Background
Pelly was born on 31 March 1777. His father was Captain Henry Hinde Pelly (1744–1818), Esq., of Upton who worked for the East India Company, as did his father. Sally-Hitchen Blake (died 1824) was his mother.
Businessman commissioner governor magistrate
Pelly was born on 31 March 1777. His father was Captain Henry Hinde Pelly (1744–1818), Esq., of Upton who worked for the East India Company, as did his father. Sally-Hitchen Blake (died 1824) was his mother.
During most of his career, he was an employee of the Hudson"s Bay Company (HBC), serving as Governor of the HBC for three decades. He held other noteworthy offices, including Governor of the Bank of England. The title of Baronet Pelly was created for him.
Pelly was a fourth generation sailor, and possibly served in the Royal Navy at a young age.
Pelly became an Elder Brother of Trinity House in 1823, and Deputy Master some years later. He was a Commissioner of the Lord Lieutenant of the City of London, and of the Loan Office of Public Works and Fisheries.
He served as magistrate and was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Essex on 16 October 1810. From 1841-1842, he was Governor of the Bank of England.
He was appointed a vice-president of the Marine Society in 1847.
Pelly was also a businessman. He owned timber plantations in Norway. Hudson"s Bay Company Pelly was a Director of the HBC before becoming its 17th Governor, serving in that capacity for three decades, from 1822 through 1852.
Pelly was responsible for organizing several exploration parties, including some for Peter Warren Dease and Thomas Simpson which assisted in the discovery of the Northwest Passage.
He was responsible for the 1849 colonization of Vancouver Island. Pelly developed a business relationship with Sir George Simpson, Governor-in-Chief of Rupert’s Land, and an HBC employee.
They were partners in the London firm, Pelly, Simpson & Company, and the Norwegian firm, Pelly & Company
Royal Society.