Henry P. Newman
Henry Percy Newman (born 6 January 1868 in Altona; died 6 February 1917 in Berlin) was a German merchant and art collector. The entrepreneur, who came from a banking family, was one of the leading grain importers in the German Empire. His important art collection included works by the French and German impressionists. Life Henry P. Newman's ancestors came from England on his father's side and had made their fortune in maritime trade. His father Henry L. Newman (1813-1897), son of an English consul, had been a partner in the Hesse bank (later Hesse Newman) since 1845 and married the banker's daughter Mary Hesse who was Jewish. From this marriage, Henry P. Newman, born in Altona in 1868, was the second son. Henry P. Newman began his professional career in his parents' bank and completed his apprenticeship there. At the age of 28, he went into business for himself as a grain dealer and merchant banker in 1896 and headed the grain agency and commission business HP Newman, a company that soon became one of the leading grain importers in the German Empire. In 1890 he married Maria von Düring, called Mariechen. In 1893 the couple moved into a stately