Charles Turner (13 June 1803 – 15 October 1875) was a British businessman and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

politician. He was the son of Ralph Turner, a trader from Hull,

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

. He entered business in

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

as an

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

merchant. He subsequently became chairman of the British Shipowners Company and of the Royal Insurance Company, and a director of the Great Northern Railway. From 1851 – 1861 he was chairman of the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board. He was appointed as a justice of the peace for the

County Palatine of Lancaster Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

and Borough of Liverpool, and was a deputy lieutenant for the county. Politically, Turner was a Conservative, and in July 1852 was elected one of

's two members of parliament, along with

William Forbes Mackenzie William Forbes Mackenzie (18 April 1807 – 24 September 1862) was a Scottish Conservative politician and temperance reformer. He is best known for the Forbes MacKenzie Act, legislation passed in 1853 to regulate public houses in Scotland. Li ...

. However, the two defeated Liberal candidates issued an election petition contesting the results. In the ensuing court proceedings the two men's election agents were found to have been guilty of bribery and

treating In law and politics, treating is the act of serving food, drink, and other refreshments to influence people for political gain, often shortly before an election. In various countries, treating is considered a form of corruption, and is illegal ...

. On 21 June 1853 the election of Turner and Mackenzie was declared void. Turner was again chosen as a Conservative candidate for Liverpool at the next general election in 1857, but was unsuccessful. Turner was to return to the

Commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons ...

in 1861. In that year the representation of the existing constituency of South Lancashire was increased from two to three members of parliament. Turner was nominated to contest the seat for the Conservatives. In his nomination speech, he set out his opposition to the separation of church and state and to elections by

secret ballot The secret ballot, also known as the Australian ballot, is a voting method in which a voter's identity in an election or a referendum is anonymous. This forestalls attempts to influence the voter by intimidation, blackmailing, and potential vote ...

. The

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

was held on 17 August and Turner defeated his Liberal opponent by a majority of 834 votes. He held the seat at the next general election in 1865. The

Reform Act 1867 The Representation of the People Act 1867 ( 30 & 31 Vict. c. 102), known as the Reform Act 1867 or the Second Reform Act, is an act of the British Parliament that enfranchised part of the urban male working class in England and Wales for the ...

abolished the South Lancashire constituency. When the next general election was held in 1868, Turner was elected as one of two members for the new seat of South West Lancashire, holding it in 1874. He remained an MP until his death. In 1843 Turner married Anne Whitaker of Melton,

, and they had one son. In 1875, he became unwell, and it was widely expected that he would retire from parliament. Before he could do so he died at his residence in Dingle, Liverpool aged 72.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, Charles 1803 births 1875 deaths Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1852–1857 UK MPs 1859–1865 UK MPs 1865–1868 UK MPs 1868–1874 UK MPs 1874–1880 British businesspeople in shipping Deputy lieutenants of Lancashire Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Liverpool 19th-century British businesspeople