Richard Eve

FRGS The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

(6 December 1831–7 July 1900) was a solicitor and

notary A notary is a person authorised to perform acts in legal affairs, in particular witnessing signatures on documents. The form that the notarial profession takes varies with local legal systems. A notary, while a legal professional, is disti ...

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alder ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

in the 19th century and a prominent Freemason who was the Grand Treasurer of the

United Grand Lodge of England The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing Masonic lodge for the majority of freemasons in England, Wales and the Commonwealth of Nations. Claiming descent from the Masonic grand lodge formed 24 June 1717 at the Goose & Gridiron ...

in 1889, and the Chairman of the

Royal Masonic School for Boys The Royal Masonic School for Boys was an English independent school for boys at Bushey in Hertfordshire. History The origins of the school lie in the charities established in the late 18th century to clothe and educate the sons of Freemasons nea ...

.Article on Richard Eve in ''Masonic Quarterly'' - Issue 9, April 2004
/ref> He defended

Ahmed ‘Urabi Ahmad ( ar, أحمد, ʾAḥmad) is an Arabic male given name common in most parts of the Muslim world. Other spellings of the name include Ahmed and Ahmet. Etymology The word derives from the root (ḥ-m-d), from the Arabic (), from the ve ...

(Arabi Pascha) in

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...

when he was tried by the restored Khedivate on 3 December 1882 following the ‘Urabi Revolt which had led to the

Anglo-Egyptian War The British conquest of Egypt (1882), also known as Anglo-Egyptian War (), occurred in 1882 between Egyptian and Sudanese forces under Ahmed ‘Urabi and the United Kingdom. It ended a nationalist uprising against the Khedive Tewfik Pasha. It ...

Biography

Eve was born in Bromsgrove Street in

Kidderminster Kidderminster is a large market and historic minster town and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, south-west of Birmingham and north of Worcester. Located north of the River Stour and east of the River Severn, in the 2011 census, it ha ...

, the youngest son of Ann and John Eve, the foreman in a local carpet factory. After leaving school Eve was articled to a solicitors' office in Leamington Spa in 1846; here he was initiated into Guy’s Lodge No. 556 (now No. 395) in 1854, becoming Master of the lodge in 1861. He joined Brecknock Lodge No. 936 (now No. 651) in

Brecon Brecon (; cy, Aberhonddu; ), archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the coun ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

in 1861 during a short period there. He set up his own small solicitor's office in

at the time the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

was rapidly expanding its presence in the area. Here he joined Panmure Lodge No 723. Over the next 15 years his Aldershot legal practice expanded greatly and he became a prominent local citizen, entering politics and serving on various local authorities and becoming Lord of the Manor of Farnborough in

Biography of Richard Eve - The Lodge of Hope and Charity No 377 website
/ref> and a County Councillor for Hampshire. He defended

(Arabi Pascha) in

when he was tried by the restored Khedivate on 3 December 1882 following the ‘Urabi Revolt which had led to the

.Obituary for Richard Eve in '' The Sphere'' 11 July 1900 pg 93 Eve stood unsuccessfully as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

candidate for

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

five times, twice contesting the Kidderminster Constituency in 1892 and 1895. At the same time he further developed his interest in

Freemasonry Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

, joining the Grand Master’s Lodge No. 1 in London in 1884. Eve was appointed as Treasurer of Supreme Grand Chapter in 1887 and Grand Treasurer of the

in 1889.

Later years

Eve was Chairman of the

management board from 1891 until his death in 1900. In 1899 a Lodge was formed which was linked to the Boys’ School; it was named Richard Eve Lodge (No. 2772) in his honour. A history of the Lodge states that it "had its origin in the wish of many admirers of Richard Eve to perpetuate his name as a worthy citizen of London and as a sterling worker in the Masonic cause." Richard Eve was taken ill in London where he had gone for the laying of a foundation stone for the Boys’ School, and died at 11 Nottingham Place in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropolitan borough, it me ...

of a seizure a few days later on 7 July 1900. He was buried in

Aldershot Cemetery Aldershot Cemetery (officially the Redan Road Cemetery, also known as Aldershot Civic Cemetery) is the main public burial ground for the town of Aldershot in Hampshire. Although most military burials take place in the nearby Aldershot Military C ...

where a large granite memorial of the figure of

Charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * C ...

and a child adorns his grave. He never married, and his estate of £34,199 6s 8d was left to fellow solicitors and the Cottage Hospital in Aldershot. The Masonic funeral was reported in ''The Freemason'' on 21 July 1900.

“Bro Eve had found in life manifold points of sympathetic contact with his fellows and on this day his friends rose up from all parts of England to pay a last tribute of respect to his memory... It was a solemn and inspiring sight – this long procession of black-coated men. The great body of Masons marched in twos in front of the carriage. There were about 100 of them, all wearing the customary white gloves and carrying their sprigs of acacia.”

A 29 foot tall monumental drinking fountain to Eve's memory was unveiled in Brinton Park in

in 1902. This was raised by "Admiring friends to keep his memory green in his native town which he ardently loved." The monument is faced with glazed Doulton tiles in green, terracotta and bronze and a portrait of Eve in profile.Monument to Richard Eve
on the Public Monuments and Sculpture Association website

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eve, Richard 1831 births 1900 deaths People from Aldershot People from Kidderminster Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England English solicitors British notaries 19th-century English lawyers Lawyers from Hampshire