Robert Gordon a 17th century merchant and philanthropist, was born in Aberdeen

Aberdeen

Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....

. He was the only son of Arthur Gordon who married Isabella Menzies of Balgownie

Balgownie

Balgownie may refer to:*Balgownie, New South Wales*Brig o' Balgownie, Aberdeen...

. When Arthur Gordon, a well-respected advocate in the Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

 courts, died in 1680, he left his twelve-year-old son the sum of 20,000 merks (about £1,100 then and considerably more in modern currency).

When Gordon reached the age of sixteen he became a Burgess of the City of Aberdeen. Among other benefits, this entitled him to follow a merchant's trade in the town. During the next few years he attended Marischal College

Marischal College

Marischal College is a building and former university in the centre of the city of Aberdeen in north-east Scotland. The building is owned by the University of Aberdeen and used for ceremonial events...

, graduating in 1689. Soon afterwards, like many Scots at the time, he left Aberdeen, travelling far and wide around Northern Europe before finally settling in Gdańsk

Gdansk

Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...

 (also known as Danzig) where he established himself as a merchant trader. Over the next few decades he built a highly successful business and soon became wealthy. By 1692, he was rich enough to donate a large sum of money to his old college and by 1699, it appears that he was providing low interest loans to landowners in Aberdeenshire who needed working capital

Working capital

Working capital is a financial metric which represents operating liquidity available to a business, organization or other entity, including governmental entity. Along with fixed assets such as plant and equipment, working capital is considered a part of operating capital. Net working capital is...

.

Little more is known about his time on the Baltic

Baltic Sea

The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...

 but by 1720 at the latest, he returned to Aberdeen a very wealthy man. However he had never married and had no heirs. Consequently he decided that his fortune would be used to found ‘a hospital for maintenance, aliment, entertainment and education of young boys’ and wrote his will to that effect. He started work on the project in 1730. He died shortly thereafter—of overeating it is said—but the project had started, funding was still there, owing to his foresightedness, and work continued on his dream.

Construction of the building was completed in 1743. However before it could be used for its intended purpose, it was taken over by the Duke of Cumberland

Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland

Prince William , was a younger son of George II of Great Britain and Caroline of Ansbach, and Duke of Cumberland from 1726. He is generally best remembered for his role in putting down the Jacobite Rising at the Battle of Culloden in 1746, and as such is also known as "Butcher" Cumberland...

 to use as a barracks for the Hanoverian

Hanoverian

The adjective Hanoverian is used to describe:* British monarchs or supporters of the House of Hanover, the dynasty which ruled the United Kingdom from 1714 to 1901.* things relating to the Electorate of Hanover, Kingdom of Hanover, or Province of Hanover...

 troops on his visit to Aberdeen in 1746 to put down the Jacobite

Jacobitism

Jacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...

 rising, and so the hospital did not open until 1750. During the nineteenth century the hospital developed in two different directions. The first, aimed at secondary education

Secondary education

Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...

 led directly to the modern private school, Robert Gordon's College

Robert Gordon's College

Robert Gordon's College is a private co-educational day school in Aberdeen, Scotland. The school caters for pupils from Nursery-S6.-History:...

. The second, aimed at tertiary education

Tertiary education

Tertiary education, also referred to as third stage, third level, and post-secondary education, is the educational level following the completion of a school providing a secondary education, such as a high school, secondary school, university-preparatory school...

, developed in combination with external technical institutes such as Gray's School of Science and Art, into an institution which achieved university status in the late twentieth century, the Robert Gordon University

Robert Gordon University

Robert Gordon University is located in Aberdeen, Scotland. Building on over 250 years involvement in education, it was granted university status in 1992. Robert Gordon University currently has approximately 16,407 students at its two campuses at Garthdee and the City Centre, studying on over 145...

.