Robert Kennard
Encyclopedia
Robert William Kennard JP DL (1800–1870) was a London
-born merchant, financier, entrepreneur, JP
and later Member of Parliament
.
The son of jeweller turn banker John Kennard (Heywood, Kennards & Co, merged into Consolidated Bank Ltd), and Harriet Elizabeth Peirse, he trained as a merchant in London. Having invested in the Falkirk Iron Co in 1830, Kennard's consortia formed the Blaenavon Coal and Iron Company in 1836, which subsequently bought the Blaenavon Ironworks
. There he employed his son, the noted civil engineer Thomas Kennard, and his cousin and the later photographer George Swan Nottage.
Through his conections with the iron and steel industries, and access to large sums of money through his families baking connections, he became a significant financier during the railway boom of the 1830s, and also financed some of the government requirements during the Crimea War. Leveraging this, Kennard made his fortune as a director of several UK railway companies, and as a director of one of the largest groups promoting railroads in France
and Belgium
.
He held the office of Justice of the Peace
for: Stirlingshire
; Middlesex
; and later Hertfordshire
. Having held the office of Deputy Lieutenant
of Monmouthshire
, he was appointed Sheriff
of London and Middlesex between 1846 and 1847. He was elected as an assocuate member of the Institute of Civil Engineers, seconded by Robert Stephenson
and Sir William Cubitt
. He was decorated with the award of Chevalier, Order of Leopold of Belgium.
Kennard was elected to the House of Commons as a Conservative
on the 11 February 1857, as the senior member for Newport (Isle of Wight) constituency
. He left at the general election, on 11 November 1868.
Kennard married Mary Ann Challis, only child of Liberal
MP and later Lord Mayor of London
Thomas Challis, on 23 May 1823. Living in Theobalds Park, Hertfordshire
, the couple had 10 children: Mary Jane Kennard; Charlotte Anne Kennard (died 24 Oct 1926); Ellen Kennard (died 5 Apr 1917); Reverend Robert Bruce Kennard (8 May 1824 - 10 Mar 1895); Thomas William Kennard (29 Aug 1825 - 10 Sep 1893); Arthur Challis Kennard (born 17 Jun 1831); Henry Martyn Kennard (born 17 Feb 1833); John Kennard (13 Apr 1836 - 24 Nov 1925); Howard John Kennard (29 Nov 1839 - 8 Aug 1896); Edward Kennard (born 22 Apr 1842).
He is interned in Kensal Green Cemetery
, in Grade II listed portland stone
with brone door mausoleum
.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
-born merchant, financier, entrepreneur, JP
JP
-People:* Jayaprakash Narayan, a late Indian freedom fighter and politician* Jayaprakash Narayan , an Indian politician and founder of Lok Satta Party...
and later Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
.
The son of jeweller turn banker John Kennard (Heywood, Kennards & Co, merged into Consolidated Bank Ltd), and Harriet Elizabeth Peirse, he trained as a merchant in London. Having invested in the Falkirk Iron Co in 1830, Kennard's consortia formed the Blaenavon Coal and Iron Company in 1836, which subsequently bought the Blaenavon Ironworks
Blaenavon Ironworks
Blaenavon Ironworks is an industrial museum in Blaenavon in Wales. The ironworks was of crucial importance in the development of the ability to use cheap, low quality, high sulphur iron ores worldwide...
. There he employed his son, the noted civil engineer Thomas Kennard, and his cousin and the later photographer George Swan Nottage.
Through his conections with the iron and steel industries, and access to large sums of money through his families baking connections, he became a significant financier during the railway boom of the 1830s, and also financed some of the government requirements during the Crimea War. Leveraging this, Kennard made his fortune as a director of several UK railway companies, and as a director of one of the largest groups promoting railroads in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
.
He held the office of Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
for: Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire or the County of Stirling is a registration county of Scotland, based around Stirling, the former county town. It borders Perthshire to the north, Clackmannanshire and West Lothian to the east, Lanarkshire to the south, and Dunbartonshire to the south-west.Until 1975 it was a county...
; Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
; and later Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
. Having held the office of Deputy Lieutenant
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
of Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire (historic)
Monmouthshire , also known as the County of Monmouth , is one of thirteen ancient counties of Wales and a former administrative county....
, he was appointed Sheriff
Sheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
of London and Middlesex between 1846 and 1847. He was elected as an assocuate member of the Institute of Civil Engineers, seconded by Robert Stephenson
Robert Stephenson
Robert Stephenson FRS was an English civil engineer. He was the only son of George Stephenson, the famed locomotive builder and railway engineer; many of the achievements popularly credited to his father were actually the joint efforts of father and son.-Early life :He was born on the 16th of...
and Sir William Cubitt
William Cubitt
Sir William Cubitt was an eminent English civil engineer and millwright. Born in Norfolk, England, he was employed in many of the great engineering undertakings of his time. He invented a type of windmill sail and the prison treadwheel, and was employed as chief engineer, at Ransomes of Ipswich,...
. He was decorated with the award of Chevalier, Order of Leopold of Belgium.
Kennard was elected to the House of Commons as a Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
on the 11 February 1857, as the senior member for Newport (Isle of Wight) constituency
Newport (Isle of Wight) (UK Parliament constituency)
Newport was a parliamentary borough located in Newport , which was abolished in for the 1885 general election. It was occasionally referred to by the alternative name of Medina....
. He left at the general election, on 11 November 1868.
Kennard married Mary Ann Challis, only child of Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
MP and later Lord Mayor of London
Lord Mayor of London
The Right Honourable Lord Mayor of London is the legal title for the Mayor of the City of London Corporation. The Lord Mayor of London is to be distinguished from the Mayor of London; the former is an officer only of the City of London, while the Mayor of London is the Mayor of Greater London and...
Thomas Challis, on 23 May 1823. Living in Theobalds Park, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, the couple had 10 children: Mary Jane Kennard; Charlotte Anne Kennard (died 24 Oct 1926); Ellen Kennard (died 5 Apr 1917); Reverend Robert Bruce Kennard (8 May 1824 - 10 Mar 1895); Thomas William Kennard (29 Aug 1825 - 10 Sep 1893); Arthur Challis Kennard (born 17 Jun 1831); Henry Martyn Kennard (born 17 Feb 1833); John Kennard (13 Apr 1836 - 24 Nov 1925); Howard John Kennard (29 Nov 1839 - 8 Aug 1896); Edward Kennard (born 22 Apr 1842).
He is interned in Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in Kensal Green, in the west of London, England. It was immortalised in the lines of G. K. Chesterton's poem The Rolling English Road from his book The Flying Inn: "For there is good news yet to hear and fine things to be seen; Before we go to Paradise by way of...
, in Grade II listed portland stone
Portland stone
Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries consist of beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building stone throughout the British Isles, notably in major...
with brone door mausoleum
Mausoleum
A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or persons. A monument without the interment is a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type of tomb or the tomb may be considered to be within the...
.