John Henry Bethell, 1st Baron Bethell (September 23, 1861 – May 27, 1945), known as Sir John Bethell, 1st Baronet, from 1911 to 1922, was a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 banker and Liberal

Liberal Party (UK)

The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...

 politician.

Bethell was the son of George Bethell and his wife Frances (née Tipper), and was educated at King's College London

King's College London

King's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...

. He was a Director of Barclays Bank and of the Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation

Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation

The Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation, founded in 1720, was a British insurance company. It took its name from the location of its offices at the Royal Exchange, London.-Origins:...

 and also served twice as Mayor of East Ham

East Ham

East Ham is a suburban district of London, England, and part of the London Borough of Newham. It is a built-up district located 8 miles east-northeast of Charing Cross...

 and twice of West Ham

West Ham

West Ham is in the London Borough of Newham in London, England. In the west it is a post-industrial neighbourhood abutting the site of the London Olympic Park and in the east it is mostly residential, consisting of Victorian terraced housing interspersed with higher density post-War social housing...

. In 1906 Bethell was elected to the House of Commons

British House of Commons

The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...

 for Romford

Romford (UK Parliament constituency)

Romford is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- Boundaries :...

, a seat he held until 1918, and then represented East Ham North

East Ham North (UK Parliament constituency)

East Ham North was a parliamentary constituency centred on the East Ham district of London, which was in Essex until 1965. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.- History :The...

 between 1918 and 1922. He was created a Baronet, of Romford in the County of Essex, in 1911 and in 1922 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Bethell, of Romford in the County of Essex.

Lord Bethell married Florence, daughter of James Woolley Wyles, in 1895. They had three sons and three daughters. His eldest son Lieutenant Frank Henry Bethell was killed in the First World War in September 1915, aged 19. Lord Bethell died in May 1945, aged 83, and was succeeded in his titles by his second son John. Lady Bethell died in 1957.