Charles Ede | |
|---|---|
| Born | Charles Richard Montague Ede (1921-10-22)22 October 1921[1] |
| Died | 29 May 2002(2002-05-29) (aged 80)[1] |
| Known for | FoundingThe Folio Society |
Charles Richard Montague Ede (22 October 1921 – 29 May 2002) was a British publisher and dealer in art and antiquities. He founded the Folio Society in 1947.
Ede was born at Dean Lodge,Sevenoaks,Kent, the eldest son of Colonel Bertram Montague Ede, a soldier and farmer. He was a grandson ofCharles Montague Ede, aHong Kong businessman.[1] His father was later head of theMI5 outpost onMalta during theSecond World War.[2]
Ede was educated at theImperial Service College, where a schoolmaster introduced him to the work ofWilliam Morris, the founder of theKelmscott Press. He had a place to go up toBalliol College, Oxford, in October 1939, but war was declared in September, and instead he went to France as a driver in theRoyal Army Service Corps, delivering spares and supplies to units of theBritish Expeditionary Force. He was evacuated fromBrest twelve days after the end of theDunkirk evacuation in June 1940, trained as an army officer, and was commissioned into theRoyal Tank Regiment. He saw service at theSiege of Malta, inMandatory Palestine, Egypt, and Italy, and then transferred to theIntelligence Corps.[2]
After the War, instead of going up to Oxford, as he had planned, Ede completed a course at theLondon School of Printing. In 1947, inspired by the Kelmscott Press, with the help ofAlan Bott, founder of the Book Trust andPan Books, andChristopher Sandford, who owned theGolden Cockerel Press, Ede founded the Folio Society, a publisher of high-quality illustrated books, mostly well-known works. Its stated aim was to offer "editions of the world's great literature, in a format worthy of the contents, at a price within the reach of everyman." Only three volumes appeared in 1947, Tolstoy'sTales,George du Maurier'sTrilby, andAucassin and Nicolette, but the aim of publishing a book a month was eventually achieved.[2]
In the 1960s, Ede launched a further business, Folio Fine Art, which sold watercolours, maps and prints, autograph letters, fine bindings, and antiquities by mail-order.[2]
In 1971, Ede sold his share in the Folio Society and set himself up as a dealer inancient art.[1] The firm he founded, Charles Ede Ltd, is still in existence, with a gallery inMayfair and a presence at international art fairs.[3]
In 1947, Ede married Elizabeth Craze, and they had four sons and two daughters. Their youngest son succeeded him as managing director of Charles Ede Ltd. when he stood down in 1986.[2]
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