Reginald Earle Welby, 1st Baron Welby GCB, PC (3 August 1832–30 October 1915) was a British peer, former Permanent Secretary to the Treasury and former President of the Royal Statistical Society.
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Born on his father's Rectory at Hareston in Lincolnshire, Welby was educated at Eton College where he became known amongst his friends as a "great footballer." He then went up to Trinity College, Cambridge, hoping for a career as a barrister following graduation, although his hopes never realised themselves. Instead he entered the Civil Service as a clerk in the Treasury in 1856 having graduated from Cambridge in 1855.[1]
Welby held many posts during his tenure at the Treasury and was appointed Assistant Financial Secretary in 1880. In 1885, he succeeded Lord Lingen as Permanent Secretary to the Treasury, holding this office until his retirement in 1894. Following his retirement, he was raised to the peerage as Baron Welby, of Allington in the County of Lincoln, on 16 April 1894,[2] although he did not play a great part in debates in the House of Lords. He was appointed a member of the Privy Council in 1913.[3] Lord Welby also became an alderman of London County Council, eventually becoming its Chairman, and served as President of the International Free Trade Congress.
Lord Welby was involved in a motorcar accident in December 1914, which he recovered from; however, his subsequent instability caused his death in the autumn of 1915. Lord Welby never married and had no children; hence his title became extinct upon his death.[4]
| Government offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Sir Ralph Lingen |
Permanent Secretary to the Treasury 1885–1894 with Edward Walter Hamilton (1885–1894) |
Succeeded by Sir Francis Mowatt |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Thomas McKinnon Wood |
Chairman of the London County Council 1899 – 1900 |
Succeeded by Willoughby Dickinson |
| Academic offices | ||
| Preceded by F.Y. Edgeworth |
President of the Royal Statistical Society 1914–1915 |
Succeeded by Lord George Hamilton |
| Peerage of the United Kingdom | ||
| New creation | Baron Welby 1894–1915 |
Extinct |