Solomon Beyfus (1820-1893)

Solomon Beyfus (1820–1893) was a trader in London's East End and the head of a family that became influential in both the theatres and courtrooms of Britain.

His father, Gotz Philip Beyfus, a Jewish émigré from Hamburg in Germany, was born about 1788; he was a professor of language, the secretary of the Jews' Free School and taught in the Western Synagogue. Solomon's mother, Cippy, was born about 1784 in Plymouth, Devon, England. They had at least three children, Solomon, Philip and Eliza. Solomon, born in Plymouth, married Charlotte Abrahams in 1841; she was the daughter of Esther and Henry Abrahams, a jeweller of Bevis Marks in the City of London. Solomon and Charlotte's had ten children:

In their youth, Solomon and his brother Philip were French goods traders in the Houndsditch area of London, but they were declared bankrupt in 1843. Due to irregularities they were not granted their certificate of discharge until 1853. However, during this period the brothers were selling furniture, bill discounting and money lending.

In 1853 their sister, Eliza, married collar manufacturer Jacques Vanderlinden. After the death of Eliza in 1867 Vanderlinden was living at Solomon Beyfus's house, 50 Bedford Square, and trading in loans. Other members of Solomon's family involved in this business included his eldest son Henry and son-in-law, Albert Isaac Boss. This became public knowledge in 1875 when Albert Boss and Henry Beyfus sued the newspaper World for publishing "malicious and defamatory libel". Evidence was given that Solomon Beyfus was a cabinet maker based in City Road, and also operated as a bill discounter with an establishment in Old Burlington.

Two of Charlotte and Solomon's sons, Alfred and Philip, became solicitors and established the legal firm of Beyfus & Beyfus. Alfred married Emma Plumstead in 1884 and they had one child, a son who became the renowned barrister Gilbert Hugh Beyfus, QC. He represented clients such as Liberace, John Aspinall and Aneurin Bevan.

Alfred Beyfus had another child from a previous relationship who was named Alfred Butt (1878–1962). Butt began his career as a clerk at the department store Harrods, where his uncle, Edgar Israel Cohen, was a director. Cohen, who had married Solomon's daughter Ada in 1876, came from a family of East End merchants dealing in sea sponges and cigars. In the 1890s Cohen left the family business and moved into retail, becoming a director of D.H.Evans and Harrods. He was the first to introduce taxi-cabs to the streets of London in about 1907 and was involved in the theatre, providing financial support for Lillie Langtry when she refitted and renovated the Imperial Theatre in London. He made a fortune in his lifetime and spent it, dying in 1933 and leaving just £5 in his will.

...
Wikipedia