Henry Keswick (businessman)

Sir Henry Neville Lindley Keswick (born 29 September 1938) is a British businessman who is chairman emeritus of Jardine Matheson.

Sir Henry Keswick
Born
Henry Neville Lindley Keswick

(1938-09-29) 29 September 1938 (age 85)
Shanghai, China
NationalityBritish
EducationEton College
Alma materTrinity College, Cambridge
OccupationChairman emeritus of Jardine Matheson Holdings
TitleThe Spectator (owner, 1975–1980)
Jardine Matheson Holdings (former Chairman, 1961)
Spouse
(m. 1985; died 2022)
Parent
RelativesSir John Chippendale Keswick (brother)
Simon Keswick (brother)

Early life edit

Keswick was born in 1938 in Shanghai, China, the son of Sir William Johnstone "Tony" Keswick and Mary Lindley.[1] He is part of the Keswick family and the older brother of Simon Keswick and Sir Chips Keswick. He was educated at Eton College and Trinity College, Cambridge.

During the coronation of Elizabeth II in 1953, Keswick was a page to Field Marshal Alan Brooke, and took part in the ceremony in Westminster Abbey. During his period of national service from 1956 to 1958, he was commissioned into the Scots Guards.[1]

Business career edit

Keswick owned The Spectator, a British conservative magazine, from 1975 to 1980.[1] He is the chairman of Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd, which he joined in 1961. He has been a director since 1967 and became managing director in 1970, and chairman in 1972.[1]

Other interests edit

He is vice chairman of the Hong Kong Association and a member of the council of the National Trust.[1] He was previously the chairman of the National Portrait Gallery.[1]

Honours edit

Keswick was knighted in the 2009 Birthday Honours for services to British business interests overseas and charitable activities in the UK.[1][2]

Personal life edit

 
Oare House, 2010

Keswick is a practising Roman Catholic and is a member of The Tablet.[3]

In 1985, he married Tessa Keswick, a public policy analyst who went on to be chancellor of the University of Buckingham. She is the younger daughter of Simon Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat[citation needed] and was formerly married to Hugh Mackay, 14th Lord Reay.[citation needed] They live at Oare House, a large country estate in Oare, Wiltshire.[4][5] He also owns an 18,000 acre shooting estate, Hunthill Estate, in the Angus Glens area of East Scotland; the shooting is mainly grouse.[citation needed]

Keswick and his wife donated £100,000 to the Conservative Party in the 2017 General Election.[6][7] According to the Register of Members' Financial Interests, in January 2020, Keswick donated £2,000 to Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg.[8] He also donated £10,000 to MP Danny Kruger.[9]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Profile - Keswick Debretts.com; accessed 1 April 2016
  2. ^ "No. 59090". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 June 2009. p. 1.
  3. ^ Contact Us The Tablet; accessed 1 April 2016
  4. ^ "Open Garden: Oare House". Marlborough News Online. Archived from the original on 23 September 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  5. ^ Nigel Kerton (11 February 2010). "Pavilion at Oare wins award". Gazette & Herald. Newsquest Media Group. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Pre-poll donations and loans summary document" (PDF). Electoral Commission.
  7. ^ Cahill, Helen (18 May 2017). "Party donors: Here are the big names bank-rolling the Conservative campaign". City AM. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  8. ^ "The Register of Members' Financial Interests As at 11 May 2020".
  9. ^ "The Register of Members' Financial Interests As at 11 May 2020".
Business positions
Preceded by Chairman of the Jardine, Matheson & Co.
1972–1975
Succeeded by