Abe Bailey
( businessman, politician, cricketer) | |
|---|---|
| Born | 6 November 1864 Cradock, Cape Colony |
| Died | 10 August 1940 (Age 75) Muizenberg, South Africa |
| Nationality | British |
| Member of | Milner Group, Milner Group/Inner Circle, Milner Group/Society of the Elect |
South African diamond and gold tycoon, politician, financier and cricketer. | |
Sir Abraham "Abe" Bailey, was a South African diamond and gold tycoon, politician, financier and cricketer.
Activities
He spent his childhood on Cradock in the Eastern Cape, but moved to Johannesburg in the Free State of Oranje in 1896 where he became a member of the Reform Committee and after the Jameson Raid was detained for high treason. He was released after paying a £2,000 fine.
In 1899 he served in the Anglo-Boer War as information officer under lord Roberts. In 1900, he organized the S.A. Light Horse which he largely funded himself. In 1902 he was elected member of the Cape Legislative Assembly.
Via his business interests and his ties to Cecil Rhodes, Abe Bailey acquired substantial mining and land properties in the former Rhodesia. By the 1930s he was one of the world's wealthiest men.[1]