History
The Marjoribanks family
Coldstream Ventures was founded by eighth generation descendants of Edward Marjoribanks
Edward Marjoribanks comes to Coldstream
Edward Marjoribanks (pronounced "Marchbanks") moved back from Bordeaux to Scotland in the 1760s when he inherited the estate of Lees in Coldstream.
The five brothers
His eldest son, Sir John Marjoribanks, 1st Bt, started his career as a Captain in the Coldstream Guards, became Lord Provost of Edinburgh and was MP for both Buteshire and Berwickshire. His 4 brothers were also prominent men in their own right — Campbell was Chairman of the East India Company three times, Stewart owned a shipping company and was MP for Hythe, Edward became Senior Partner in Coutts' Bank and James became a judge in the East India Company's administration of India.
A century of Borders politics
Sir John was MP for Berwickshire from 1818–1826. His son Charles won the seat in 1832 on his return from Hong Kong, but died within a year. The imposing column in Coldstream is of "Charlie", raised by his friends in 1834 to commemorate him with an inscription describing him as a man of "high talents, amiable qualities and political principles".
Charlie's younger brother David then sat as MP for Berwickshire from 1859–1873 before being elevated to the peerage as Baron Marjoribanks.
Their first cousin Sir Dudley Coutts Marjoribanks, son of Edward Marjoribanks, was also politically active and held the adjoining seat of Berwick-upon-Tweed from 1853–1859, 1859–1868 and 1874–1881 — a total of nearly 23 years — before moving to the House of Lords as Baron Tweedmouth. He was also largely responsible for developing the then new breed of dog, the golden retriever. His son, Edward Marjoribanks, 2nd Baron Tweedmouth KT PC, was MP for Berwickshire from 1880–1894, so between 1818–1894 the Marjoribanks family dominated Borders politics, holding a seat in parliament for a combined 60 years.
From the 19th century to today
Sir John's baronetcy passed to his son Sir William, and then in turn to his two sons, but they both died without issue and the baronetcy became extinct.
The current Marjoribanks line continued through Sir William's daughter, Mary Marjoribanks, who married Philip Egerton and had eight children.
Their eldest son, John Marjoribanks Egerton, read theology at Keble College, Oxford and was ordained as an Anglican. He converted to Catholicism in 1894 and moved to Fiesole in Italy, becoming a Private Chamberlain of the Sword and Cape (Cameriere Segreto di Spada e Cappa) to the Papal Household, a Knight Commander of the Order of St Gregory the Great and served during the pontificate of Pope Pius X.
John's eldest son, also John, grew up in Italy before returning to the UK, and his great grandchildren founded Coldstream Ventures
Today, Coldstream Ventures' ethos is to continue their spirit of investing in and supporting local communities.