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Thomson Hankey

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Thomson Hankey (15 June 1805[1] – 13 January 1893)[2] was a British merchant, a banker and a Liberal Party politician.

Hankey was the son of Thomson Hankey from Portland Place in London, and his wife Martha, the daughter of Benjamin Harrison from Clapham Common.[3] He became a merchant in the City of London and a director the Bank of England,[3] serving first as its Deputy Governor[4] and then as its Governor from 1851 to 1853.[5] In June 2020 the Bank of England issued a public apology for the involvement of Hankey, amongst other employees, in the slave trade following the investigation by the Centre for the Study of the Legacies of British Slave-ownership at UCL.[6]

At the 1852 general election, Hankey unsuccessfully contested the borough of Boston in Lincolnshire.[7] He then contested the by-election in June 1853 for the City of Peterborough, where he lost by a margin of 21 votes (out of a total 451) to the Liberal George Hammond Whalley.[8] Whalley had been returned for Peterborough at a by-election in December 1852, but an election petition was lodged and his election was subsequently declared void on 8 June 1853[2] on the grounds that Whalley had been complicit in the "treating" of voters. After his second by-election win, a further petition was lodged, and a committee of the House of Commons found that Whalley's election was invalid, because he had been disqualified as a result of the previous void election. The seat was therefore awarded to Hankey, who was declared duly elected on 14 August 1853.[9]

Hankey was re-elected in 1857,[10] 1859[11] and 1865,[12] but was defeated at the 1868 general election by the Liberal William Wells.[8] He was re-elected in 1874,[13] and later was defeated in 1880.[8] His name was discussed in early 1882 as a possible candidate for any future vacancy in Peterborough,[14] but when Hampden Whalley resigned in June 1883, Hankey did not contest the resulting by-election,[8] and did not stand again thereafter.[15]

He was also a Justice of the Peace (JP) for Middlesex, Kent and the City of London, and a member of Commission of lieutenancy for the City of London.[15]

He died on 13 January 1893, aged 88.[15] In his later years, his advanced age prevented him from taking any active part in public life.[15]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ London, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538–1812
  2. ^ a b Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "P" (part 1)
  3. ^ a b "New Members". The Times. London. 26 February 1874. p. 6.
  4. ^ "Deputy Governors of the Bank of England" (PDF). Bank of England. Retrieved 3 January 2014.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ "Governors of the Bank of England" (PDF). Bank of England. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 February 2012. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
  6. ^ "Bank of England apologises for role of former directors in slave trade". The Guardian. 18 June 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  7. ^ Craig, F. W. S. (1989) [1977]. British parliamentary election results 1832–1885 (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 55. ISBN 0-900178-26-4.
  8. ^ a b c d Craig, pages 237–238
  9. ^ "Election Committee. Peterborough". The Times. London. 15 August 1853. p. 10, col B. Retrieved 18 December 2010. (subscription required)
  10. ^ "No. 21983". The London Gazette. 31 March 1857. p. 1179.
  11. ^ "No. 22258". The London Gazette. 3 May 1859. p. 1813.
  12. ^ "No. 22991". The London Gazette. 14 July 1865. p. 3531.
  13. ^ "No. 24063". The London Gazette. 6 February 1874. p. 539.
  14. ^ "Election Intelligence". The Times. London. 27 February 1882. pp. 7, col G. Retrieved 19 December 2010. (subscription required)
  15. ^ a b c d "Obituary. Mr. Thomson Hankey". The Times. London. 16 January 1893. p. 10, col F. Retrieved 19 December 2010. (subscription required)
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Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Peterborough
1853–1868
With: George Wentworth-FitzWilliam 1853–59
George Hammond Whalley 1859–68 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Peterborough
1874–1880
With: George Hammond Whalley 1874–78
John Wentworth-FitzWilliam 1878–80 		Succeeded by
Government offices
Preceded by Governor of the Bank of England
1851–1853 		Succeeded by
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