William Shepherd Allen (22 June 1831 – 15 January 1915) was an English

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

politician. He also worked as a farmer and served as an MP in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Biography

Allen was born in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

. Cheadle. Allen was educated at

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street, Oxford, Broad Street and Parks Road ...

. He graduated with a BA in law and history in 1854, and an MA in 1857. In 1869, Allen married Elizabeth Penelope Candlish, the daughter of

John Candlish John Candlish ( bapt. 28 April 1816 – 17 March 1874) was a British glass bottle manufacturer and Liberal Party politician. Early life Candlish was born in Tarset, Northumberland, the eldest son of farmer John Candlish and Mary, née Robson. A ...

MP for

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

. Their eldest son

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

was later MP for Newcastle-under-Lyme. Another son, Colonel Sir Stephen Allen, (1882–1964) was a New Zealand lawyer, farmer, local body politician, and mayor of

Morrinsville Morrinsville () is a provincial town in the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island. Morrinsville is a service town for the local dairy industry; the area surrounding the town has the highest concentration of dairy cattle in New Zealand. ...

. He served in World War I and in the Territorial Army, and was administrator of the colony of Western Samoa (now

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

) 1928–31. He was a devout

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

and wrote several religious papers. In 1865 Allen was elected as member of parliament for

Newcastle-under-Lyme Newcastle-under-Lyme is a market town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. It is adjacent to the city of Stoke-on-Trent. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census, the population ...

as a member of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

. He held this seat until 1886 when he broke with his party over its stance on

Home Rule for Ireland The Home Rule movement was a movement that campaigned for self-government (or "home rule") for Ireland within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It was the dominant political movement of Irish nationalism from 1870 to the end of ...

and became a

Liberal Unionist The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a political ...

. In 1885 Allen had visited New Zealand and purchased land. By 1890 he had purchased up , had 2,000 head of sheep, and 600 head of mixed cattle. Allen returned to England several times and was not living at Annandale until 1895. In

1890 Events January * January 1 – The Kingdom of Italy establishes Eritrea as its colony in the Horn of Africa. * January 2 – Alice Sanger becomes the first female staffer in the White House. * January 11 – 1890 British Ultimatum: The Uni ...

he was elected MP for

Te Aroha Te Aroha is a rural town in the Waikato region of New Zealand with a population of 3,906 people in the 2013 census, an increase of 138 people since 2006. It is northeast of Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton and south of Thames, New Zealand, T ...

in New Zealand, but he was unseated by petition due to an irregularity created by his agent. He returned to England and was re-elected to the House of Commons in 1891. In 1893 he contested the Parnell electorate in New Zealand but lost the election. He served as member of the Piako County Council from 1895 to 1896 before resigning to travel to England. He died at Cheadle on 15 January 1915 at the age of 83 and is buried at St Giles the Abbot's Churchyard in Cheadle. His wife died in 1922.

Publications

* ''The Teaching of Christ With Respect to the Future Punishment of the Wicked'' * ''The present position of Wesleyan Methodism: The causes of its decreasing numbers, and the means which must be adopted to secure an increase''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, William Shepherd 1831 births 1915 deaths Alumni of Wadham College, Oxford Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1865–1868 UK MPs 1868–1874 UK MPs 1874–1880 UK MPs 1880–1885 UK MPs 1885–1886 New Zealand MPs for North Island electorates New Zealand farmers Politics of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Unsuccessful candidates in the 1893 New Zealand general election 19th-century New Zealand politicians Liberal Unionist Party MPs for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Newcastle-under-Lyme