Robert Aglionby Slaney (9 June 1791 – 19 May 1862) was a British

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

and Whig politician from

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

. He sat in 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 a Member of Parliament for the borough of Shrewsbury for most of the period from 1826 until his death in 1862.

Early life

Slaney was the eldest son of Robert Slaney (1764–1834) of Hatton Grange, Shropshire, and his wife, Mary, daughter of Thomas Mason of Shrewsbury. He was educated at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

, and was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in 1817 at

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, commonly known as Lincoln's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for Barrister, barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister ...

. He succeeded to his father's Hatton Grange estates in 1834.

Career

He was first elected at the 1826 general election, and was re-elected at the next three general elections, until his defeat at the 1835 general election by the Conservative Party candidate John Cressett-Pelham. He was re-elected in

1837 Events January–March * January 1 – The destructive Galilee earthquake causes thousands of deaths in Ottoman Syria. * January 26 – Michigan becomes the 26th state admitted to the United States. * February 4 – Seminoles attack Fo ...

, but did not stand in

1841 Events January–March * January 20 – Charles Elliot of the United Kingdom and Qishan of the Qing dynasty agree to the Convention of Chuenpi. * January 26 – Britain occupies Hong Kong. Later in the year, the first census of the ...

, when the seat was won by

Benjamin Disraeli Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman, Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician and writer who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a ...

. He won the seat again in

1847 Events January–March * January 4 – Samuel Colt sells his first revolver pistol to the U.S. government. * January 13 – The Treaty of Cahuenga ends fighting in the Mexican–American War in California. * January 16 – John C. Fr� ...

, but did not stand in

1852 Events January–March * January 14 – President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte proclaims a new constitution for the French Second Republic. * January 15 – Nine men representing various Jewish charitable organizations come to ...

. He was

High Sheriff of Shropshire This is a list of sheriffs and high sheriffs of Shropshire The high sheriff, sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the high sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of t ...

in 1854. Slaney was returned again at the 1857 general election, re-elected in 1859, and held the seat until his death, aged 70. Among other achievements, Slaney was instrumental in setting up the Select Committee on Public Health of 1840, which paved the way for the later Board of Health; and in fostering the Industrial and Provident Societies Partnership Act 1852, sometimes known as Slaney's Act. He served as commissioner "on the health of towns" from 1843 to 1848, and was particularly noted for his efforts to improve living conditions in urban industrial areas. Attending the opening of the London International Exhibition on 1 May 1862, he fell through a gap in a platform floor and injured his right leg, despite which he continued to view the exhibition and attended Parliament up until the 8th. He died on 19 May 1862, at his London house in

Mayfair Mayfair is an area of Westminster, London, England, in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. It is between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane and one of the most expensive districts ...

, from

gangrene Gangrene is a type of tissue death caused by a lack of blood supply. Symptoms may include a change in skin color to red or black, numbness, swelling, pain, skin breakdown, and coolness. The feet and hands are most commonly affected. If the ga ...

(then reported as 'mortification') that set in.

Family

His residence was listed in 1857 as Walford Manor, Shropshire. He married twice: in 1812 to Elizabeth Muckleston, and in 1854 to Catherine Anne Archer. Slaney had three daughters, amongst whom his estate was shared. The youngest, Frances Catherine, married William Kenyon, who as a condition of Slaney's will took the additional surname of Slaney. The eldest, Elizabeth Frances (died ''c.'' 1870), married the naturalist

Thomas Campbell Eyton Thomas Campbell Eyton JP, DL (10 September 1809 – 25 October 1880) was an English naturalist whose fields were cattle, fishes and birds. He was a friend and correspondent of Charles Darwin though he opposed his theories. Eyton was born at ...

, a Deputy Lieutenant of Shropshire.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Slaney, Robert Aglionby 1791 births 1862 deaths Whig (British political party) MPs for English constituencies Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1831–1832 UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1847–1852 UK MPs 1857–1859 UK MPs 1859–1865 High sheriffs of Shropshire Members of Lincoln's Inn Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for constituencies in Shropshire Committee members of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge

Early life

Career

Family

Archives

References

External links