Edgar Speyer

Sir Edgar Speyer, Bt
Sir Edgar Speyer by Sir William Orpen, 1914
Born	(1862-09-07)7 September 1862 New York City, New York, United States
Died	16 February 1932(1932-02-16) (aged 69) Berlin, Germany
Nationality	American, British (revoked)
Occupation	Banker and philanthropist
Title	Chairman of Underground Electric Railways Company of London
Term	3 January 1906 – 18 May 1915
Predecessor	Charles Yerkes
Successor	Lord George Hamilton
Spouse(s)	Leonora von Stosch (m. 1902)
Children	3

Sir Edgar Speyer, 1st Baronet (7 September 1862 – 16 February 1932) was an American-born financier and philanthropist. He became a British subject in 1892 and was chairman of Speyer Brothers, the British branch of the Speyer family's international finance house, and a partner in the German and American branches. He was chairman of the Underground Electric Railways Company of London (UERL, forerunner of the London Underground) from 1906 to 1915, a period during which the company opened three underground railway lines, electrified a fourth and took over two more.

Speyer was a supporter of the musical arts and a friend of several leading composers, including Edward Elgar, Richard Strauss and Claude Debussy. He was chairman of the Classical Music Society for ten years, and he largely funded the Promenade Concerts between 1902 and 1914. His non-musical charitable activities included being honorary treasurer of the fund for Captain Scott's Antarctic expedition. For his philanthropy he was made a baronet in 1906 and a Privy Counsellor in 1909.

After the start of the World War I, he became the subject of anti-German attacks in the Press. In 1915, Speyer offered to resign from the Privy Council and to relinquish his baronetcy, but the Prime Minister turned down the offer. He resigned as chairman of the UERL and went to the United States. In 1921, the British government investigated accusations that Speyer had traded with the enemy during the war, and had participated in other wartime conduct incompatible with his status as a British subject. Speyer denied the charges, but his naturalisation was revoked and he was struck off the list of members of the Privy Council.

Speyer was born on 7 September 1862 in New York City, the second son of German Jewish parents, Gustav Speyer and Sophia Speyer (née Rubino) from Frankfurt. His father was an international banker with businesses in Frankfurt, New York and London. Speyer was educated at the Realgymnasium in Frankfurt. On 10 February 1902, in Hamburg, Speyer married the American violinist Leonora von Stosch. They had met at a concert held by Maude Valerie White at which Leonora performed. They had three daughters: Pamela, Leonora, and Vivien.