Ralph Bernal (2 October 1783 ''available online to subscribers, and also in print'' or 2 October 1784 – 26 August 1854) was a British Whig politician and art collector.

Early life

His parents, Jacob Israel Bernal and wife Leah da Silva, were

Sephardi Jews Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

and Portuguese origin, but he was baptised at

St Olave Hart Street St Olave's Church, Hart Street, is a Church of England church in the City of London, located on the corner of Hart Street and Seething Lane near Fenchurch Street railway station. John Betjeman described St Olave's as "a country church in the w ...

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 ...

. His father was a

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

. During his youth he became an actor and he performed to acclaim in several works by

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

, during which time he gained a reputation for oratory.

Career

He was Member of Parliament (MP) for

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

1818–20 and MP for Rochester from 1820 to 1841 and again from 1847 to 1852. From 1842 to 1847 he was MP for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis. According to the '' Legacies of British Slave-Ownership'' at the

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

, Bernal was awarded a payment as a slave trader in the aftermath of the

Slavery Abolition Act 1833 The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 ( 3 & 4 Will. 4. c. 73) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which abolished slavery in the British Empire by way of compensated emancipation. The act was legislated by Whig Prime Minister Charl ...

with the

Slave Compensation Act 1837 The Slave Compensation Act 1837 ( 1 & 2 Vict. c. 3) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, signed into law on 23 December 1837. Together with the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 ( 3 & 4 Will. 4. c. 73), it authorized the Commissione ...

. The British Government took out a £15 million loan (worth £ in ) with interest from

Nathan Mayer Rothschild Nathan Mayer Rothschild (16 September 1777 – 28 July 1836), also known as Baron Nathan Mayer Rothschild, was a British-German banker, businessman and finance, financier. Born in Free City of Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, he was the third of ...

and

Moses Montefiore Sir Moses Haim Montefiore, 1st Baronet, (24 October 1784 – 28 July 1885) was a British financier and banker, activist, Philanthropy, philanthropist and Sheriffs of the City of London, Sheriff of London. Born to an History ...

which was subsequently paid off by the British taxpayers (ending in 2015). Bernal was associated with three different claims, he owned 564 slaves in

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

and received a £11,458 payment at the time (worth £ in ). Bernal was president of the

British Archaeological Association The British Archaeological Association (BAA) was founded in 1843 and aims to inspire, support and disseminate high quality research in the fields of Western archaeology, art and architecture, primarily of the mediaeval period, through lectures, co ...

in 1853. He built up a substantial collection of glass, ceramics and other art objects, which were auctioned after his death, with the 4,000 lots selling for £70,000.

Personal life

In April 1806, he married Ann Elizabeth White. Together, they were the parents of: * Ralph Bernal (1808–1882), a politician, who took on the surname Osborne on marrying Catherine Isabella Osborne, the daughter of

Sir Thomas Osborne, 9th Baronet Sir Thomas Osborne, 9th Baronet, MP (1757 – 3 June 1821) was an Irish baronet and politician. Biography He was the eldest son of Sir William Osborne, 8th Baronet and his wife Elizabeth ''née'' Christmas, daughter of Thomas Christmas an ...

. ''Available online to subscribers, and also in print'' Bernal died on 26 August 1854.

References

External links

* 1780s births 1854 deaths British male stage actors Whig (British political party) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1831–1832 UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1835–1837 UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1841–1847 British people of Spanish-Jewish descent Politics of Lincoln, England 19th-century British male actors British people of Portuguese-Jewish descent Jewish British politicians Recipients of payments from the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 British Sephardi Jews British slave owners 19th-century British Jews {{England-UK-MP-stub