A Fine Art Deco Period Brass-Mounted Ship’s Humidor from the M. Y. Princess, owned by Sir James Gomer Berry, Retailed by Benson and Hedges

A Fine Art Deco Period Brass-Mounted Ship’s Humidor from the M. Y. Princess, owned by Sir James Gomer Berry, Retailed by Benson and Hedges, this fine humidor is veneered in oak with inlaid brass stringing. The lid has a brass plaque with the M. Y. Princessinscribed upon it along with the yacht’s pennant. To the base is the retailer’s sticker for Benson and Hedges, stating that this is a design patented in 1919.

Provenance

 Commissioned by Sir James Gomer Berry, 1^st Viscount Kemsley, from Benson and Hedges, London c.1935

By descent until acquired directly from the family.

M.Y. Princess

Built in 1924 by the Furness Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Princess was commissioned by Sir James Knott. She was acquired by Kemsley in 1935 and refitted, an article in the Liverpool Journal of Commerce, 13^th of August 1935, recording that:

‘The Princess is a twin-screw diesel vessel of 751 tons register, and is 186ft in length, with a beam of 30ft., depth 14 ft., and draft 12ft. The engines are of the Sulzer type, and give a speed of 13.5 knots’.

A portrait of the Princess by Italian artist Luca Papaluca, was sold by Bonham’s in 2012.

The Berry Family, Viscounts Kemsley

 Born in Merthyr Tydfil in Wales, Sir James Gomer Berry, 1^st Viscount Kemsley, and his two brothers Henry, 1^st Baron Buckland and William, 1^st Viscount Camrose, made a formidable trio. James and William were both newspaper barons whilst Henry made his fortune as an industrialist. Together the brothers were part of the wave of extremely rich and successful business people who began to take over from the “old money” aristocratic families during the social upheaval caused by the world wars and economic changes affecting Europe during the first half of the 20^th century.

Sir James Gomer Berry founded Kemsley Newspapers, a company which at one point owned The Sunday Times, The Daily Sketch and The Sunday Graphic and Berry himself also co-owned The Daily Telegraph with his brother William. This domination of the British print media by one family was unprecedented up to this point, especially as Berry would later become chairman of Reuters News Agency in 1951, further cementing his grip.

As one might expect, Berry become something of a society figure, his wealth opening many doors for him. One of his passions was sailing and in 1935 he purchased the M. Y. Princess, a motor yacht built in 1924 for Sir James Knott by the Furness Shipbuilding Co. Ltd.

This report from 1938 in the Northern Whig describes Berry and his family cruising around Ireland, making time to meet with De Valera in Dublin, thus mixing business with pleasure.

The newspaper report also makes it clear that the family now moved in the very highest social circles and there must have been some impressive entertaining on board the Princess during this period.

Later in the 20^th century, the Berry family became linked to the Wellesley family by marriage and it is through this line that the Berry family were able to inherit various important and interesting relics relating to the Duke of Wellington. The family has climbed to great heights in a very short space of time and it is no exaggeration to say that they played an important role in shaping British culture over the past 100 years.

Kemsley and Sir Winston Churchill.

Churchill’s financial situation was often unstable and in 1938 he was almost forced to sell his home, Chartwell, Kent. The house had five reception rooms, nineteen bed and dressing rooms, eight bathrooms and eighty acres of land. Wealthy friends, including Viscount Kemsley, bought Chartwell for the National Trust in 1946 on the condition that Churchill and his family could continue to live there. It was presented to the public in 1966, one year after Churchill’s death.

In addition to aid of this sort, Kemsley swung the power of his newspapers behind Churchill from 1940 onwards and it was as a result of his constant backing that he was awarded the Viscountcy in 1945.