Martin Dunsford (1744–1807) of Tiverton in Devon, was an English merchant and

Dissenter A dissenter (from the Latin , 'to disagree') is one who dissents (disagrees) in matters of opinion, belief, etc. Dissent may include political opposition to decrees, ideas or doctrines and it may include opposition to those things or the fiat of ...

, known as an antiquarian and radical politician. His work ''Memoirs of the Town and Parish of Tiverton'' is noted as an attempt to write of the town as a whole community.

Life

He was the son of Martin Dunsford (1711–1763) who manufactured

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in Tiverton,

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, having a large workshop created from a row of houses, and a workforce of over 50. His mother was Anne Stone. Educated at

Blundell's School Blundell's School is an Private schools in the United Kingdom, independent co-educational boarding school, boarding and Day school, day school in the English Public School (United Kingdom), public school tradition, located in Tiverton, Devon, T ...

in Tiverton, he went into his father's business at age 13. He lived at Villa Franca, Park Road, now a listed building. Dunsford is described in

Lewis Namier Sir Lewis Bernstein Namier (; 27 June 1888 – 19 August 1960) was a British historian of Polish-Jewish background. His best-known works were '' The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III'' (1929), ''England in the Age of the Ame ...

's ''

The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III ''The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III'' is the title of a book written by Lewis Namier. At the time of its first publication in 1929, it caused a historiographical revolution in understanding the 18th century by challenging t ...

'' as the leader of a movement in Tiverton for extending the local franchise, at the end of the 18th century. Holding local political office as a Churchwarden, he opposed the Ryder family who controlled the parliamentary elections in the town. In 1781 he set up a petition to Parliament, presented through James Townsend, for greater electoral rights. The political interests of Nathaniel Ryder, 1st Baron Harrowby, and his ally Sir John Duntze, 1st Baronet, were not in fact threatened in any practical sense by the Dissenter faction led by Dunsford. The Town Clerk Beavis Wood monitored those activities and Dunsford and his supporters were branded by Wood as Jacobins and 'Crabs' in the 1790s.

''Memoirs of the Town and Parish of Tiverton''

Dunsford wrote his major work, published 1790 by subscription, during the 1780s, a period when he acted as a churchwarden in Tiverton. His motivations were described in an unpublished autobiography, where he revealed his intention to promote civil liberties and religious freedom. It contains also information about early

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in Devon. The sources Dunsford used, besides his own research, included earlier work and collation by the antiquarians John Blundell, William Hewett and Thomas Westcott. A further edition appeared in 1836, edited by George Boyce.

Published editions

*Dunsford, Martin, Merchant, ''Historical Memoirs of the Town and Parish of Tiverton in the County of Devon'', first published 1790; 1836 Edition, Boyce, George (Ed

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunsford, Martin 1744 births Businesspeople from Tiverton, Devon English antiquarians Writers from Tiverton, Devon 1807 deaths People educated at Blundell's School