest island in the Medi ...

, related to the influential Vlastos and Mavrogordatos families. They escaped the Chios massacre, settling in

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where they rebuilt their

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and trading business as Rodocanachi Sons & Co. Recognising the importance of having a presence on the London market, in 1830 they sent their son there to cover their interests and work with other family members who traded grain in

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and Marseille. In 1853, he returned to Marseille to marry Ariadne Michael Petrocochino. In London, he obtained membership of the

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and, assisted by other members of the

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, notably the Ralli Brothers, he bought ships to transport the grain that he traded, and developed a property portfolio, including the

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Buildings Co. This financial foundation enabled him to participate in the founding of the Imperial Bank with fellow Anglo-Greeks Petrocochino and Schilizzi. When the Imperial bank was acquired by the London Joint Stock Bank, his eldest son Emmanuel Michael Rodocanachi (1855–1932) became a director of that bank, in addition to the other family companies. Michel was an active member of the

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community in London and raised money for the construction of St Sophia's Cathedral there. He moved to

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in his later years as his health failed, calling his house ''Chios''. However, he died in London in 1901. He is buried, with his son Emmanuel in

West Norwood Cemetery West Norwood Cemetery is a rural cemetery in West Norwood in London, England. It was also known as the South Metropolitan Cemetery. One of the first private landscaped cemeteries in London, it is one of the " Magnificent Seven" cemeteries of ...

. Rodocanachi Sons & Co. did not survive long after Emmanuel's retirement in 1925; it collapsed in the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

as a result of bad debts due from failed German and Italian trading partners.

Sources

Stuart Thompstone 'Rodocanachi, Michael Emmanuel'

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'') ...

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Christopher Long, Rodocanachi Family of Chios
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''Rodocanachi Sons & Co'' 27 November 1929 & 2 September 1933 {{DEFAULTSORT:Rodocanachi, Michel Emmanuel 1821 births 1901 deaths Members of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople Eastern Orthodox Christians from Greece Greek businesspeople in shipping Burials at West Norwood Cemetery 19th-century Greek businesspeople British businesspeople Eastern Orthodox Christians from the United Kingdom Greek emigrants to England Businesspeople from Chios 19th-century British businesspeople Date of birth missing Date of death missing Rodocanachi family