The Humanitarian League was a British radical advocacy group formed by Henry S. Salt and others to promote the principle that it is wrong to inflict avoidable suffering on any sentient being. It was based in London and operated between 1891 and 1919.

Background

Howard Williams, the author of '' The Ethics of Diet'' (1883), a

history of vegetarianism The earliest records of vegetarianism as a concept and practice amongst a significant number of people are from ancient India, especially among the Hindus and Jains.Spencer, Colin: ''The Heretic's Feast. A History of Vegetarianism'', London 1993 ...

, proposed in the book the concept of a "humane society with a wider scope than any previously existing body". William's idea was developed by fellow writer and advocate, Henry S. Salt, in an 1889 article on humanitarianism.

History

The League was formed by Henry S. Salt, who was also the General Secretary and Editor. Other founding members included

Edward Maitland Edward Maitland (27 October 18242 October 1897) was an English humanitarian writer and occultist. Life He was born at Ipswich on 27 October 1824, was the son of Charles David Maitland, perpetual curate of St. James's Chapel, Brighton; he was ...

, Ernest Bell (Chairman), Howard Williams, Kenneth Romanes and Alice Lewis (Treasurer). The League's inaugural meeting, in 1891, was held at the house of Alice Lewis, 14 Park Square, London, who remained Treasurer for the League's entire existence. Many of its founders were also members of the Shelley Society. Its aim was to enforce the principle that it is iniquitous to inflict avoidable suffering on any sentient being; their manifesto stated:

The Humanitarian League has been established on the basis of an intelligible and consistent principle of humaneness – that it is iniquitous to inflict suffering, directly or indirectly, on any sentient being, except when self-defence or absolute necessity can justly be pleaded.

The League opposed both

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non- ...

and

capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

. Its other objectives included the banning of all hunting as a

sport Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...

, and it was also strongly opposed to

vivisection Vivisection () is surgery conducted for experimental purposes on a living organism, typically animals with a central nervous system, to view living internal structure. The word is, more broadly, used as a pejorative catch-all term for Animal testi ...

. The Humanitarian League thus anticipated the modern

animal rights Animal rights is the philosophy according to which many or all Animal consciousness, sentient animals have moral worth that is independent of their Utilitarianism, utility for humans, and that their most basic interests—such as avoiding s ...

movement; many of its members were

vegetarians Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetarianism ma ...

. However, the League was not confined to animal protection. They were also responsible for the advancement of

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

. For example, they were largely behind the banning of flogging with birch in the Royal Navy in 1906 and campaigning to amend the law relating to

imprisonment for debt A debtors' prison is a prison for people who are unable to pay debt. Until the mid-19th century, debtors' prisons (usually similar in form to locked workhouses) were a common way to deal with unpaid debt in Western Europe.Cory, Lucinda"A Historic ...

and other non-criminal offences. The League also opposed

flogging Flagellation (Latin , 'whip'), flogging or whipping is the act of beating the human body with special implements such as whips, rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails, the sjambok, the knout, etc. Typically, flogging has been imposed on ...

in schools,

vaccination Vaccination is the administration of a vaccine to help the immune system develop immunity from a disease. Vaccines contain a microorganism or virus in a weakened, live or killed state, or proteins or toxins from the organism. In stimulating ...

s because of the pain, and the wearing of feathers and fur. The League spread its ideas through two journals, ''Humanity'' (1895–1902), which was later renamed ''The Humanitarian'' (1902–1919) and a quarterly ''The Humane Review'' (1900–1910). During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the League's membership and output of publications were reduced in number. The League closed down in 1919, following the death of Salt's wife.

Legacy

In 2013, The Humanitarian League was registered as an organisation in Hong Kong. It operates alongside the Ernest Bell Library, republishing historical humanitarian pamphlets and books.

Notable people associated with the League

Notable members and supporters of the League included Annie Besant, W. H. Hudson, Sydney Olivier,

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

Edward Carpenter Edward Carpenter (29 August 1844 – 28 June 1929) was an English utopian socialist, poet, philosopher, anthologist, an early activist for gay rightsWarren Allen Smith: ''Who's Who in Hell, A Handbook and International Directory for Human ...

, Colonel William Lisle Blenkinsopp Coulson, John Galsworthy,

Leo Tolstoy Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...

J. Howard Moore John Howard Moore (December 4, 1862 – June 17, 1916) was an American zoologist, philosopher, educator, humanitarian and socialist. He is considered to be an early, yet neglected, proponent of animal rights and ethical vegetarianism, and was a ...

, Ralph Waldo Trine, Ernest Howard Crosby, Alice Park,

Clarence Darrow Clarence Seward Darrow (; April 18, 1857 – March 13, 1938) was an American lawyer who became famous in the early 20th century for his involvement in the Leopold and Loeb murder trial and the Scopes "Monkey" Trial. He was a leading member of t ...

Keir Hardie James Keir Hardie (15 August 185626 September 1915) was a Scottish trade unionist and politician. He was a founder of the Labour Party, and served as its first parliamentary leader from 1906 to 1908. Hardie was born in Newhouse, Lanarkshire. ...

, Thomas Hardy,

Bertram Lloyd Ernest Bertram Lloyd (14 May 1881 – 9 June 1944) was an English naturalist, humanitarian, vegetarian and campaigner for animal rights. He was the founder of the National Society for the Abolition of Cruel Sports. Biography Lloyd was born ...

Edith Carrington Edith Carrington (1853–1929) was a prominent English animal rights activist and promoter of vegetarianism. She was for sometime an artist, but began to write books on animals from 1889. She was a vocal opponent of Eleanor Anne Ormerod's campai ...

Christabel Pankhurst Dame Christabel Harriette Pankhurst, (; 22 September 1880 – 13 February 1958) was a British suffragette born in Manchester, England. A co-founder of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), she directed its militant actions from exil ...

Tom Mann Thomas Mann (15 April 1856 – 13 March 1941), was an English trade unionist and is widely recognised as a leading, pioneering figure for the early labour movement in Britain. Largely self-educated, Mann became a successful organiser and a ...

, Enid Stacy,

Kean, Hilda Hilda Kean (born August 1949) is a British historian who specialises in public and cultural history, and in particular the cultural history of animals. She is former Dean and Director of Public History at Ruskin College, Oxford, and an Honora ...

. (1998). ''Animal Rights: Political and Social Change in Britain since 1800''.

Reaktion Books Reaktion Books is an independent book publisher based in Islington, London, England. It was founded in 1985 in Edinburgh, Scotland, and moved to London in 1987. Reaktion originally focused on the fields of art, architecture, and design. In rece ...

Carl Heath, Thomas Baty, George Ives,

John Dillon John Dillon (4 September 1851 – 4 August 1927) was an Irish politician from Dublin, who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for over 35 years and was the last leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party. By political disposition Dillon was an a ...

Lizzy Lind af Hageby Emilie Augusta Louise "Lizzy" Lind af Hageby (20 September 1878 – 26 December 1963) was a Swedish-British feminist and animal rights advocate who became a prominent anti- vivisection activist in England in the early 20th century. Born t ...

, Stella Browne,

Charlotte Despard Charlotte Despard (née French; 15 June 1844 – 10 November 1939) was an Anglo-Irish suffragist, socialist, pacifist, Sinn Féin activist, and novelist. She was a founding member of the Women's Freedom League, Women's Peace Crusade, and the ...

, Isabella Ford,

Anne Cobden-Sanderson Julia Sarah Anne Cobden-Sanderson (; 26 March 1853 – 2 November 1926) was an English socialist, suffragette and vegetarian. Life Cobden was born in London in 1853 to Catherine Anne and the radical politician Richard Cobden. After her father ...

Michael Davitt Michael Davitt (25 March 184630 May 1906) was an Irish republican activist for a variety of causes, especially Home Rule and land reform. Following an eviction when he was four years old, Davitt's family migrated to England. He began his caree ...

, Alfred Russel Wallace, G. W. Foote,

Conrad Noel Conrad le Despenser Roden Noel (12 July 1869 – 22 July 1942) was an English priest of the Church of England. Known as the 'Red Vicar' of Thaxted, he was a prominent Christian socialist. Early life Noel was born on 12 July 1869 in Royal Cottage, ...

John Page Hopps John Page Hopps (6 November 1834 – 6 April 1911) was a Unitarian minister and spiritualist.Watts, Michael R. (2015). ''The Dissenters: Volume III: The Crisis and Conscience of Nonconformity''. Oxford University Press. pp. 37-38. Hopps was bor ...

Josiah Oldfield Josiah Oldfield (23 February 1863 – 2 February 1953) was an English lawyer, physician and promoter of his own variant of fruitarianism which was virtually indistinguishable from lacto-ovo vegetarianism. He became a versatile author, a prolifi ...

, Jessey Wade (Honorary Secretary of the Children’s Department; 1906–1919),

Henry John Williams Henry John Williams (8 February 1838 – 1 April 1919) was an English Anglican priest and activist for humanitarianism, animal rights and vegetarianism. He was the founder of the Order of the Golden Age; an international animal rights society. ...

(Humane Diet department) and Henry B. Amos.

Publications

Books

* Moore, J. Howard. '' The Universal Kinship'' (Humanitarian League, 1906)

Pamphlets

* Salt, Henry S.
Literae Humaniores: An Appeal to Teachers
' (William Reeves, 1894) *Collinson, Joseph
''The Fate of the Fur Seal''
(William Reeves; Humanitarian League, 1902) *Dickerson, Philip. '' The Eton College Hare-Hunt'' (Humanitarian League, 1904) *Salt, Henry S
''Humanitarianism: Its General Principles and Progress''
(Humanitarian League, 1906) *Salt, Henry S.
The Case Against Corporal Punishment
' (Humanitarian League, 1912) *Salt, Henry S. (ed.)
Killing for Sport: Essays by Various Writers
' ( G. Bell & Sons, 1915)

References

External links

Aims and objects of the Humanitarian LeagueHumanitarian League PublicationsThe Humanitarian League, 1891–1919Biography of Henry S. Salt
*''The Humane Review'': ** Volume 2; 1901 ** Volume 3: April, 1902 to January, 1903 ** Volume 7: April, 1906 to January, 1907 {{Animal rights, state=uncollapsed, movement 1891 establishments in England 1919 disestablishments in England Animal rights organizations Animal welfare organisations based in the United Kingdom Anti–death penalty organizations Anti-hunting organizations Anti-vaccination organizations Anti-vivisection organizations Defunct organisations based in London Organizations established in 1891 Political advocacy groups in England Prison reform