Financial and Political Career
He followed the family calling to become a director of Coutts and Co, the private bank and a subsidiary of National Provincial, in 1950. He was the ninth generation of Smiths, father and son, to work in the bank. He remained a director for 43 years, until 1993.
He also joined the boards of many other companies, including Rolls-Royce Limited, the Ottoman Bank, and the Financial Times. He was also a deputy-governor of Royal Exchange Assurance. He was awarded the OBE in 1964.
He was a British Conservative politician. After the death of the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Harry Hylton Foster in 1965, Smith was elected to succeed him in the subsequent by-election as Member of Parliament for the Cities of London and Westminster. Smith served until he stood down in 1970. He was awarded the CBE in 1975.
He served as High Steward of Maidenhead, and as Lord-Lieutenant of Berkshire from 1975 to 1978. He was knighted in 1988 and became a Companion of Honour in 1994.
He greatly enjoyed travelling, and claimed to be the first man to visit all of the explorers' huts in Antarctica.
Read more about this topic: John Smith (Conservative Politician)
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