George William Foote (11 January 1850 – 17 October 1915) was an English
secularist
Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on secular, naturalistic considerations.
Secularism is most commonly defined as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state, and may be broadened to a sim ...
, freethinker, republican, writer and journal editor.
[ ]
Early life
George William Foote was born in
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
, the son of William Thomas Foot (a customs officer) and Ann Winzar.
Career
In his ''Reminiscences of Charles Bradlaugh'' he recalls coming to London in January 1868 with "plenty of health and very little religion". He was taken to
Cleveland Hall by a friend, and "heard Mrs.
Law">arrietLaw knock the Bible about delightfully. She was not what would be called a woman of culture, but she had what some devotees of 'culchaw' do not posses—a great deal of natural ability..."
A few weeks later Foote heard
Charles Bradlaugh
Charles Bradlaugh (; 26 September 1833 – 30 January 1891) was an English political activist and atheist. He founded the National Secular Society in 1866, 15 years after George Holyoake had coined the term "secularism" in 1851.
In 1880, Brad ...
speaking at the hall.
He became involved with the
secularism
Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on Secularity, secular, Naturalism (philosophy), naturalistic considerations.
Secularism is most commonly defined as the Separation of church and state, separation of relig ...
,
freethought
Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an epistemological viewpoint which holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and that beliefs should instead be reached by other methods ...
and
republicanism
Republicanism is a political ideology centered on citizenship in a state organized as a republic. Historically, it emphasises the idea of self-rule and ranges from the rule of a representative minority or oligarchy to popular sovereignty. It ...
, joining the Young Men's Secular Association, the
National Secular Society
The National Secular Society (NSS) is a British campaigning organisation that promotes secularism and the separation of church and state. It holds that no one should gain advantage or disadvantage because of their religion or lack of it. It was ...
, and contributing to Bradlaugh's ''National Reformer''.
In 1877 Foote joined the anti-Bradlaughites in the breakaway
British Secular Union
The British Secular Union was a secularist organisation, founded in August 1877, primarily as a response to what its founders regarded as the "dictatorial" powers of Charles Bradlaugh as President of the National Secular Society. The founding memb ...
. The split was caused by several factors: Bradlaugh's alleged autocratic style; Bradlaugh's association with
Annie Besant
Annie Besant ( Wood; 1 October 1847 – 20 September 1933) was a British socialist, theosophist, freemason, women's rights activist, educationist, writer, orator, political party member and philanthropist.
Regarded as a champion of human f ...
; and Bradlaugh and Besant's involvement in promoting birth control and
neo-Malthusianism
Malthusianism is the idea that population growth is potentially exponential while the growth of the food supply or other resources is linear, which eventually reduces living standards to the point of triggering a population die off. This event, c ...
. The BSU was relatively short-lived, and Foote himself was reconciled to Bradlaugh within a few years, becoming an NSS vice-president from 1882.
''The Secularist: A Liberal Weekly Review'' (1876-1877), Foote's first attempt to launch his own publication, in collaboration with
George Jacob Holyoake
George Jacob Holyoake (13 April 1817 – 22 January 1906) was an English secularist, co-operator and newspaper editor. He coined the terms secularism in 1851 and "jingoism" in 1878. He edited a secularist paper, the ''Reasoner'', from 1846 to J ...
, did not last long. In May, 1881, Foote started a serial publication called
''The Freethinker'', which is still published. As a result of contents of this journal, Foote was charged with
blasphemy
Blasphemy is a speech crime and religious crime usually defined as an utterance that shows contempt, disrespects or insults a deity, an object considered sacred or something considered inviolable. Some religions regard blasphemy as a religiou ...
, and eventually imprisoned for one year with hard labour. On receiving his sentence from
Mr Justice North (a devout Catholic), Foote said "with great deliberation" to the Judge "My Lord, I thank you; it is worthy of your creed". His description of this experience was published in 1886 as ''Prisoner for Blasphemy''.
Once released, Foote continued to be active promoting his ideals, writing books and pamphlets, lecturing, and debating. Foote was well-versed in literature, and had extensive knowledge of ancient and contemporary writers, and ecclesiastical history. In 1890 Foote succeeded Bradlaugh as President of the National Secular Society and remained in that role for twenty-five years.
His death was related by
Chapman Cohen in ''The Freethinker'' (31 October 1915):
When I saw him on the Friday (two days) before his death he said, "I have had another setback, but I am a curious fellow and may get all right again." But he looked the fact of death in the face with the same courage and determination that he faced Judge North many years ago. A few hours before he died he said calmly to those around him, "I am dying." And when the end came his head dropped back on the pillow, and with a quiet sigh, as of one falling to sleep, he passed away.
Publications
* Foote, George William (1879). ''Secularism, The True Philosophy of Life: An Exposition and a Defence.'' Reprint, London: GW Foote & Co., 2016.
* Foote, George William (1885)
''The Jewish Life of Christ'' London: Progressive Publishing Co.
*
* Foote, George William (1889). ''Secularism and Theosophy: A Rejoinder to Mrs. Besant's Pamphlet''. London: Progressive Publishing Co.
* Foote, George William (1889)
London: Progressive Publishing Co.
Notes
References
Further reading
* McGee, John Edwin (1948). ''A History of the British Secular Movement''. Haldeman-Julius Publications.
* Herrick, Jim (1982). ''Vision and Realism: A Hundred Years of The Freethinker.'' London: GW Foote & Co.
* Marsh, Joss (1998). ''Word crimes: Blasphemy, Culture, and Literature in Nineteenth-Century England''.
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
Press.
External links
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More works by G. W. Foote at The Freethought ArchivesThe Freethinker
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foote, George William
1850 births
1915 deaths
19th-century atheists
19th-century English male writers
20th-century atheists
Anti-vivisectionists
British atheism activists
British secularists
Critics of Theosophy
English activists
English atheist writers
English atheists
English editors
English male non-fiction writers
English non-fiction writers
English prisoners and detainees
English republicans
English sceptics
Freethought writers
People convicted of blasphemy
Writers from Plymouth, Devon