Sir Max Muspratt, 1st Baronet (3 February 1872 – 20 April 1934) was a British

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a graduated scientist trained in the study of chemistry, or an officially enrolled student in the field. Chemists study the composition of ...

and a politician in the city of

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

, England.

Early life and education

He was born at Seaforth Hall, Seaforth,

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, the son of

Edmund Knowles Muspratt Edmund Knowles Muspratt (6 November 1833 – 1 September 1923) was an English chemical industrialist. Early life and background Edmund Knowles Muspratt was born in Seaforth, near Liverpool, England, the fourth and youngest son of James Muspra ...

and his wife Frances Jane Baines. He was one of eight children and a brother of

Suffragists Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

Nessie Stewart-Brown and Julia Solly. He was an uncle of Nelia Penman, who served as President of the Women's Liberal Federation. The Muspratt family were originally from

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

but moved to Liverpool in 1822 when

James Muspratt James Muspratt (12 August 1793 – 4 May 1886) was a British Chemical substance, chemical manufacturer who was the first to make alkali by the Leblanc process on a large scale in the United Kingdom. Early life James Muspratt was born in Dublin ...

, the father of Edmund, established a chemical factory in Vauxhall Road.Trevor I. Williams, (2004) 'Muspratt, James (1793–1886)’, ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...

'',

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

Retrieved on 9 March 2007. Muspratt was educated at a private school in

Hemel Hempstead Hemel Hempstead () is a town in the Dacorum district in Hertfordshire, England. It is located north-west of London; nearby towns and cities include Watford, St Albans and Berkhamsted. The population at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 cens ...

and at

Clifton College Clifton College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in the city of Bristol in South West England, founded in 1862 and offering both boarding school, boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18. In its early years, unlike mo ...

before studying industrial chemistry at Zürich Polytechnic.

United Alkali

Muspratt joined the

United Alkali Company United Alkali Company Limited was a British chemical company formed in 1890, employing the Leblanc process to produce soda ash for the glass, textile, soap, and paper industries. It became one of the top four British chemical companies merged in ...

in 1892 (the firm had been founded by his father), becoming a director in 1901 and its chairman from 1914. In 1926 the United Alkali Company merged with three other companies to form

Imperial Chemical Industries Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) was a British Chemical industry, chemical company. It was, for much of its history, the largest manufacturer in Britain. Its headquarters were at Millbank in London. ICI was listed on the London Stock Exchange ...

(ICI) and Muspratt was a director from its founding until his death in 1934. He was also a director of the International Automatic Telephone Company. He was a member of the

Society of Chemical Industry The Society of Chemical Industry (SCI) is a learned society set up in 1881 "to further the application of chemistry and related sciences for the public benefit". Offices The society's headquarters is in Belgrave Square, London. There are semi-in ...

from 1894, becoming its Vice–President from 1904 to 1906 and again from 1921 to 1924. From 1924 he was chairman of the Association of British Chemical Manufacturers and from 1926 to 1927 president of the

Federation of British Industries The Federation of British Industries (FBI) was an employers' association in the United Kingdom. History Founded by the Midlands industrialist Dudley Docker in 1916 as the United British Industries' Association, but renamed later that same year, ...

Political career

Muspratt was a Liberal and served on the

Liverpool City Council Liverpool City Council is the Local government in England, local authority for the City status in the United Kingdom, city of Liverpool in Merseyside, England. Liverpool has had a local authority since 1207, which has been reformed on numerous ...

from 1904. At the

January 1910 general election The January 1910 UK general election was held from 15 January to 10 February 1910. Called amid a constitutional crisis after the Conservative-dominated House of Lords rejected the People's Budget, the Liberal government, seeking a mandate, los ...

he was returned to the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

as Member of Parliament (MP) for Liverpool Exchange, but was not re-elected at the December 1910 general election, and was defeated in the 1911 Bootle by-election. He left the Liberals for the Conservative Party in 1926. During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Muspratt served as

Lord Mayor of Liverpool The Lord Mayor of Liverpool is a largely ceremonial civic office of Liverpool City Council. The Lord Mayor is the ‘first citizen’ of Liverpool representing the city and acting as a focal point of community events and is also the Chair (off ...

from 1916 to 1917. He advised the Ministry of Munitions about industrial chemical matters, particularly in the supply of sulphuric acid. and worked in the Trench Warfare Department.

Personal life

In 1896, Muspratt married Helena Agnes Dalrymple Ainsworth of

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the River Ribble, Ribble Valley, east of Preston ...

. They had two sons, one of whom died in childhood, and two daughters. His surviving son, Rudolph, pre–deceased him in 1929. Rudolph had fathered two twin boys who died in infancy. He was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

in 1922, of Merseyside, Lancashire, in the

1922 Dissolution Honours The 1922 Dissolution Honours List was issued on 19 October 1922 at the advice of the outgoing Prime Minister, David Lloyd George. Earldoms * The Rt Hon. Frederick Edwin Smith, 1st Viscount Birkenhead * The Rt Hon. Horace Brand, 1st Viscount F ...

. He died on 20 April 1934, the day after undergoing an operation for "internal trouble." The baronetcy became extinct on his death.

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Muspratt, Max People educated at Clifton College 1872 births 1934 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom British chemists Imperial Chemical Industries people People from Bootle Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1910 Conservative Party (UK) politicians Businesspeople from Liverpool Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Liverpool constituencies Mayors of Liverpool Muspratt family Liberal Party (UK) councillors in Liverpool