Description
1887 Jubilee Medal, with 1897 clasp, Queen Victoria 40th & 50th Jubilee, Silver, contemporarily engraved to Wentworth Lindsay Cole, of Royal Albert Hall, nephew to Sir Henry Cole.
Contemporarily engraved: “WENTWORTH L COLE ROYAL ALBERT HALL”
Stored in a small leather covered box, professionally hand engraved.
His obituary in the Westminer Gazette, 17th December 1900 reads;
“DEATH OF MR LINSDAY COLE
We regret to announce the death of Mr Wentworth Lindsay Cole, manager of the Royal Albert Hall. Mr Cole who was born in 1836, was a nephew of the late Sir Henry Cole founder and director of the South Kensington Museum.
Mr Wentworth L Cole was first connected with the Royal Albert Hall ever since it was built, first as Secretary to the Council, of which the Duke of Coburg was president, and latterly as manager.
It was, indeed mainly upon him that the administrative direction of the building fell. He at the outset personally attended to practically every detail.
The funeral will take place tomorrow, when the Royal Albert Hall will be closed for the day.”
His death was also announced in “The Era” on 22nd December 1900 reading:
“Mr Wentworth Lindsay Cole, manager of the Royal Albert Hall, who died recently, was a nephew of the late Sir Henry Cole, Founder and Director of the South Kensington Museum.
Mr Wentworth Cole had been connected with the Royal Albert Hall ever since it was built.
The Funeral took place on Tuesday at Brookwood Cemetery. A beautiful wreath was sent by the Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, with a card attached which bore the following – ‘A token of sympathy’ and Mrs Cole received a sympathetic letter from the Queen.”
Wentworth was born during 1832 to an influential London Family.
His father Frederick Lindsay Cole was a Wine Merchant, before his 1845 bankruptcy and early death in 1852.
His grandfather was Captain Henry Robert Cole, an Officer of the 1st Dragoon Guards.
His family was most well known for his father’s Brother, the famous Inventor Sir Henry Cole KCB FRSA, aka “Old King Cole”, one of Queen Victoria and the Prince Consort’s favourite people.
Sir Henry Cole has left a large mark on this country, his love for education would lead him to be instrumental in the establishment of the Royal College of Art, as well as the Royal College of Music and Imperial College London.
Although nowadays he is most well known for his innocent invention of the “Christmas Card”, having had an artist draw 1,000 Christmas Cards to give out to friends, he sold the rest although they were not so popular at the time, little would he know that almost 200 years later, over a billion would be sent in the UK.
Wentworth, being born in Chelsea during 1834, received a good education as number 898 at Elizabeth College from 1847-1850.
As a young man he would enter the service of the Merchant Navy, becoming a Second Mate at 16 years old, before he entered as a Student into the Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester.
Straying from this he found his true love, when he became involved in his lifelong pursuit of the Royal Albert Hall, being the Secretary to the Council when it was built in 1871, and soon after it’s tireless Manager until the date of his death in 1900.
A room in the Royal Albert Hall was named after his famous Uncle, “The Henry Cole Room”, formerly formed part of Wentworth’s Secretary Apartment.
He lived at 5 Stanford Road in Kensington, one of the most exclusive streets in the country, nowadays worth an eye watering amount of money.
