Clifford family
The Clifford family was an English-descended Amsterdam banking and merchant dynasty active from the seventeenth to the eighteenth centuries.
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
The Clifford family was a family of bankers, merchants, investors, landowners, and public figures of English origin who established themselves in Amsterdam and became one of the most important Anglo-Dutch financial houses of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Although the surname is associated with the village of Clifford in Herefordshire and with the medieval noble Clifford family of northern England, the available historical record does not establish that the Amsterdam banking family descended from the noble lineage connected with Roger Clifford. The family’s documented ancestry begins with John Clifford, a tenant at Aylsham, and his son Richard Clifford. Richard studied at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and became rector of Landbeach in 1569, while also serving as a canon of Stow. Richard’s son Henry Clifford, born in 1576, continued the family’s university-educated clerical and professional background. Henry’s son George Clifford moved to Amsterdam sometime between 1634 and 1640, establishing the family’s long association with the city’s international commercial and financial economy. George Clifford, also known as Joris Clifford, operated from the Zeedijk and maintained an account with the Amsterdamsche Wisselbank from 1654. His business connected Amsterdam with English colonial and Atlantic markets. By the 1660s he traded in Maryland and Barbados and dealt in commodities including tea, tobacco, sugar, cotton, spices, herbs, indigo, and dragon’s blood. These activities placed the family within the expanding networks of colonial commerce, commodity finance, shipping, and international payments. His son George Clifford II developed the enterprise into a major banking concern. He worked from the Leliegracht, represented the Bank of England, and served as a director of the Sociëteit van Suriname from 1696 to 1700. In 1707, Clifford & Co. held the largest balance at the Bank of Amsterdam. From 1701, George II and his brother Isaäc operated their father’s business as George en Isaäc Clifford & Co. The partnership ended in 1713, around the period in which the bank was involved in arranging loans to Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, and Augustus III of Poland. During the first half of the eighteenth century, the Clifford bank ranked second only to Pels among Europe’s merchant banks. The family also accumulated landed and cultural assets. In 1709, George II acquired Hartekamp estate in Heemstede. His son George Clifford III became particularly well known as a patron of botany. He employed the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus as hortulanus to catalogue the estate’s botanical collections, herbarium, and library. The resulting work, Hortus Cliffortianus, was financed in part by Clifford and became an important publication in the history of botanical classification. A substantial portion of the family’s botanical holdings, known as the Clifford Herbarium, is preserved at the Natural History Museum in London. From the mid-eighteenth century, members of the family entered Amsterdam’s civic government while continuing their financial and commercial activities. The family lent money to banks in Saint Petersburg and Moscow, to the English and Danish governments, and held plantations in Suriname. This broad exposure also increased its vulnerability. In 1772, the Cliffords participated with the Muilman firm in an exchange circuit involving shares of the English East India Company. Jan Clifford had extended excessive credit against weaker bills of exchange, and his sons attempted to repair the resulting shortfall through speculative positions in East India Company and Bank of England securities. As those markets continued to decline during the Crisis of 1772, the firm failed in December 1772, contributing to a wider collapse among Amsterdam banking houses. The family survived socially and genealogically after the banking failure, but the historic financial house did not recover its former position. By the middle of the nineteenth century, members of the family had moved to The Hague. Much of the family archive was later destroyed in an incendiary raid on Dalfsen during the Second World War. The Clifford legacy therefore rests on two contrasting aspects: its importance in the development of Amsterdam’s international merchant banking and its contribution to eighteenth-century botanical science through Hartekamp and Linnaeus.
History
The Clifford family’s recorded origins lie in England. John Clifford was a tenant at Aylsham, and his son Richard studied at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, later becoming rector of Landbeach and a canon of Stow. Richard’s son Henry Clifford was born in 1576. Henry’s son George relocated to Amsterdam between 1634 and 1640, beginning the family’s documented commercial history in the Dutch Republic. George Clifford I lived on Amsterdam’s Zeedijk and held an account with the Amsterdamsche Wisselbank from 1654. His trade extended to Maryland and Barbados, and his inventory shows a broad portfolio of imported commodities, including tea, tobacco, sugar, cotton, spices, herbs, indigo, and dragon’s blood. The business combined merchant activity with the financing and payment functions that supported long-distance trade. George Clifford II expanded the family’s financial prominence. He represented the Bank of England and served as a director of the Sociëteit van Suriname between 1696 and 1700. In 1707, Clifford & Co. had the largest balance at the Bank of Amsterdam. From 1701, George II worked with his brother Isaäc under the name George en Isaäc Clifford & Co.; the brothers separated in 1713. Around this period the bank participated in arranging loans to Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, and Augustus III of Poland. In the first half of the eighteenth century, it was considered second only to Pels among Europe’s merchant banks. George Clifford II purchased Hartekamp estate in Heemstede in 1709. His son George Clifford III used the estate as a centre for botanical collecting and employed Carl Linnaeus to catalogue its plants, herbarium, and library. Linnaeus’s Hortus Cliffortianus was produced from this work, with publication costs paid by Clifford. The Clifford Herbarium later became part of the collections held by the Natural History Museum in London. The family’s activities broadened during the eighteenth century. Members entered Amsterdam’s city government, lent money to banks in Saint Petersburg and Moscow, financed the English and Danish governments, and owned plantations in Suriname. These connections exposed the family to international political and market risk. In May 1772, the Cliffords and Muilman, representing Van Seppenwolde, organised an exchange circuit involving English East India Company shares. The arrangement relied on rising prices and internal commissions, while Jan Clifford had reportedly extended too much credit against less reliable bills of exchange. After Jan Clifford’s death, his sons attempted to cover the deficit through private speculation in East India Company and Bank of England funds. The continuing market decline caused the strategy to fail. In December 1772, during the broader Crisis of 1772 and the associated price dislocation in Amsterdam and London, the Clifford company went bankrupt. The failure helped bring down other banking firms and ended the family’s position as one of Amsterdam’s leading merchant banks. Members of the family continued to exist as a social and genealogical network after the banking collapse. By the mid-nineteenth century, they had moved to The Hague. The family archive was destroyed in an incendiary raid on Dalfsen during the Second World War, limiting the surviving documentary record.
- 1850
Family members move to The Hague
[1]By the middle of the nineteenth century, members of the family had relocated from Amsterdam to The Hague.
- 1772
Bankruptcy during the Crisis of 1772
[1]The Clifford banking company collapsed after credit losses and failed securities speculation amid the international financial crisis.
- 1737
Publication of Hortus Cliffortianus
[1]Carl Linnaeus’s catalogue of the Hartekamp botanical collection was published with financial support from George Clifford III.
- 1713
George and Isaäc Clifford separate
[1]The brothers’ joint business partnership ended after a period of banking activity that included major sovereign lending arrangements.
- 1709
Acquisition of Hartekamp
[1]George Clifford II purchased Hartekamp estate in Heemstede, which later became associated with the family’s botanical patronage.
- 1707
Clifford & Co. reaches the top balance at the Bank of Amsterdam
[1]Clifford & Co. held the largest balance at the Bank of Amsterdam, illustrating the house’s position among leading European financial firms.
- 1701
George en Isaäc Clifford & Co. begins operation
[1]George Clifford II and his brother Isaäc began operating their father’s business under a joint partnership name.
- 1696
George Clifford II joins the Sociëteit van Suriname
[1]George Clifford II became a director of the Sociëteit van Suriname, connecting the family to Dutch colonial finance and administration.
- 1664
Expansion into Maryland and Barbados trade
[1]George Clifford traded with Maryland and Barbados and handled a wide range of colonial and imported commodities.
- 1654
Account opened with the Amsterdamsche Wisselbank
[1]George Clifford maintained an account with Amsterdam’s major exchange bank, reflecting the formalisation of the family’s international trading operations.
Products and positioning
A high-status Amsterdam merchant-banking and trading house linking English, Dutch, colonial, and continental European markets.
Merchant banking
Clifford & Co.
The family’s principal Amsterdam banking and merchant operation handled international credit, payments, trade finance, and investment. At its eighteenth-century height, the house was one of Europe’s largest merchant banks and maintained extensive relationships with banks, governments, colonial enterprises, and trading partners.
Banking partnership · 1701
George en Isaäc Clifford & Co.
This partnership was operated by George Clifford II and Isaäc Clifford from 1701 until their separation in 1713. It represented the family’s formal joint banking structure during a period of major international lending and commercial expansion.
Merchant trade · 1664
Atlantic commodity trade
The family traded goods connected with Maryland, Barbados, and other international markets. Its recorded commodities included tea, tobacco, sugar, cotton, spices, herbs, indigo, and dragon’s blood, showing the breadth of its commercial activity.
Scientific and cultural collection · 1709
Hartekamp botanical collection
The botanical holdings assembled at Hartekamp under George Clifford III included living plants, a herbarium, and a library. Their cataloguing by Carl Linnaeus produced Hortus Cliffortianus and created one of the family’s most enduring cultural legacies.
Brand decisions
1772
Speculative attempt to repair the firm’s credit deficitStrategyBackground
After Jan Clifford had reportedly extended excessive credit against weaker bills of exchange, his sons sought to address the firm’s financial gap during a declining market.
Action taken
They privately undertook bold speculative positions in English East India Company and Bank of England securities, while the wider Clifford and Muilman operation participated in an exchange circuit based on expected increases in East India Company share prices.
Aftermath
The securities continued to decline during the Crisis of 1772. The strategy failed, and the Clifford company went bankrupt in December of that year.
1709
Acquisition of Hartekamp estateOtherBackground
The family combined financial activity with the acquisition of landed and cultural assets.
Action taken
George Clifford II purchased Hartekamp in Heemstede, creating the setting for the family’s later botanical collecting and patronage.
Aftermath
George Clifford III employed Carl Linnaeus to catalogue the estate’s plants, herbarium, and library, resulting in Hortus Cliffortianus.
Purchase price. 22,000 guilders (1709)
Recent events
- 1772
Clifford banking house fails during the Crisis of 1772[1]
Bankruptcy · Other
The Clifford firm became insolvent in December 1772 after excessive credit exposure and unsuccessful speculation in English East India Company and Bank of England securities. Its failure formed part of the wider Amsterdam banking collapse associated with the Crisis of 1772.
- 1737
Hortus Cliffortianus documents the Hartekamp collection[1]
Other
Carl Linnaeus published Hortus Cliffortianus after cataloguing George Clifford III’s botanical collection at Hartekamp. Clifford financed the publication and supported the scientific project.
Sources1 sources
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