James Burgh (1714–1775) was a British Whig politician whose book ''Political Disquisitions'' set out an early case for

free speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recognise ...

and

universal suffrage Universal suffrage or universal franchise ensures the right to vote for as many people bound by a government's laws as possible, as supported by the " one person, one vote" principle. For many, the term universal suffrage assumes the exclusion ...

: in it, he writes, "All lawful authority, legislative, and executive, originates from the people." He has been judged "one of England's foremost propagandists for radical reform". Burgh also ran a

dissenting academy The dissenting academies were schools, colleges and seminaries (often institutions with aspects of all three) run by English Dissenters, that is, Protestants who did not conform to the Church of England. They formed a significant part of educatio ...

and wrote on subjects such as educational reform. In the words of

Lyndall Gordon Lyndall Gordon (born 4 November 1941) is a British-based biographical and former academic writer, known for her literary biographies. She is a senior research fellow at St Hilda's College, Oxford. Life Born in Cape Town, she had her undergradua ...

, his widow acted as " fairy godmother" to early feminist

Mary Wollstonecraft Mary Wollstonecraft ( , ; 27 April 175910 September 1797) was an English writer and philosopher best known for her advocacy of women's rights. Until the late 20th century, Wollstonecraft's life, which encompassed several unconventional ...

, then a young and unpublished schoolmistress, helping her to set up her own boarding school. Wollstonecraft entitled her first book ''

Thoughts on the Education of Daughters ''Thoughts on the education of daughters: with reflections on female conduct, in the more important duties of life'' is the first published work of the British feminist Mary Wollstonecraft. Published in 1787 by her friend Joseph Johnson, ''Tho ...

'' (1787), alluding to Burgh's ''Thoughts on Education'' (1747) which in turn alludes to

John Locke John Locke (; 29 August 1632 (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) – 28 October 1704 (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.)) was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of the Enlightenment thi ...

's 1693 work, ''

Some Thoughts Concerning Education ''Some Thoughts Concerning Education'' is a 1693 treatise on the education of gentlemen written by the English philosopher John Locke. For over a century, it was the most important philosophical work on education in England. It was translat ...

''.

Life and works

Burgh was born and raised in Madderty, Scotland. His father was a minister of the parish in the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

. Burgh was raised a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

, which strongly contributed to his fight for moral issues. He attended St. Andrews University with the intention of studying for the ministry. An illness prevented him from completing his degree and he entered the linen trade. Failure at that sent him to England in the early 1740s. For a short time he was a printer's helper and then in 1746 he became an assistant master (teacher) in an academy just north of London. The next year, he became master (principal) of his own academy in

Stoke Newington Stoke Newington is an area in the northwest part of the London Borough of Hackney, England. The area is northeast of Charing Cross. The Manor of Stoke Newington gave its name to Stoke Newington (parish), Stoke Newington, the ancient parish. S ...

. In 1750, he moved his school to nearby

Newington Green Newington Green is an open space in North London between Islington and Hackney. It gives its name to the surrounding area, roughly bounded by Ball's Pond Road to the south, Petherton Road to the west, Green Lanes and Matthias Road to the north, ...

, and ran it there for 19 years. In 1754 Burgh's ''The Dignity of Human Nature'' was published. In 1761 Burgh wrote ''The Art of Speaking'', an educational book focusing on oratory. In 1766 he wrote the first volume of ''Crito'', a collection of essays on

religious toleration Religious tolerance or religious toleration may signify "no more than forbearance and the permission given by the adherents of a dominant religion for other religions to exist, even though the latter are looked on with disapproval as inferior, ...

, contemporary politics, and educational theories. The second volume followed a year later. Burgh became involved in the early 1760s with a group called the Honest Whigs, a club that met on alternate Thursday evenings in a coffeehouse, then an important social and political meeting place. Other members of the group included

Richard Price Richard Price (23 February 1723 – 19 April 1791) was a British moral philosopher, Nonconformist minister and mathematician. He was also a political reformer and pamphleteer, active in radical, republican, and liberal causes such as the F ...

Joseph Priestley Joseph Priestley (; 24 March 1733 – 6 February 1804) was an English chemist, Unitarian, Natural philosophy, natural philosopher, English Separatist, separatist theologian, Linguist, grammarian, multi-subject educator and Classical libera ...

, Benjamin Franklin,

James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 ( N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of the English writer Samuel Johnson, '' Life of Samuel ...

and others. In 1774, Burgh wrote his most popular work, ''Political Disquisitions''. The three-volume work was intended by Burgh to be longer, but his deteriorating health caused him to stop after the third volume. Burgh died a year later on 26 August 1775. James Burgh's political theories, particularly his emphasis on free speech and its critical role in a functioning democracy, were influential in shaping the foundational concepts of free speech in the emerging United States, drawing connections with contemporary American figures who were advocating for similar freedoms.

Bibliography

* Burgh, James. ''Political Disquisitions. Volume III.'' New York: Da Capo Press, 1971. * Burgh, James. ''The Art of Speaking''. 4th ed. Philadelphia: Printed and sold by R Aitken, bookseller, 1775.

References

Sources

* Hay, Carla H. ''James Burgh, Spokesman for Reform in Hanoverian England''. Washington D.C.: University Press of America, 1979. * Kramnick, Isaac
"Republicanism Revisited: The Case of James Burgh".
''Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society'', Volume 102, Part 1: 81-98. Worcester, Massachusetts: Published by the Society, 1992.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Burgh, James 1714 births 1775 deaths Alumni of the University of St Andrews English political writers Education writers Whig (British political party) politicians Dissenting academy tutors English male non-fiction writers