Edward Vansittart Neale
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Edward Vansittart-Neale (1810–1892) was an English
barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...
, cooperator, and
Christian socialist A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words ''Christ'' and ''Chr ...
.


Early life and education

Edward was born on 2 April 1810 in
Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...
, one of the eight children of Anne (née Spooner) (1780–1873) and Edward Vansittart-Neale (formerly Vansittart), Rector of
Taplow Taplow is a village and civil parish in the Unitary Authority of Buckinghamshire, England. It sits on the left bank of the River Thames, facing Maidenhead in the neighbouring county of Berkshire, with Cippenham and Burnham to the east. It is th ...
in
Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...
. His parents had married in 1809. His maternal grandparents (m. 1770) were Isaac Spooner, a wealthy
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
businessman, and Barbara Gough-Calthorpe ( – 1826), daughter of Sir Henry Gough, by his second wife Barbara Calthorpe, and sister of Henry Gough-Calthorpe, 1st Baron Calthorpe. One of his maternal aunts was
Barbara Wilberforce Barbara Ann Wilberforce (née Spooner; 1771 – 21 April 1847) was the spouse of abolitionist and MP William Wilberforce. Early life She was born in Birches Green, Erdington, Warwickshire, and died in The Vicarage, East Farleigh, Kent. She ...
, who was married to the abolitionist
William Wilberforce William Wilberforce (24 August 1759 – 29 July 1833) was a British politician, philanthropist, and a leader of the movement to abolish the Atlantic slave trade. A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780 ...
. One of his sisters, Charlotte Vansittart Neale (1817–1881), married in 1841 Charles Frere, a
barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...
and parliamentary
clerk A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts record keeping as well as general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include Records managem ...
, by whom she had nine children, including Charlotte Vansittart Frere (1846–1916), married in 1882 A.G. Folliott-Stokes of St Ives, artist, writer and author of several important books on
Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
, and had issue. In 1828, after receiving early education at home, Vansittart-Neale entered
Oriel College, Oxford Oriel College () is Colleges of the University of Oxford, a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title for ...
, where he was tutored by
John Henry Newman John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890) was an English Catholic theologian, academic, philosopher, historian, writer, and poet. He was previously an Anglican priest and after his conversion became a cardinal. He was an ...
. In 1837 he was called to the bar at
Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, commonly known as Lincoln's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for Barrister, barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister ...
.Letters of Edward Vansittart Neale 1874–1891 – biography – Archive Hub GB 1499 EVN


Career

Vansittart-Neale became a
Christian socialist A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words ''Christ'' and ''Chr ...
in 1850, and joined the council of the Society for Promoting Working Men's Associations. With a group of like-minded men, such as F.D. Maurice,
Thomas Hughes Thomas Hughes (20 October 1822 – 22 March 1896) was an English lawyer, judge, politician and author. He is most famous for his novel ''Tom Brown's School Days'' (1857), a semi-autobiographical work set at Rugby School, which Hughes had atte ...
, John Malcolm Forbes Ludlow,
Charles Kingsley Charles Kingsley (12 June 1819 – 23 January 1875) was a broad church priest of the Church of England, a university professor, social reformer, historian, novelist and poet. He is particularly associated with Christian socialism, the workin ...
, and John Llewelyn Davies, he was an early promoter of the
Working Men's College The Working Men's College (also known as the St Pancras Working Men's College, WMC, The Camden College or WM College), is among the earliest adult education institutions established in the United Kingdom, and Europe's oldest extant centre for adu ...
, and taught at its predecessor, the Hall of Association, Castle Street,
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. J. F. C. Harrison ,''A History of the Working Men's College (1854–1954)'', Routledge Kegan Paul, 1954. pp 12, 17, 19, 31, 43. Vansittart-Neale founded the first co-operative store in London, and advanced capital for two builders' associations, both of which failed. In 1851, though strongly opposed by other members of the promoting council, he started his own initiative, the Central Co-operative Agency, similar to the later
Co-operative Wholesale Society A cooperative wholesale society (CWS) is a form of cooperative federation (that is, a cooperative in which all the members are cooperatives), in this case, the members are usually consumer cooperatives. The theory, practice and history of th ...
. The failure of this scheme, and the Amalgamated Society of Engineers cause in the engineering lock-out of 1852, in which he invested, is said to have cost him £40,000. He was closely associated with the movement which resulted in the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1876 ( 39 & 40 Vict. c. 45), and the passing of the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1862 ( 25 & 26 Vict. c. 87). Besides publishing pamphlets on co-operation, he served on an executive committee which developed into the Co-operative Central Board, and took an active part in the 1863 formation of the North of England Co-operative Wholesale Society. He was one of the founders of the Cobden Mills in 1866, and the Agricultural and Horticultural Association in 1867. A promoter of the annual
Co-operative Congress The Co-operative Congress is the national conference of the UK Co-operative Movement. The first of the modern congresses took place in 1869 following a series of meetings called the " Owenite Congress" in the 1830s. Members of Co-operatives UK ...
, in 1872 he was
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
of its second day. He became general secretary of the
Co-operative Union Co-operatives UK is a British co-operative federation described as "the central membership organisation for co-operative enterprise throughout the UK". It was founded in 1870 as the Co-operative Central Board, changing its name to the Co-opera ...
in 1873. For many years he was a director of the Co-operative Insurance Company, and a member of the Co-operative Newspaper Society. He visited America in 1875, with a deputation whose object was to open-up direct trade between farmers of the western states and English co-operative stores. After resigning as secretary to the Co-operative Congress Board in 1891, he became a member of the Oxford University branch of the Christian Social Union.


Personal life

Neale married Frances Sarah Farrer in 1837; they had four children: Henrietta, Henry, Constance, and Edith. In later life he inherited his family estate of
Bisham Abbey Bisham Abbey is a Grade I listed manor house at Bisham in the English county of Berkshire. The name is taken from the now lost monastery which once stood alongside. This original Bisham Abbey was previously named Bisham Priory, and was the t ...
in Berkshire. Neale died on 16 September 1892 in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. A memorial to Neale was erected in
St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Paul the Apostle, is an Anglican cathedral in London, England, the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London in the Church of Engl ...
"Memorials of St Paul's Cathedral" Sinclair, W. p. 472: London; Chapman & Hall, Ltd; 1909. and a scholarship at Oriel College was endowed in his memory.


References

*


External links

*
Correspondence of Edward Vansittart Neale is held at The National Co-operative Archive, Manchester
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vansittart-Neale, Edward 1810 births 1892 deaths 19th-century English lawyers Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford Anglican socialists English barristers English Christian socialists Members of Lincoln's Inn People from Bath, Somerset People from Bisham People from Taplow Presidents of Co-operative Congress
Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...