Background
Raikes was born in 1777, the eldest son of Thomas Raikes the Elder and his wife, Charlotte. On his return, he became a partner in his father"s banking business, a position which he retained, despite continuing trips to Europe.
Raikes was born in 1777, the eldest son of Thomas Raikes the Elder and his wife, Charlotte. On his return, he became a partner in his father"s banking business, a position which he retained, despite continuing trips to Europe.
He was educated at Eton, where his friends included George (later "Beau") Brummell, whose friendship would extend into Raikes" adult life.
In 1795, Raikes was sent to the continent to study modern languages under a private tutor. He travelled widely, visiting many of the German courts. In 1814, Raikes was at the Hague, where he stayed in the house of the British ambassador, Richard Trench.
He visited Paris three times (1814, 1819, and 1820), and spent the winter of 1829-1830 in Russia.
In 1833, he left London for France, where he remained for eight years. In 1841 the Tory Party took government in the United Kingdom, and Raikes, in the hope of securing a post under the patronage of new Prime Minister, the Duke of Wellington, returned to London.
He was unsuccessful in securing a position and divided his time over the next years between London and Paris. In May 1846, in poor health, he went to Bath to take the waters.
Thereafter, he bought a house in Brighton, where he died on 3 July 1848.
Raikes was best known in London as a dandy. In the City, he was nicknamed "Apollo", because "he rose in the east and set in the west". He was punningly caricatured by Richard Dighton as "One of the Rake"s of London".
Raikes married Sophia Maria Bayly on 4 May 1802.
Bayly was the daughter of Jamaican proprietor Nathaniel Bayly. She died on 8 March 1822.
He spent much of his time there in the fashionable clubs of the West End: he was a member of the Carlton Club, Watier"s and White"s, where his name appeared regularly in the betting book