Frederick Smith, 2nd Viscount Hambleden

William Frederick Danvers Smith, 2nd Viscount Hambleden (1868 – 1928), known as Frederick Smith, was an English businessman and politician.

He was involved in the management of the family business, W H Smith, which was founded by his grandfather, William Henry Smith.

In 1891, he succeeded his father William Henry Smith as Member of Parliament for the Strand constituency, holding the seat until January 1910.

Smith's rapid succession to the seat his father held in Parliament may have played a role in one of the odder events of Frederick Smith's life. By suddenly rising to public prominence he was targetted for blackmail by the notorious Canadian-American-British poisoner Dr. Thomas Neill Cream, who (writing under an assumed name) claimed to have proof that Smith had poisoned a prostitute. This was one of three known attempts at blackmail that may have been the real motive for Cream's string of poisonings in the Stepney and Lambeth areas of London from October 1891 to April 1892. They played a small role in the final arrest, prosecution, and conviction of Cream at the Old Bailey in October 1892, and his execution the following month.

Smith was commissioned Lieutenant in the 2nd Buckinghamshire Rifle Volunteers (Eton College) in 1885, but resigned in 1887. In 1891 he was commissioned Second Lieutenant in the Royal 1st Devon Yeomanry. He was promoted Lieutenant in 1892, Captain in 1895, Major in 1902, and Lieutenant-Colonel in 1914. He served with the Imperial Yeomanry during the Boer War.

He was later Honorary Colonel of the Royal Devon Yeomanry Artillery in 1922.

ee also

* Viscount Hambleden

References

*Rayment
* [http://genuki.cs.ncl.ac.uk/DEV/Moretonhampstead/LordHambleden.html GENUKI/Devon Lord Hambleden and Moretonhampstead]
*Bloomfield, Jeffrey "The Doctor Wrote Some Letters" R. W. Stone, Q.P.M. (ed.) The Criminologist, Winter 1991, Volume 15, Number 4 (p. 224 - 244).