John Cleave
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John Cleave (1790 – 1847) was a British Chartist leader, a
printer Printer may refer to: Technology * Printer (publishing), a person * Printer (computing), a hardware device * Optical printer for motion picture films People * Nariman Printer (fl. c. 1940), Indian journalist and activist * James Printer (1640 ...
and
newspaper publisher Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...
.


Career

Born in 1790, Cleave went to sea and is first documented for his political activities as late as 1828, 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 ...
, working to assist
Henry Hetherington Henry Hetherington (June 1792 – 24 August 1849) was an English printer, bookseller, publisher and newspaper proprietor who campaigned for social justice, a free press, universal suffrage and religious freethought. Together with his close asso ...
at the Civil & Religious Association. A few years later in 1831 Cleave was a
printer Printer may refer to: Technology * Printer (publishing), a person * Printer (computing), a hardware device * Optical printer for motion picture films People * Nariman Printer (fl. c. 1940), Indian journalist and activist * James Printer (1640 ...
at Snow Hill in London then at Shoe Lane where he also operated a bookshop and
coffee house A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café (), is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, Caffè americano, americano and cappuccino, among other hot beverages. Many coffeehouses in West Asia offer ''shisha'' (actually ...
alongside his printing business. Cleave was now working on ''
The Poor Man's Guardian The ''Poor Man's Guardian'' was a penny weekly newspaper published in London, England by Henry Hetherington from July 1831 to December 1835. Hetherington published his ''Poor Man's Guardian'', a successor to his earlier (1830–31) penny daily ' ...
'' along with
Henry Hetherington Henry Hetherington (June 1792 – 24 August 1849) was an English printer, bookseller, publisher and newspaper proprietor who campaigned for social justice, a free press, universal suffrage and religious freethought. Together with his close asso ...
and
James Watson James Dewey Watson (born April 6, 1928) is an American molecular biology, molecular biologist, geneticist, and zoologist. In 1953, he co-authored with Francis Crick the academic paper in ''Nature (journal), Nature'' proposing the Nucleic acid ...
. In 1834, he felt ready to start his own newspaper '' Cleave's Weekly Police Gazette'' which as well as reporting on recent crimes also contained a political campaigning and reform element within its pages, a combination that was very successful, being sold to over 40,000 avid readers per week by 1836. Cleave was refusing to pay
stamp duty Stamp duty is a tax that is levied on single property purchases or documents (including, historically, the majority of legal documents such as cheques, receipts, military commissions, marriage licences and land transactions). Historically, a ...
on his newspaper, in line with other radical publishers and pamphleteers, which of course brought him into conflict with the authorities who levied fines and wanted such seditious radicals imprisoned. It was the view of radical publishers that a
free press Freedom of the press refers to legal protections for public communications media. Free Press may also refer to: Publications * ''Free Press'' (CPBF), the journal of the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom * ''Free Press'' (Malayalam magaz ...
was vital to social, political and moral improvement and that the government were oppressing the people's firmly held beliefs and rights to communicate. The law was gradually reformed and the fourpenny tax on newspapers was reduced to one-penny and pamphlets had their tax removed altogether. Also in 1836, Cleave joined forces with
William Lovett William Lovett (8 May 1800 – 8 August 1877) was a British activist and leader of the Chartist political movement. He was one of the leading London-based artisan radicals of his generation. Biography Early activism Born in the Cornish tow ...
and Henry Hetherington to form the new
London Working Men's Association The London Working Men's Association was an organisation established in London in 1836.
. He was soon to be closely involved in the National Charter Association too, and was its first Treasurer. In 1837 Cleave accompanied
Henry Vincent Henry Vincent (10 May 1813 – 29 December 1878) was an English religious leader. active in the formation of early Working Men's Associations in Britain, a popular Chartist leader, brilliant and gifted public orator, prospective but ultimately ...
, a gifted younger orator and emerging Chartist leader, on a speaking tour of northern England where the two men initiated the establishment of Working Men's Associations in northern cities such as
Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
,
Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually shortened to Hull, is a historic maritime city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Est ...
, and towns such as
Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...
, Halifax and
Huddersfield Huddersfield is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confl ...
. The two men formed strong bonds during this time and Henry Vincent was later to marry Cleave's daughter Lucy in 1841. In the 1840s as the National Charter Association divided over policy differences and the careers of the early leaders ran their differing courses Cleave sided with the moderate moral force Chartists alongside
William Lovett William Lovett (8 May 1800 – 8 August 1877) was a British activist and leader of the Chartist political movement. He was one of the leading London-based artisan radicals of his generation. Biography Early activism Born in the Cornish tow ...
and continued to work for
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 ...
and the complete removal of stamp duty from all newspapers until his death in 1847.


External links


LMA Learning Zone profile of the man himself
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cleave, John Chartists Politicians from London 1847 deaths 1790s births