Robert Henry "Robin" Benson (24 September 1850 – 7 April 1929) was an English

merchant banker A merchant bank is historically a bank dealing in commercial loans and investment. In modern British usage, it is the same as an investment bank. Merchant banks were the first modern banks and evolved from medieval merchants who traded in commod ...

and

art collector A private collection is a privately owned collection of works (usually artworks) or valuable items. In a museum or art gallery context, the term signifies that a certain work is not owned by that institution, but is on loan from an individual ...

. As an

amateur football Amateur sports are sports in which participants engage largely or entirely without remuneration. The distinction is made between amateur sporting participants and professional sporting participants, who are paid for the time they spend competing a ...

er, he was a member of the Oxford University football team which won the FA Cup in

1874 Events January * January 1 – New York City annexes The Bronx. * January 2 – Ignacio María González becomes head of state of the Dominican Republic for the first time. * January 3 – Third Carlist War: Battle of Caspe &n ...

Family and education

Benson was born on 24 September 1850 at Fairfield House, Fairfield, near

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, the eldest of three children of Robert Benson (1814–1875), a merchant, and his wife, Eleanor Sara ''née'' Moorsom (1824–1883), the daughter of

Vice-Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of vic ...

Constantine Moorsom Vice-Admiral Constantine Richard Moorsom (22 September 1792 – 26 May 1861) was a vice-admiral in the Royal Navy. He commanded HMS ''Fury'' a ''Hecla''-class bomb vessel which saw wartime service in the Bombardment of Algiers, an attack on B ...

, RN. He was baptised at St Stephen's Church,

Audenshaw Audenshaw is a town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England, east of Manchester. Historically part of Lancashire, in 2011 it had a population of 11,419. The name derives from Aldwin, a Saxon personal name, and the Old English suffix ''shagh' ...

, on 1 November 1850. Benson was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

, from where he

matriculated Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term ''matriculation'' is seldom used now ...

on 21 October 1869, before going up to

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...

. He graduated as Bachelor of Arts in 1874, having been admitted to 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 ...

to read for the Bar in January 1873.

Athletics and football career

Ar Eton, he was described as "an athlete of more than ordinary distinction". Benson earned his athletics

Blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB color model, RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB color model, RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between Violet (color), violet and cyan on the optical spe ...

in 1870, 1872 and 1873 and in 1872, he was appointed President of the Oxford University Athletic Club. In the University Sports of 1870, Benson won the mile race by two yards in a time of 4 minutes 33 seconds. Benson also won the Amateur Athletic Club mile championship in 1870. In 1872, Benson competed in the 3 mile race in the University sports, in which he finished in a dead heat in 15 minutes 44 seconds with Cambridge's Edward Montague Hawtrey, whose brother

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

played for

Old Etonians This is a list of notable former pupils of Eton College, a 13–18 public fee-charging and boarding secondary school for boys in Eton, Berkshire, England. Former pupils of the school are known as Old Etonians. Former pupils Politics *Robert ...

in the 1879 FA Cup Final. In 1873, Benson again ran in the mile race, finishing fourth. Benson played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

at Eton and for

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

. He played as

outside-right In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than midfielders and defenders. As with any attacking player, the role of the forward relies heavily on bein ...

and was described as "a brilliant forward at times, but a little wanting in strength; has great pace, and is a clever dribbler", and as "a good forward and very useful as a wing player; fast and dribbles well". Benson was selected as a member of the University team that played in the 1874 FA Cup Final. In the final, played at

Kennington Oval Kennington is a district in south London, England. It is mainly within the London Borough of Lambeth, running along the boundary with the London Borough of Southwark, a boundary which can be discerned from the early medieval period between th ...

on 14 March 1874 against a team from the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

, the university ran out as 2–0 winners, with goals from

Charles Mackarness Charles Coleridge Mackarness (22 July 1850 – 1 March 1918) was the Archdeacon of the East Riding between 1898 and 1916. In his youth, he had been a keen amateur sportsman and played twice in the FA Cup Final for Oxford University A.F.C., Oxford ...

and

Frederick Patton Frederick Joseph Patton was an amateur footballer who played as a forward in the 1870s, and scored for Oxford University A.F.C. in the 1874 FA Cup final. Sporting career According to census records, Patton was born in Bombay in 1851. Patton ...

. Shortly after the FA Cup final, Benson played for Oxford in the first

Varsity match A varsity match in Britain and Ireland is a fixture, especially of a sporting event or team, between university teams, usually the highest-level team, or varsity team, in that sport. The University Match in cricket between Oxford University an ...

against

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, won 1–0 by Oxford. In 1875, Benson was selected to represent

in the

FA Cup Final The FA Cup Final is the last match in the FA Cup, Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the List of sports attendance figures, most attended domestic football events in the world, with an official attendance of 89,472 ...

, played at Kennington Oval on 13 March.The match ended in a 1–1 draw, with Benson missing a fine chance to score early in the match, from a centre by

Cuthbert Ottaway Cuthbert John Ottaway (19 July 1850 – 2 April 1878)''Jackson's Oxford Journal'', 6 April 1878. was an English footballer. He was the first captain of the England football team and led his side in the first official international football m ...

, the team captain. Benson was one of four players who were unavailable for the replay three days later, and was replaced by Thomas Hamond. The weakened Old Boys team lost the replay to a full strength Royal Engineers 2–0. After leaving university, Benson also made a few appearances for the Wanderers.

Banking career

In October 1874, Benson was sent to

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

to join the family mercantile business but returned to England after the sudden death of his father in January 1875. On 19 January 1875, Benson and his brother, Constantine, became partners in the

Moorgate Moorgate was one of the City of London's northern gates in its defensive wall, the last to be built. The gate took its name from the Moorfields, an area of marshy land that lay immediately north of the wall. The gate was demolished in 1762, but ...

-based mercantile firm of Robert Benson & Co. This partnership was only short lived, and was declared bankrupt in June 1875 following the failure of many creditors after the financial crash of 1873, which had been masked by accounting irregularities. Later that year, family connections enabled Benson to join the banking business of John Walter Cross (who married the novelist

George Eliot Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wrot ...

in 1880), becoming a junior partner in the firm, under the name Cross, Benson & Co. The firm was primarily engaged in the business of investment in American securities for private clients, and Benson rapidly built up a profitable business financing railroads in the American mid-west. Benson amassed a substantial personal fortune by identifying Chicago and the mid-west as growth areas, following the 1873 crash, selling out profitably as the economy recovered. At the end of 1882, Cross retired from the partnership following which the firm became Robert Benson & Co. Benson was a forerunner in the

investment trust An investment trust is a form of investment fund found mostly in the United Kingdom and Japan. Investment trusts are constituted as Public limited company, public limited companies and are therefore closed ended since the fund managers cannot red ...

industry in conjunction with his friends Robert Fleming and Alexander Henderson, going on to found the Merchants Trust in 1889. Benson also became heavily engaged in the financing of railways and mining development in Southern Africa, especially in

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing British Crown colony in Southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as South ...

, where his brother-in-law Albert Grey, later the 4th Earl Grey, was administrator. Benson was also a director of several other companies, including the

Anglo-American Telegraph Company The Atlantic Telegraph Company was a company formed on 6 November 1856 to undertake and exploit a commercial telegraph cable across the Atlantic Ocean, the first such telecommunications link. History Cyrus Field, American businessman and finan ...

, of which he was chairman, the London Electric Supply Corporation and the St. James's and Pall Mall Electric Light Company.

Art collector

By the early 1880s, Benson had started to build up his collection of Italian pictures, with the purchase of several paintings in 1884 from the art dealer

Martin Colnaghi Martin Henry Colnaghi (16 November 1821 – 27 June 1908) was a British art dealer for the London-based Colnaghi. Personal life He was born on 16 November 1821 at 23 Cockspur Street, London, and baptised Martino Enrico Luigi Gaetano. He was t ...

, including ''Portrait of a Collector'' by Mario Basaiti, ''Madonna and Child'', attributed to Bastiano Mainardi, and ''A Triumphal Procession with Prisoners'' by

Andrea Schiavone Andrea Meldolla (), also known as Andrea Schiavone or Andrea lo Schiavone, literally "Andrew the Slav", (c. 1510/15–1563) was an Italian Renaissance painter and etcher, born in Dalmatia, in the Republic of Venice (present-day Croatia) to p ...

. Following his marriage in 1887 to Evelyn Holford, the daughter of the art collector Robert Holford, Benson began to spend more of his time on his collection of paintings from the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, adding works by

Duccio di Buoninsegna Duccio di Buoninsegna ( , ; – ), commonly known as just Duccio, was an Italian painter active in Siena, Tuscany, in the late 13th and early 14th century. He was hired throughout his life to complete many important works in government and religi ...

, and many old masters including

Giorgione Giorgio Barbarelli da Castelfranco (; 1470s – 17 September 1510), known as Giorgione, was an Italian painter of the Venetian school during the High Renaissance, who died in his thirties. He is known for the elusive poetic quality of his work, ...

Botticelli Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi ( – May 17, 1510), better known as Sandro Botticelli ( ; ) or simply known as Botticelli, was an Italian painter of the Early Renaissance. Botticelli's posthumous reputation suffered until the late 1 ...

Correggio Antonio Allegri da Correggio (August 1489 – 5 March 1534), usually known as just Correggio (, also , , ), was an Italian Renaissance painter who was the foremost painter of the Parma school of the High Renaissance, who was responsible for som ...

and

Titian Tiziano Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), Latinized as Titianus, hence known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian Renaissance painter, the most important artist of Renaissance Venetian painting. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near Belluno. Ti ...

. In total, he amassed a collection of 114 early Italian paintings, as well as pictures by

Thomas Gainsborough Thomas Gainsborough (; 14 May 1727 (baptised) – 2 August 1788) was an English portrait and landscape painter, draughtsman, and printmaker. Along with his rival Sir Joshua Reynolds, he is considered one of the most important British artists o ...

and

Edward Burne-Jones Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, 1st Baronet, (; 28 August 183317 June 1898) was an English painter and designer associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood's style and subject matter. Burne-Jones worked with William Morris as a founding part ...

. Benson and his wife also created a noted collection of early Chinese porcelain and pottery, which was loaned to the City of Manchester Art Gallery "Exhibition of Chinese Applied Art" in 1913, and later to the Victoria & Albert Museum. In 1914, Benson published a catalogue of his art collection, and later two catalogues of the Holford family collections, "The Holford Collection at Westonbirt" (1924) and "The Holford Collection, Dorchester House" (1927).

Writer on economic policy

During the First World War, the banking operations were virtually suspended, enabling Benson to write about economic policy and act as an unofficial city advisor. In May 1916, he prepared a "Resumė of War Finance" for the government. In 1918, he published a booklet in which he advocated the creation of a central bank to manage the market in Government securities.

After the First World War

When normal merchant banking activities resumed after the war, Benson realised that the bank was in need of increased capitalisation. As a result, in 1924 he brought his three sons into the business, and sold his collection of Chinese porcelain by auction at

Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, and it has additional salerooms in New York, Paris, Hong Kong, Milan, Geneva, Shan ...

in order to raise funds. Two years later, the partnership was converted into a limited liability company. Following the death of his brother-in-law,

George Holford Lieutenant-Colonel Sir George Lindsay Holford (2 June 1860 – 11 September 1926) was a British Army officer and courtier. The son of Robert Stayner Holford, he inherited his father's considerable fortune, which included the Westonbirt House ...

in September 1926, the large Holford family holding in the bank had to be realised by the estate, requiring Benson to sell his entire art collection. The collection was sold in its entirety to the art dealer

Joseph Duveen Joseph Duveen, 1st Baron Duveen (14 October 1869 – 25 May 1939), known as Sir Joseph Duveen, Baronet, between 1927 and 1933, was a British art dealer who was considered one of the most influential art dealers of all time. Life and career Jo ...

for $2.5 million in 1927.

Public offices

Benson was very active in public life, being a trustee of the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current di ...

from 1912, and on the board of the

Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the UK ...

. He was the treasurer of the

National Art Collections Fund Art Fund (formerly the National Art Collections Fund) is an independent membership-based British charitable organization, charity, which raises funds to aid the acquisition of artworks for the nation. It gives grants and acts as a channel for man ...

from 1906, and a long-time member of the

Burlington Fine Arts Club The Burlington Fine Arts Club (established 1866; dissolved 1952) was a London gentlemen's club based at 17 Savile Row. The club had its roots in the informal Fine Arts Club, a gathering of amateur art enthusiasts, founded by John Charles Robin ...

, regularly loaning pictures and porcelain for its exhibitions. He was also a member of the council of the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

, a member of the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music (RCM) is a conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the undergraduate to the doctoral level in all aspects of Western Music including pe ...

, and a Justice of the Peace.

Marriage and children

On 7 July 1887, at St George's church, Hanover Square, Westminster, Benson married Evelyn Holford (1856–1943), the daughter of

Robert Stayner Holford Robert Stayner Holford (1808–1892), of Westonbirt, in the village of Weston Birt, Gloucestershire, MP for East Gloucestershire, was a wealthy landowner, gardening and landscaping enthusiast, and an art collector. With his vast wealth, he rebu ...

of Weston Birt in Gloucestershire. The couple had five children: *Guy Holford Benson (1888–1975) * Reginald Lindsay (Rex) Benson (1889–1968) *Margaret Winifred (Daisy) Benson (1892–1976) * Constantine Evelyn Benson (1895–1960) *Rosalind Frances (Lindy) Benson (1899–1982) From 1902 to 1927, Benson and his family lived at Buckhurst Park,

Withyham Withyham is a village and large civil parish in the Wealden district of East Sussex, England. The village is situated 7 miles south west of Royal Tunbridge Wells and 3.5 miles (5.6 km) from Crowborough; the parish covers approxi ...

in (East) Sussex which he rented on a 25-year lease from Gilbert Sackville, Earl De La Warr. During his time at Buckhurst, Benson made considerable changes to the house, engaging architect

Edwin Lutyens Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens ( ; 29 March 1869 – 1 January 1944) was an English architect known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era. He designed many English country houses, war memorials ...

to add an extensive wing. In 1926, Benson and his wife purchased Walpole House, the largest house in

Chiswick Mall Chiswick Mall is a waterfront street on the north bank of the river Thames in the oldest part of Chiswick in West London, with a row of large houses from the Georgian and Victorian eras overlooking the street on the north side, and their gar ...

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district in West London, split between the London Borough of Hounslow, London Boroughs of Hounslow and London Borough of Ealing, Ealing. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist Wi ...

, which at one time had been the home of

Thomas Walpole Thomas Walpole (6 October 1727 – March 1803), styled from 1756 The Hon. Thomas Walpole, was a British MP and banker in Paris. Life Thomas Walpole was born into a political family. The second son of the 1st Baron Walpole and his wife Telisha ...

Death

Benson died of a

paralytic stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop ...

on 8 April 1929 at Walpole House. He was buried in St Catherine's churchyard at Westonbirt, Gloucestershire (now part of

Westonbirt School Westonbirt School is a co-educational independent day and boarding school for boys and girls aged 11 to 18 located near Tetbury in Gloucestershire in South West England. Founded in 1928. The historical Westonbirt House is part of the school. We ...

). A memorial service was held at

St Martin-in-the-Fields St Martin-in-the-Fields is a Church of England parish church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. Dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours, there has been a church on the site since at least the medieval pe ...

on 10 April 1929. He left an estate valued for probate at £116,500.

Sporting honours

Oxford University *

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

winner:

Old Etonians *FA Cup runners-up:

1875 Events January * January 1 – The Midland Railway of England abolishes the Second Class passenger category, leaving First Class and Third Class. Other British railway companies follow Midland's lead during the rest of the year (Third C ...

References

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

* Benson, Robert Henry entry in ''

Who's Who A Who's Who (or Who Is Who) is a reference work consisting of biographical entries of notable people in a particular field. The oldest and best-known is the annual publication ''Who's Who (UK), Who's Who'', a reference work on contemporary promin ...

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Benson, Robin 1850 births 1929 deaths Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Men's association football forwards English art collectors English bankers English men's footballers Old Etonians F.C. players Oxford University A.F.C. players People educated at Eton College People from Droylsden Footballers from Greater Manchester Sportspeople from Tameside (district) Wanderers F.C. players People from Withyham