William Manning (British politician)
William Manning (1 December 1763 – 17 April 1835) was a British merchant, politician, and Governor of the Bank of England.[1]
For other people named William Manning, see William Manning (disambiguation).Biography[edit]
Manning was the son of West India merchant William Coventry Manning and Elizabeth Ryan.[2] Manning's sister Martha married American Revolutionary War patriot John Laurens.[3]
Manning joined his father's firm, taking control after his father's death in 1791. He was elected a Director of the Bank of England from 1792 to 1831 and its Governor between 1812 and 1814, having served as its Deputy Governor from 1810 to 1812.
He worked as a merchant in the West Indies, acting as agent for St Vincent (1792-1806) and for Grenada (1825-1831). He also invested in the Australian Agricultural Company, becoming its Deputy Governor in 1826, and was president of the London Life Assurance from 1817 to 1830.[4] The Manning River in New South Wales, Australia was named in his honour.
Around the same time, he and several other merchants lobbied Secretary for Colonies William Huskisson for exclusive trading rights with New Zealand.[5] A "William Mannings" is listed as a director of the New Zealand Company in 1825, a venture chaired by the wealthy John George Lambton, Whig MP (and later 1st Earl of Durham), that made the first attempt to colonise New Zealand.[6][7][8]
Between 1794 and 1830 he served almost continuously as a Member of Parliament in turn for Evesham, Lymington and Penryn.[1] He was a prominent slave owner and member of the West India Committee. He was active politically trying to prevent the abolition of slavery.[9]