Sir Jules Thorn (7 February 1899 – 12 December 1980) was the founder of Thorn Electrical Industries, one of the United Kingdom's largest electrical businesses.
Career[]
Born in Vienna to Jewish parents Leibisch Thorn and Teme Thorn (née Finkelstein), Julius[1] (later known as Jules) Thorn was conscripted into the Austrian Army during World War I.[2] After the War he studied at the Handelshochschule (Business School) in Vienna.[2]
In 1923 Thorn moved to the United Kingdom as representative for Olso, an Austrian manufacturer of gas mantles.[2][3] In 1926 Olso went bankrupt and Thorn chose to set up business on his own trading as the Electric Lamp Service Company.[2] In 1936 he diversified into manufacturing and expanded the company into one of the largest electrical businesses in the country, Thorn Electrical Industries.[2] He was knighted in 1964.[4]
In 1970 Thorn retired from full-time involvement in the business to devote himself to his racehorses and his collection of Impressionist paintings. He was a successful racehorse owner and won the 2,000 Guineas Stakes at Newmarket with High Top in 1972.[5] Only in 1976 did he retire as Chairman of the business.[2] Sir Jules was a noted philanthropist supporting many medical, educational, artistic and humanitarian charities and endeavours. A large number of legal and medical scholarships as well as museums carry his name.
Thorn died in Westminster on 12 December 1980,[2] not long after seeing his company's successful takeover of its long-time rival EMI. His work and vision is continued through the Sir Jules Thorn Charitable Trust, chaired until recently by his daughter Ann Rylands.[6]
Family[]
In 1928 he married Dorothy Olive Tanner and together they went on to have one son and one daughter.[2] He married a second time, to Jean Norfolk, in 1971.[2]
References[]
- ↑ "Vienna Birth Records 1899". https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GB2W-WS9?mode=g&i=37&wc=MQB6-C68%3A344266801%2C344266802%2C344477101&cc=2028320. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 Jules Thorn at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
- ↑ "His Master's Voice" (in German), in Kultur&Technik magazine, April 1998, accessed 2014-04-18
- ↑ "No. 43250". 18 February 1964. p. 1563. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/43250/page/1563
- ↑ Racing Better
- ↑ Jules Thorn Charitable Trust
The original article can be found at Jules Thorn and the edit history here.