The mystery of Overend and Gurney : a financial scandal in Victorian London / Geoffrey Elliott.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Elliott, Geoffrey, 1939-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Overend, Gurney, & Co.

Financial crises--England--London--History--19th century.

Financial crises.

History.

Great Britain--Economic conditions--19th century.

Great Britain.

Economic conditions.

England--London.

Physical Description:

xv, 266 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 25 cm

Other Title:

Mystery of Overend & Gurney

Place of Publication:

London : Methuen, 2006.

Summary:

An evocative portrait of the financial underbelly of Victorian London. On May 10, 1866, Quaker-run London bank Overend and Gurney collapsed, unleashing a catastrophe that was felt throughout the world. Amid a scandal that was the Victorian equivalent of Enron, Geoffrey Elliott paints a picture of greed and corruption and true-life characters that could have come from a Dickens novel.

Geoffrey Elliott lives in Bermuda.

Contents:

1 History Repeats Itself 9

2 Paper Promises 14

3 Halcyon Days 20

4 The Smoke, the Wealth, the Din 31

5 Men Only 39

6 'Not Slothful in Business' 45

7 The House That Samuel Built 61

8 A New Generation 75

9 A Powerful Neighbour 86

10 Levant Dreams 96

11 When Greek Meets Greek 101

12 'Those in Peril on the Sea' 109

13 That Sinking Feeling 118

14 Going to the Dogs 127

15 The Baron 138

16 Millwall's Last Hurrah 144

17 East Enders 147

18 Storm Cones 151

19 A False Dawn 158

20 Buyer, Beware! 163

21 'Fictitious Capital' 170

22 Shipwreck 180

23 Truth and Consequences 190

24 A Doctor Calls 197

25 Facing the Lord Mayor 201

26 A Case to Answer 207

27 In the Dock 212

28 'Guilty of Our Own Disasters' 222

29 'Memories Are Made of This...' 231.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [253]-259) and index.

ISBN:

0413775739

9780413775733

OCLC:

67874134