Sir Sassoon Jacob Hai David, 1st Baronet, (11 December 1849 – 27 November 1926) was an Indian merchant who was a member of the community of

Baghdadi Jews The former communities of Jewish migrants and their descendants from Baghdad and elsewhere in the Middle East are traditionally called Baghdadi Jews or Iraqi Jews. They settled primarily in the ports and along the trade routes around the Indian ...

who lived in

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

from the late 19th Century into the 20th Century. He was a

textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...

-owner and merchant who also became Chairman of the Bank of India.

Life and career

In 1867 Sir Sassoon Jacob Hai David joined the newly formed firm of his father in law, " E.D. Sassoon & Co.", which traded predominantly in India (Bombay, Karachi) and China (Hong Kong, Shanghai). In 1874 he started in Bombay his own firm, "Sassoon J. David & Co., Ltd.", which developed into a leading cotton merchant and opened branches in China (Hong Kong, Shanghai) and Japan (

Kobe Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...

). But the company also dealt in Indian

opium Opium (or poppy tears, scientific name: ''Lachryma papaveris'') is dried latex obtained from the seed capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid morphine, which i ...

and held the Hong Kong agency for the "South British Insurance Company" (now part of

IAG New Zealand IAG New Zealand (IAG NZ) is the New Zealand subsidiary of Insurance Australia Group. It is the largest general insurance company in New Zealand, just as its parent is the largest in Australia. It has a number of insurance brands it has acquired, ...

). As a wealthy businessman, he was the lead promoter of the Bank of India, founded in 1906, and became the bank's chairman. He served as

Sheriff of Bombay The Sheriff of Bombay is an apolitical titular position of authority bestowed for one year on a prominent citizen of Bombay. The Sheriff is an officer of the High Court and the nominal Head of the High Court Department which carries out the or ...

for 1905 and was created a baronet in 1911. He served on the council of the

governor general Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

of India, on the

Imperial Legislative Council The Imperial Legislative Council (ILC) was the legislature of the British Raj from 1861 to 1947. It was established under the Charter Act of 1853 by providing for the addition of 6 additional members to the Governor General Council for legislativ ...

and the Bombay Municipal Corporation for twenty years, becoming its President in 1921. He was made KCSI in the

1922 Birthday Honours The 1922 Birthday Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The King, and were ...

. He partly financed the construction of the

Gateway of India The Gateway of India is an arch-monument built in the early 20th century in the city of Mumbai (Bombay), India. It was erected to commemorate the landing of King-Emperor George V, the first British monarch to visit India, in December 1911 at ...

Family

Sir Sassoon Jacob Hai David was the son of Jacob Isaac David, a leading member of the Jewish community who was amongst the first Jews to move to Bombay. He married Hannah Sassoon, the daughter of

Elias David Sassoon Elias David Sassoon (27 March 1820 – 21 March 1880), an Indian merchant and banker born in Baghdad, was the second son of David Sassoon, an Iraqi-Indian philanthropist Jewish businessman involved in trade in India and the Far East, with branch ...

and granddaughter of

David Sassoon David Sassoon may refer to: *David Sassoon (designer) (born 1932), British fashion designer *David Sassoon (treasurer) (1792–1864), Iraqi-Jewish treasurer *David Solomon Sassoon (1880–1942), Iraqi bibliophile See also *Sassoon family *Albert A ...

. His eldest three sons predeceased him and he was therefore succeeded by his surviving son Sir Percival David, 2nd Baronet. Sir Sassoon Jacob Hai Davida brother, Abraham Aubrey J David (1854–?), was largely responsible for the successful built up of China business of "Sassoon J. David & Co., Ltd.".Arnold Wright (Editor): "Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China", Lloyd's Greater Britain Publishing Company, London 1908, p.223

Arms

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:David, Sassoon Jacob 1849 births 1926 deaths Indian bankers Indian Jews Indian people of Iraqi-Jewish descent Jews and Judaism in India Members of the Imperial Legislative Council of India Sheriffs of Mumbai Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Sassoon family Knights Commander of the Order of the Star of India Baghdadi Jews Indian baronets