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| Henry Augustus Preeston [CFT #3981] Born: 1807 Died: 1884 |
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| b Free City of Hamburg d 52 Welbeck St, London A successful international merchant with a business in London from late 1842 when he arrived from Hamburg [ age 36 ] until 1884 when he died [ age 78 ]. His great talent was his ability to identify which foreign market to target for the latest British innovation, for example when the most advanced steam boiler was invented and produced in England, he successfully sold it in Spain and Argentine. He was the initiator of sales of many of the Industrial Revolution advances to countries such as the Indian Empire, Mexico, etc. After the Suez Canal was built, in 1870, he was amongst the first in London to sell passages to India via the new Canal. A review of The Times archive reveals dozens of his advertisements selling the latest product from the Great British Industrial Revolution He was born in Hamburg in 1806, the illegitimate son of a ruler of one of the many Holy Roman Empire principalities, most likely Frederick Francis I of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (10 dec 1756- 1 feb 1837). His [most likely] father started the very first court orchestra in 1801 at Ludwigslust and Maria Hester was one of many exceptionally talented musicians invited to join the court orchestra. He is probably the result of a dalliance in the winter of 1805/1806. It must be born in mind that in 1807 French Forces occupied Hamburg and in reprisal for Hamburg defying Napoleons’ blockade of Continental Europe [against Britain] said French Forces looted, pillaged and generally trashed the place. The French remained in occupation until 1813. During this time Henry Augustus was brought up in a refuge organised by his father who had gone into exile. Although the French were completely defeated at the Battle of Waterloo [18 June 1815] it was not until 1822 that Hamburg was able to rebuild itself from the ruins left by the French Occupation. The Archduke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin did very well out of the Congress of Vienna after the war. Whoever he was, Henry August’s father provided generously for him both financially and educationally. He was fostered out and educated by tutors - he learned seven languages fluently: as a young man he was well educated and travelled extensively. He set himself up as an international merchant in Hamburg. He appears to have suffered badly from the great fire of Hamburg [5 to 9 May 1842] and shortly after the catastrophe of the fire he married an English woman living in Hamburg. She was the 20 year old Martha Blanche Southwell; he was 36 years old. Late in 1842 they migrated from Hamburg to London. At this point he assumed the surname of Preeston. When he first arrived in London, he set up business with a series partners but, after an unfortunate incident in 1861 with one partner, he dissolved his company, Preeston, Vilches and Co. on 1 May 1861 and went into business on his own as H.A. Preeston & Co. From this point onward he was very successful as an international merchant with offices at 7 Mincing Lane and 34 Fenchurch Street and worked until the day he died in 1884. He left his company to his youngest son John Henry Southwell Preeston [1859 - 1924]. Described by one of his grandchildren : a very serious man, exceptionally clever and keeping up with international events all the time, very fluent in seven foreign languages and very strange. He sent his eldest son to the very progressive Bruce Castle School and bought him a 45-foot cutter [Yacht] for his 21st Birthday. He appears to have had a love of sailing and was not particularly interested in owning property. The enduring mystery is what he did in the 36 years before he met Martha Blanch Southwell and assumed the surname Preeston. In his successful application for British Nationality [29 Sept 1852] he states that he spent of few years of his education with a tutor in England. Rodney Gilbert 2011 |
1: 1843 Ferdinand Francis Preestonc 2: 1845 Rachel Hester Maria Preestonc 3: 1847 Percival Robert Southwell Preestonc W/C 4: 1850 Rebecca Martha Preestonc H/C 5: 1850 Rebecca Martha Preeston 6: 1855 Leah Mary Preestonc 7: 1859 John Henry Southwell Preestonc W/C 8: 1862 Cecelia Rachel Mary Preestonc | |||||||
| 8 Children | ||||||||
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