Sir Edmund Charles Wyldbore-Smith (15 January 1877 – 18 October 1938) was a British civil servant, diplomat, and businessman.
Biography Smith, whose father and grandfather were Anglican clergymen, was the great-grandsonDebrett's (op. cit.) entry for the Smith Marriott baronets, under 'Collateral Branches', lists Edmund Charles Wyldbore Smith (born 1877) as the son of Rev. Francis Alfred Smith (died 1877), who was the son of Rev. Francis Smith (died 1851), who was the 5th son of the 2nd baronet. of the second Smith-Marriott Baronet, Sir John Wyldbore Smith.Croslegh, Charles. (1904). Descent and alliances of Croslegh, p. 292.
In 1901, he married Evadne Maude Kellet; and the couple had two daughters.
Career In the early 1900s, Wyldbore-Smith served in the Foreign Office beginning his service as Vice-Consul at Tangiers in 1903. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, Vol. 75 (1912). p. 40.] Four years later he was appointed Vice-Consul in Canea (modern Chania), Crete.London Gazette, no. 28074, (30 October 1907), p. 7295 In January 1910 he transferred to the Board of Trade where he was employed as Officer-in-Charge of Commercial Enquiries in its recently established Exhibitions Branch; in effect he acted as deputy to the Director of the Branch, Ulick Fitzgerald Wintour.National Archives, BT13/49, Exhibitions Branch, Staffing and Salaries of Staff, Undated list [c. 1912] During the First World War, Smith was Director of the British Executive Staff of the Commission Internationale de Ravitaillement,London Gazette: "Decorations conferred by His Majesty the King of Italy", 21 May 1918, p. 5990 which was the international commission for the purchase of supplies for the Allies.Keith Neilson, 'Managing the war: Britain, Russia and ad hoc government', in Strategy and intelligence: British policy during the First World War, ed. by Michael Dockrill and David French (London: Hambledon Press, 1996), 96-118, p. 99.
Wyldbore-Smith resignation from the Civil Service in 1919 opened the way for a career in business. He was appointed chairman of Thomas Cook (both the travel agency and the banking firm), succeeding Frank Cook, who was the grandson of the company's founder.
Wyldbore-Smith served as vice-president of the Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits (International Sleeping-Car Company) and vice-president of the Federation of British Industries. He also served as a director of the Suez Canal Company.
Honours In 1906, he was elected to the Royal Statistical Society.
Smith was awarded decorations of seven countries, including: Knight Bachelor (United Kingdom) Légion d'Honneur (France) Order of Leopold (Belgium) Order of the Crown of Italy, 1918 (Italy). Order of George I, 1920 (Greece).London Gazette: 3 September 1920, p. 8970 Order of the Sacred Treasure, 1920 (Japan).London Gazette: 22 October 1920, p.10197 Order of the Crown of Romania, 1921._____. (1921). The Near East. Vol. 20.
Notes
References Burke, Edmund. (1839). The Annual Register of World Events: A Review of the Year, vol. 80. London: Longmans, Green. OCLC 4982221 Croslegh, Charles. (1904). Descent and alliances of Croslegh: or Crossle, or Crossley, of Scaitcliffe; and Coddington of Oldbridge; and Evans, of Eyton hall. Priv. print., The De La More Press. Mosley, Charles. (1999). Burke's Peerage and Baronetage (106th ed.). Crans, Switzerland: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd.