He was the second son of
John Twells and his wife Mary Line. He attended
Charterhouse School, and matriculated in 1827 at
Worcester College, Oxford, graduating B.A. in 1831, M.A. in 1833. He was a banker, and was
called to the bar at
Lincoln's Inn in 1834. The family bank, set up by
Matthias Attwood, traded as Spooner, Attwoods and Co. of
Lombard Street. In 1863, the private bank Barclay, Bevan, Tritton and Co., precursor to the
Barclay Group, took it over. At that point Twells became a partner in the enlarged concern. Twells first stood for election for
City of London in 1868 but was unsuccessful. He was then elected for the constituency in 1874 but did not stand for re-election in 1880. ==Legacy==