Jeremiah Joyce (1763–1816) was an English Unitarian minister and writer. He achieved notoriety as one of the group of political activists arrested in May 1794.

Early life

He was born 24 February 1763, the son of Jeremiah Joyce (1718–1788), a master woolcomber at

Cheshunt Cheshunt (/ˈtʃɛzənt/ CHEZ-ənt) is a town in the Borough of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, England, situated within the London commuter belt approximately north of Central London. The town lies on the River Lea and Lee Navigation, bordering th ...

, Hertfordshire, and his wife Hannah Somersett (1726–1818); his place of birth was Cheshunt, or Mildred's Court,

Poultry, London Poultry (formerly also Poultrey) is a short street in the City of London, which is the historic nucleus and modern financial centre of London. It is an eastern continuation of Cheapside, between Old Jewry and Mansion House Street, towards Bank ...

, Hannah's family home. He attended the nonconformist school in Cheshunt run by the Rev. Samuel Worsley, who had attended

Daventry Academy Daventry Academy was a dissenting academy, that is, a school or college set up by English Dissenters. It moved to many locations, but was most associated with Daventry, where its most famous pupil was Joseph Priestley. It had a high reputation, ...

. In 1777 Joyce was apprenticed to a glazier, John Willis, of

Strand, London The Strand (commonly referred to with a leading "The", but formally without) is a major street in the City of Westminster, Central London. The street, which is part of London's West End Theatre, West End theatreland, runs just over from Tra ...

. Willis was a member of the

Worshipful Company of Glaziers and Painters of Glass The Worshipful Company of Glaziers and Painters of Glass is one of the livery company, livery companies of the City of London. The Guild of Glaziers, or makers of Glass, the company's forerunner, existed as early as the fourteenth century. It ...

, and founded a building company, later Sykes & Son, that still exists (as of 2022). He did work on

St Clement Danes St Clement Danes is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London. It is now situated near the 19th-century Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand in Aldwych. Although the first church on the site was reputedly founded in the 9th cent ...

church and the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

; and in 1778 took on his own son John as apprentice. After seven years, Joyce completed the apprenticeship, going to business on his own account as a

journeyman A journeyman is a worker, skilled in a given building trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification. Journeymen are considered competent and authorized to work in that field as a fully qualified employee ...

. Joyce worked in Essex Street, London. His associations were based on rational dissent and the Bowood circle. He knew nonconformist ministers, and publishers. Before the death of his father, and with the support of his brother, Joshua, and Hugh Worthington, he studied for the Unitarian ministry at New College, Hackney. He was one of its first intake of students in 1786, with Joseph Lomas Towers, son of

Joseph Towers Joseph Towers (31 March 1737 – 20 May 1799) was an English Dissenter and biographer. Life and work He was born in Southwark on 31 March 1737. His father was a secondhand bookseller, and at the age of 12 he was employed as a stationer's errand ...

. He became proficient in mathematics and Latin.

Stanhope household and activism

In 1790 Joyce was appointed to Lord Mahon, eldest son of

Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl Stanhope Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl Stanhope, aka Charles Mahon, 3rd Earl Stanhope, FRS (3 August 175315 December 1816), was a British statesman, inventor, and scientist. He was the father of Lady Hester Stanhope and brother-in-law of William Pitt the ...

. His duties in the household extended to the younger children, and he acted as secretary to Stanhope. Stanhope and Joyce shared radical political views: Stanhope by the end of 1789 was chairing the London Revolution Society, named for the centennial of the

Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution, also known as the Revolution of 1688, was the deposition of James II and VII, James II and VII in November 1688. He was replaced by his daughter Mary II, Mary II and her Dutch husband, William III of Orange ...

of 1688, and took the French Revolution to heart. As well as hiring Joyce, he dismissed his governesses, and required his daughter Hester Stanhope, age 14, to mind

turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

s on a

village green A village green is a commons, common open area within a village or other settlement. Historically, a village green was common pasture, grassland with a pond for watering cattle and other stock, often at the edge of a rural settlement, used for ...

. Joyce became a member of the

Society for Constitutional Information The Society for Constitutional Information was a British activist group founded in 1780 by Major John Cartwright, to promote parliamentary reform and knowledge of the English constitution. It was an organisation of social reformers, many of who ...

(SCI) and of the

London Corresponding Society The London Corresponding Society (LCS) was a federation of local reading and debating clubs that in the decade following the French Revolution agitated for the democratic reform of the British Parliament. In contrast to other reform associatio ...

(LCS) founded in early 1792. At SCI meetings he encountered John Augustus Bonney who was

Tom Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In ...

's lawyer; John Cartwright;

Thomas Holcroft Thomas Holcroft (10 December 174523 March 1809) was an English dramatist, miscellanist, poet, novelist and translator. He was sympathetic to the early ideas of the French Revolution and helped Thomas Paine to publish the first part of ''The Ri ...

;

Stewart Kyd Stewart Kyd (1759 – 26 January 1811) was a Scottish politician and legal writer. Life A native of Arbroath, Forfarshire, he went at the age of fourteen from Arbroath grammar school to King's College, Aberdeen. Abandoning a design of entering t ...

; and others including a Mr Banks tentatively identified as Thomas Banks. He was involved in the distribution of Paine's works, to Samuel Fox at Derby and via Stanhope's residence. By 1791, Joyce had joined the Unitarian Society (fuller name Unitarian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge and the Practice of Virtue, to which was added "by the distribution of books"). In the following years he was involved in publications, and the Society had as associate Joseph Johnson. He joined the

Essex Street Chapel Essex Street Chapel, also known as Essex Church, is a Unitarian place of worship in London. It was the first church in England set up with this doctrine, and was established when Dissenters still faced legal threat. As the birthplace of British ...

congregation, and formed a long-standing relationship with

Theophilus Lindsey Theophilus Lindsey (20 June 1723 O.S.3 November 1808) was an English theologian and clergyman who founded the first avowedly Unitarian congregation in the country, at Essex Street Chapel. Lindsey's 1774 revised prayer book based on Samuel C ...

, its founder. When Lindsey retired from the chapel in 1793, Joyce for a period was minister there with John Disney, who had shared the position with Lindsey from 1783. Joyce took the afternoon services, continuing until 1804 when

Thomas Belsham Thomas Belsham (26 April 175011 November 1829) was an English Unitarian minister. Life Belsham was born in Bedford, England, and was the elder brother of William Belsham, the English political writer and historian. He was educated at the di ...

took over the chapel. Ahead of the

penal transportation Penal transportation (or simply transportation) was the relocation of convicted criminals, or other persons regarded as undesirable, to a distant place, often a colony, for a specified term; later, specifically established penal colonies bec ...

of the Scottish Martyrs to Liberty and Maurice Margarot of the LCS, Joyce on 28 March 1794 proposed an address of support from the SCI. It contained the sentiment "A full and fair Representation of the People of Great Britain we seek, with all the ardour of men and Britons". From 4 April the SCI and LCS worked together, to nominate delegates to a convention of the "Friends of Liberty". Joyce was chosen, with Holcroft, Kyd, William Sharp and Thomas Wardle.

Treason charge and acquittal

A dozen activists were arrested in May, followed by the passing of the

Habeas Corpus Suspension Act 1794 The Habeas Corpus Suspension Act 1794 ( 34 Geo. 3. c. 54) was an Act passed by the British Parliament. The Act's long title was ''An act to empower his Majesty to secure and detain such persons as his Majesty shall suspect are conspiring against ...

, and Joyce was one of those picked up. On 12 May

Thomas Hardy Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Literary realism, Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry ...

of the LCS was taken into custody at home by

Bow Street Runners The Bow Street Runners were the law enforcement officers of the Bow Street Magistrates' Court in the City of Westminster. They have been called London's first professional police force. The force originally numbered six men and was founded in 1 ...

and King's Messengers. Shortly after that an ambiguous letter from Joyce to

John Horne Tooke John Horne Tooke (25 June 1736 – 18 March 1812), known as John Horne until 1782 when he added the surname of his friend William Tooke to his own, was an English clergyman, politician and Philology, philologist. Associated with radical proponen ...

of the SCI, written within hours of Hardy's arrest. was intercepted by the authorities.

John Thelwall John Thelwall (27 July 1764 – 17 February 1834) was a radical British orator, writer, political reformer, journalist, poet, elocutionist and speech therapist.

was arrested on 13 May, at Beaufort Buildings,

where he was lecturing. Horne Tooke himself was arrested on 16 May. Others detained in the sweep included the silversmith John Baxter, successor to Margarot at the LCS; the businessman John Richter, LCS and an SCI associate; and Bonney and Kyd of the LCI. On 14 May 1794 Joyce was at Stanhope's house

Chevening Chevening House () is a large country house in the parish of Chevening in Kent, England. Built between 1617 and 1630 to a design reputedly by Inigo Jones and greatly extended after 1717, it is a Grade I listed building. The surrounding gardens, ...

in Kent, and was arrested while talking to Stanhope's sons, by John King and a King's Messenger. The charge was "treasonable practices". The arrest occurred at around 8 am. Joyce was being examined by the Privy Council by about 1 pm that day. He refused to answer any questions without a lawyer, which he was not allowed. Joyce remained in custody until 19 May when, with others, he was committed to the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...

on a charge of

high treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its d ...

. While he was there, he was visited by his friend

William Shepherd William McMichael "Bill" Shepherd (born July 26, 1949), (Capt, USN, Ret.), is an American former Navy SEAL, aerospace, ocean, and mechanical engineer, and NASA astronaut, who served as commander of Expedition 1, the first crew on the Internatio ...

. Two treason trials took place in Edinburgh, in August and September. In September a

grand jury A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

concluded that there was evidence for treason charges against 12 men. Seven of the detained group were moved from the Tower to

Newgate Gaol Newgate Prison was a prison at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey, just inside the City of London, England, originally at the site of Newgate, a gate in the Roman London Wall. Built in the 12th century and demolished in 1904, the pris ...

on 24 October. They were arraigned at the

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 s ...

on 25 October. The judges involved were James Eyre,

Chief Justice of the Common Pleas The chief justice of the common pleas was the head of the Court of Common Pleas, also known as the Common Bench, which was the second-highest common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body ...

, and

Archibald Macdonald Sir Archibald Macdonald, 1st Baronet (13 July 1747 – 18 May 1826) was a British lawyer, judge and politician. Early life Macdonald was born at Armadale Castle on Skye on 13 July 1747, the posthumous son of Sir Alexander Macdonald, 7th Barone ...

Chief Baron of the Exchequer The Chief Baron of the Exchequer was the first "baron" (meaning judge) of the English Exchequer of Pleas. "In the absence of both the Treasurer of the Exchequer or First Lord of the Treasury, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, it was he who pres ...

, both of whom had been present at the Privy Council hearings. After the acquittal of his co-defendants Hardy and Horne Tooke, charges against Joyce were dropped. He had suffered 23 weeks imprisonment. While Joyce was confined, supporters printed a book under his name. It was a sermon from earlier in the year, but contained also an appendix consisting of his examination by the Privy Council, and that of Bonney who was released at the same time. After his release it was being distributed by

Arthur Aikin Arthur Aikin (19 May 177315 April 1854) was an English chemist, mineralogist and scientific writer, and was a founding member of the Chemical Society (now the Royal Society of Chemistry). He first became its treasurer in 1841, and later became ...

. His own work on the legal process, ''An Account of Mr. Joyce's Arrest for "treasonable Practices". His Examination ... With Remarks on the Speeches of Mr. Windham, &c.'', appeared in 1795.

Later life

Joyce was released on 1 December 1794, and was welcomed back to Chevening, the village being lit up; if not by the rector, the Rev. Samuel Preston, chaplain to

John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chatham General John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chatham (9 October 1756 – 24 September 1835) was a British soldier and politician. He spent a lengthy period in the cabinet but is best known for commanding the disastrous Walcheren Campaign of 1809. Chatham wa ...

who was

Lord Privy Seal The Lord Privy Seal (or, more formally, the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal) is the fifth of the Great Officers of State (United Kingdom), Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and abov ...

. He was quick to pay a visit to William Shepherd at Gatacre. Stanhope built Joyce a house in the grounds at Chevening. Joyce lived there for about four years, joined by his wife Elizabeth in 1796. He moved away in 1799. The troubled Stanhope household, where the father's insistence on home education was contentious, started to break up over the period. Daughter Lady Hester in the end moved out to live at

Walmer Walmer is a town in the district of Dover, Kent, in England. Located on the coast, the parish of Walmer is south-east of Sandwich, Kent. The town's coastline and castle are popular amongst tourists. It has a population of 6,693 (2001), incre ...

with her uncle

William Pitt the Younger William Pitt (28 May 1759 – 23 January 1806) was a British statesman who served as the last prime minister of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain from 1783 until the Acts of Union 1800, and then first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, p ...

, the Prime Minister, in 1803 according to

John Ehrman John Patrick William Ehrman, FBA (17 March 1920 – 15 June 2011) was a British historian, most notable for his three-volume biography of William Pitt the Younger.John Rowe (1764–1832). In fact, while Joyce had been a popular preacher with some Unitarian congregations after his release, he had become somewhat of an embarrassment. Rowe's congregation at

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , ) is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire (district), Shropshire, England. It is sited on the River Severn, northwest of Wolverhampton, west of Telford, southeast of Wrexham and north of Hereford. At the 2021 United ...

would not accept him in 1799. In 1801, Joyce was linked to

William Winterbotham Rev. William Winterbotham (15 December 1763 – 31 March 1829) was a British Baptist minister and a political prisoner. Biography William Winterbotham was born in Little Minories, Aldgate, London on 15 December 1763. He was a son of John W ...

in a pamphlet by "The Enquirer" ( William Atkinson). In later life he lived in Holly Terrace,

Highgate Highgate is a suburban area of N postcode area, north London in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden, London Borough of Islington, Islington and London Borough of Haringey, Haringey. The area is at the north-eastern corner ...

, and succeeded Rochemont Barbauld as minister of a small Unitarian congregation at

Rosslyn Hill Rosslyn Hill is a road in Hampstead, London, connecting the south end of Hampstead High Street to the north end of Haverstock Hill. It is the site of the Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Chapel, St. Stephen's Church and the Royal Free Hospital. It is se ...

. In 1799 Joyce took up a position as tutor to the sons of Benjamin Travers the elder (1752–1818), treasurer to the Gravel Pit Chapel and father of Benjamin Travers, a grocer in the sugar trade. He was in business with

William Smith William, Willie, Will, Bill, or Billy Smith may refer to: Academics * William Smith (Master of Clare College, Cambridge) (1556–1615), English academic * William Smith (antiquary) (c. 1653–1735), English antiquary and historian of University C ...

, who was an SCI member. The firm, later known as Joseph Travers & Sons, was then trading as Smith, Travers & Kemble. For many years, Joyce was the secretary of the Unitarian Society. At the end of Lindsey's life, Joyce was close to him. When Lindsey died in 1808, Joyce wrote an anonymous obituary, the "Brief account" in '' The Monthly Magazine''; and took the lead from William Frend's obituary, which concentrated on Lindsey's religious involvement, to burn much of Lindsey's political correspondence, particular that dealing with the American revolution.

Works

Joyce wrote a number of popular educational works on science and mathematics. He also contributed articles to ''

Rees's Cyclopædia Rees's ''Cyclopædia'', in full ''The Cyclopædia; or, Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Literature'', was an important 19th-century British people, British encyclopaedia edited by Rev. Abraham Rees (1743–1825), a Presbyterian minis ...

'' (1802–1819).

As editor

*''A Narrative of the Sufferings of T. F. Palmer and W. Skirving, During a Voyage to New South Wales, 1794, on Board the Surprize Transport''. Joyce prepared this work on the Scottish Martyrs from a manuscript by

Thomas Fyshe Palmer Thomas Fyshe Palmer (1747–1802) was an English Unitarian minister, political reformer and convict. Early life Palmer was born in Ickwell, Bedfordshire, England, the son of Henry Fyshe who assumed the added name of Palmer because of an inheri ...

brought from New South Wales by John White. Muir, Palmer and Skirving had serious criticisms of Capt. Patrick Campbell of the ''Surprize'', but also of Margarot, included by Joyce in his introduction. Joyce was largely responsible for the editing of two rival encyclopedic works bearing the names of others, George Gregory's '' Dictionary of Arts and Sciences'' (from 1803) and as managing editor of William Nicholson's ''

British Encyclopedia, or Dictionary of Arts and Sciences ''The British Encyclopedia, or Dictionary of Arts and Sciences'', claimed by its publishers to be a work "''Comprising an accurate and popular view of the present improved state of human knowledge''", was published at London in 1809 in six oct ...

'' (1809). These works shared a substantial portion of their texts.

Instructional

*''Scientific Dialogues'' (1800, 2 vols.) Later editions, from 1807, in 7 vols. *''System of Practical Arithmetic'' (1808) *''A Familiar Introduction to the Arts and Sciences for the Use of Schools and Young Persons'' (1810) ''Systematic Education'' (1816) was a collaboration with

Lant Carpenter Lant Carpenter (2 September 1780 – 5 or 6 April 1840) was an English educator and Unitarian minister. Early life Lant Carpenter was born in Kidderminster, the third son of George Carpenter and his wife Mary (Hooke). He was christened on 2 ...

and William Shepherd.

Family

Joyce married in 1796 Elizabeth Harding, niece of Captain George Fagg (Slouney), who as a privateer of the

Anglo-French War (1778–1783) The Anglo-French War, also known as the War of 1778 or the Bourbon War in Britain, was a military conflict fought between France and Great Britain, sometimes with their respective allies, between 1778 and 1783. As a consequence, Great Britain wa ...

ran the blockade of

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

in 1780, commanding the ''Buck'' of

Folkestone Folkestone ( ) is a coastal town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour, shipping port, and fashionable coastal res ...

. The youngest of his six children, Hannah, born the year before Joyce's death, was fostered by his friend William Shepherd. She later married William Ridyard.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joyce, Jeremiah 1763 births 1816 deaths English Unitarians English encyclopedists English male non-fiction writers