George William Foote
George William Foote (11 January 1850 – 17 October 1915) was an English radical journalist, writer, editor, publisher, and prominent secularist. He was a leading advocate of freethought, founding and editing notable publications such as '' The Freethinker'' and ''The Secularist'' and co-founding the British Secular Union. Additionally, he ran a publishing business known as the Pioneer Press. Foote was convicted of blasphemy in 1883 for his satirical attacks on Christianity published in ''The Freethinker'' and sentenced to a year in prison. He authored over eighty works, mainly polemical pamphlets, with his editorial essays from ''The Freethinker'' compiled into ''Flowers of Freethought'' (1893–94). Early life George William Foot was born in Plymouth on 11 January 1850, the son of William Thomas Foot (a customs officer) and Ann (née Winzar). His father died when Foote was four years old and he was raised by his mother to be Anglican, but became a Unitarian at the age of 15 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Plymouth
Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and southwest of London. It is the most populous city in Devon. Plymouth's history extends back to the Bronze Age, evolving from a trading post at Mount Batten into the thriving market town of Sutton, which was formally re-named as Plymouth in 1439 when it was made a borough status in the United Kingdom, borough. The settlement has played a significant role in English history, notably in 1588 when an English fleet based here defeated the Spanish Armada, and in 1620 as the departure point for the Pilgrim Fathers to the New World. During the English Civil War, the town was held by the Roundhead, Parliamentarians and was besieged between 1642 and 1646. In 1690 a dockyard was established on the River Tamar for the Royal Navy and Plymouth grew as ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Charles Bradlaugh
Charles Bradlaugh (; 26 September 1833 – 30 January 1891) was an English political activist and atheist. He founded the National Secular Society in 1866, 15 years after George Holyoake had coined the term "secularism" in 1851. In 1880, Bradlaugh was elected as the Liberal MP for Northampton. His attempt to affirm as an atheist ultimately led to his temporary imprisonment, fines for voting in the House of Commons illegally, and a number of by-elections at which Bradlaugh regained his seat on each occasion. He was finally allowed to take an oath in 1886. Eventually, a parliamentary bill which he proposed became law in 1888, which allowed members of both Houses of Parliament to affirm, if they so wished, when being sworn in. The new law resolved the issue for witnesses in civil and criminal court cases. Early life Born in Hoxton (an area in the East End of London), Bradlaugh was the son of a solicitor's clerk. He left school at the age of eleven and then worked as an offic ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bronchitis
Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. Symptoms include coughing up sputum, wheezing, shortness of breath, and chest pain. Bronchitis can be acute or chronic. Acute bronchitis usually has a cough that lasts around three weeks, and is also known as a chest cold. In more than 90% of cases, the cause is a viral infection. These viruses may be spread through the air when people cough or by direct contact. A small number of cases are caused by a bacterial infection such as '' Mycoplasma pneumoniae'' or '' Bordetella pertussis''. Risk factors include exposure to tobacco smoke, dust, and other air pollution. Treatment of acute bronchitis typically involves rest, paracetamol (acetaminophen), and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to help with the fever. Chronic ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Liberalism
Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality, the right to private property, and equality before the law. Liberals espouse various and often mutually conflicting views depending on their understanding of these principles but generally support private property, market economies, individual rights (including civil rights and human rights), liberal democracy, secularism, rule of law, Economic freedom, economic and political freedom, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and freedom of religion.Generally support: * * * * * * *constitutional government and privacy rights * Liberalism is frequently cited as the dominant ideology of modern history.Wolfe, p. 23. Liberalism became a distinct Political movement, movement in the Age of Enlightenment, gaining popularity among Western world, Western philosophers and economists. L ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Annie Besant
Annie Besant (; Wood; 1 October 1847 – 20 September 1933) was an English socialist, Theosophy (Blavatskian), theosophist, freemason, women's rights and Home Rule activist, educationist and campaigner for Indian nationalism. She was an ardent supporter of both Irish and Indian Self-governance, self-rule. She became the first female president of the Indian National Congress in 1917. She became a prominent speaker for the National Secular Society (NSS), as well as a writer, and a close friend of Charles Bradlaugh. In 1877 they were prosecuted for publishing a book by birth control campaigner Charles Knowlton. Thereafter, she became involved with union actions, including the Bloody Sunday (1887), Bloody Sunday demonstration and the London matchgirls strike of 1888. She was a leading speaker for both the Fabian Society and the Marxist Social Democratic Federation (SDF). She was also elected to the London School Board for Tower Division, Tower Hamlets, topping the poll, even thoug ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Socialism
Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes the Economic ideology, economic, Political philosophy, political, and Social theory, social theories and Political movement, movements associated with the implementation of such systems. Social ownership can take various forms, including State ownership, public, Community ownership, community, Collective ownership, collective, cooperative, or Employee stock ownership, employee.: "Just as private ownership defines capitalism, social ownership defines socialism. The essential characteristic of socialism in theory is that it destroys social hierarchies, and therefore leads to a politically and economically egalitarian society. Two closely related consequences follow. First, every individual is entitled to an equal ownership share that earns an ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Humanitarian League
The Humanitarian League was a British radical advocacy group formed by Henry S. Salt and others to promote the principle that it is wrong to inflict avoidable suffering on any sentient being. It was based in London and operated between 1891 and 1919. Background Howard Williams, the author of '' The Ethics of Diet'' (1883), a history of vegetarianism, proposed in the book the concept of a "humane society with a wider scope than any previously existing body". William's idea was developed by fellow writer and advocate, Henry S. Salt, in an 1889 article on humanitarianism. History The Humanitarian League was formed by Henry S. Salt, who was also the General Secretary and Editor. Other founding members included Edward Maitland, Ernest Bell (Chairman), Howard Williams, Kenneth Romanes and Alice Lewis (Treasurer). The League's inaugural meeting, in 1891, was held at the house of Alice Lewis, 14 Park Square, London, who remained Treasurer for the League's existence. Many ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Advocacy Group
Advocacy groups, also known as lobby groups, interest groups, special interest groups, pressure groups, or public associations, use various forms of advocacy or lobbying to influence public opinion and ultimately public policy. They play an important role in the development of political and social systems. Motives for action may be based on Politics, political, Economy, economic, religious, morality, moral, commerce, commercial or common good-based positions. Groups Methods used by advocacy groups, use varied methods to try to achieve their aims, including lobbying, media campaigns, consciousness raising, awareness raising publicity stunts, Opinion poll, polls, research, and policy briefings. Some groups are supported or backed by powerful business or political interests and exert considerable influence on the political process, while others have few or no such resources. Some have developed into important social, and political institutions or social movements. Some powerful advo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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National Secular Society
The National Secular Society (NSS) is a British campaigning organisation that promotes secularism and the separation of church and state. It holds that no one should gain advantage or disadvantage because of their religion or lack of it. The Society was founded in 1866 by Charles Bradlaugh. Objectives The NSS, whose motto is "Challenging religious privilege", campaigns for a secular state where there is no established state religion; where religion plays no role in state-funded education, does not interfere with the judicial process nor does it restrict freedom of expression; where the state does not intervene in matters of religious doctrine nor does it promote or fund religious activities, guaranteeing every citizen's freedom to believe, not to believe or to change religion. Although the organisation was explicitly created for those who reject the supernatural, the NSS does not campaign to eradicate or prohibit religion, arguing that freedom of religion, as well as freedom f ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lord Chief Justice Coleridge
John Duke Coleridge, 1st Baron Coleridge (3 December 1820 – 14 June 1894) was an English lawyer, judge and Liberal politician. He held the posts, in turn, of Solicitor-General for England, Attorney-General for England, Chief Justice of the Common Pleas and Lord Chief Justice of England. Background and education Coleridge was the eldest son of John Taylor Coleridge, and the great-nephew of the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge. He was educated at Eton and Balliol College, Oxford, and was called to the bar in 1846. Coleridge was a member of the Canterbury Association from 24 June 1851. Legal career Coleridge established a successful legal practice on the western circuit. From 1853 to 1854 he held the post of secretary to the Royal Commission on the City of London. In 1865 he was elected to the House of Commons for Exeter for the Liberal Party. He made a favourable impression on the leaders of his party and when the Liberals came to office in 1868 under William Ewart Gladstone, Col ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Aubrey Beardsley
Aubrey Vincent Beardsley ( ; 21 August 187216 March 1898) was an English illustrator and author. His black ink drawings were influenced by Woodblock printing in Japan, Japanese woodcuts, and depicted the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. He was a leading figure in the Aestheticism, aesthetic movement which also included Oscar Wilde and James McNeill Whistler. Beardsley's contribution to the development of the Art Nouveau and poster art, poster styles was significant despite his early death from tuberculosis. He is one of the important Modern Style (British Art Nouveau style), Modern Style figures. Early life, education, and early career Beardsley was born in Brighton, Sussex, England, on 21 August 1872 and christened on 24 October 1872. His father, Vincent Paul Beardsley (1839–1909), was the son of a Clerkenwell jeweller; Vincent had no trade himself (partly owing to tuberculosis, from which his own father had died aged only 40), and relied on a private income from ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The street outside follows the route of London Wall, the ancient wall around the City of London, which was part of the fortification's Bailey (castle), bailey, hence the metonymic name. The court has been housed in a succession of buildings on the street since the sixteenth century, when it was attached to the medieval Newgate Prison. The current main building block was completed in 1902, designed by Edward William Mountford; its monumental architecture is recognised and protected as a Grade II* listed building. An extension, South Block, was constructed in 1972, over the former site of Newgate Prison which had been demolished in 1904. The Crown Court sitting in the Old Bailey hears major English criminal law, criminal cases from within Greate ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |