Merchant Venturers

Merchant Venturers
Formation	1552
Type	secret society
Membership	•  Ross Ancell •  Stephen Allpress •  Nick Bacon •  Robert Bernays •  Chris Booy •  Michael Bothamley •  Simon Brooks •  Anthony Brown •  Andrew Brownsword •  Denis Burn •  Gillian Camm •  Giles Clarke •  Simon Cooper •  Jacqueline Cornish •  Chris Curling •  Alastair Currie •  Roderick Davidson •  Robert Davis •  Andrew Densham •  Charles Densham •  Patrick Despard •  Eric Thomas •  David Freed •  Andrew Garrad •  Colin Green •  Francis Greenacre •  Charles Griffiths •  John Harvey •  Michael Hill •  Jim Hood •  Nick Hood •  Tom Hood •  Tony Kenny •  John Laycock •  Charles Lucas •  David Marsh •  Laura Marshall •  Geoff Matthews •  Cullum McAlpine •  Dayrell McArthur •  James McArthur •  Peter McCarthy •  Joe McGeehan •  Peter McIlwraith •  Bob McKinlay •  David Medlock •  Terrence Mordaunt •  Karen Morgan •  Alfred Morris •  Andrew Nisbet •  David Ord •  David Parkes •  Stephen Parsons •  Chris Patterson •  Tim Pearce •  John Pontin •  Chris Pople •  Mary Prior •  Peter Rilett •  Tim Ross •  John Savage •  Colin Skellett •  Trevor Smallwood •  Roger Smedley •  Alan Tasker •  Martin Thatcher •  James Tidmarsh •  Edward Ware •  Jonathan Webb •  Stephen West •  David Wills •  Moger Woolley •  Andrew Yates
A royally chartered group of 85 rich individuals, centered on Bristol, exercising great influence over financial institutions, big media and big oil.

The merchant venturers is an organisation which goes back to the middle ages. One documentary has been made about the merchant venturers, in 1997, by HTV for the series West Eye View. In termed the group a "secretive organisation which has dominated Bristol for 500 years."

History

A Guild of Merchants was founded in Bristol by the 13th century, and swiftly became active in civic life; by the 15th century it had become synonymous with the town's government. The group profited extensively from the slave trade.

The group has only recently admitted female members.

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References

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