Eric Geddes

Sir Eric Campbell Geddes (26 September 1875 – 22 June 1937) was a British businessman and Conservative politician. With a background in railways, he served as head of Military Transportation on the Western Front, with the rank of major-general. He then served as First Lord of the Admiralty (with the rank of vice-admiral, despite its being a political position) between 1917 and 1919. He then served as the first Minister of Transport between 1919 and 1921, in which position he was responsible for the deep public spending cuts known as the "Geddes Axe". Background and education Born in British India, Geddes was a son of Auckland Campbell Geddes, of Edinburgh, Scotland. Among his siblings were Dr. Mona Chalmers Watson and Auckland Geddes, 1st Baron Geddes. He was educated at Oxford Military College and Merchiston Castle School, Edinburgh, until asked to leave. Business career Geddes then spent 2½ years drifting between jobs like lumberjack and steelworker in the United States, eventually becoming a stationmaster for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, rising to car-tracer. When he abruptly returned home, his elder sister gave him a firm talking-to; late in 1895 he was sent to India for a minor job in estate management, where he built light railways before moving to the Rohilkund and Kumaon railway; he became superintendent in 1901. Returning to England because of his wife's poor health, he joined the North Eastern Railway (NER), in 1904 to become the NER's claims agent (a newly created position) and rose to be deputy chief goods manager in 1906, chief goods manager in 1907, and finally deputy general manager in 1911. His initial NER salary was £500 per year, and by the time that he left in 1915, had increased to £5,000 per year; and he received a golden handshake of £50,000 at the end of the war. He was briefly considered as a possible chairman of the London and North Eastern Railway when that was formed at the end of 1922, but the choice fell to William Whitelaw. Political career During the First World War Geddes was one of the "men of push and go" brought into government service by Minister of Munitions David Lloyd George. In 1915 Geddes was selected by Lloyd George and given the title of deputy director general of munitions supply, whereupon he left the NER.