James Oswald (2 May 1779 – 3 June 1853) was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

and

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP) for

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Early life

James Oswald was born on 2 May 1779, the fifth child and second son of Alexander Oswald of

Shieldhall Shieldhall is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated directly south of the River Clyde and is part of the wider Govan area. Location and history Taking its name from the country estate which occupied the territory until the ...

, Glasgow, and Margaret Dundas, and was the grand-nephew of slave-trader

Richard Oswald Richard Oswald (5 November 1880 – 11 September 1963) was an Austrian film director, producer, screenwriter, and father of German-American film director Gerd Oswald. Early career Richard Oswald, born in Vienna as Richard W. Ornstein, began h ...

.Smith, John Guthrie & Mitchell, John Oswald "The Old Country Houses of the Old Glasgow Gentry" (James MacLehose & Sons, Glasgow, 1878

pp. '' passim'' He was the paternal first cousin of

Richard Alexander Oswald Richard Alexander Oswald (17 February 1771 – 19 June 1841) was a Scottish Liberal Party politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1832 to 1835. Life Oswald was the son of George Oswald, a merchant of Scotstoun, Rector of Glasgow Universi ...

Will Richard Alexander Oswald d. 1841 in Scotlands People on-line databas

(purchase required) accessed 26 November 2011 and paternal uncle of

Alexander Haldane Oswald Alexander Haldane Oswald (12 December 1811 – 6 September 1868) was a Scottish Conservative Party politician. He was the member of parliament (MP) for Ayrshire from 1843 to 1852. Early life Alexander Oswald was born in Govan, Scotland to Rich ...

,"Public Sculpture of Glasgow" McKenzie, Raymond & Nisbet, Gary (Liverpool University Press, 200

/ref> both Members of Parliament. On the death of Richard in 1841, James Oswald succeeded to the family estate at

Auchincruive Auchincruive is a former country house and estate in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It is located east of Ayr, on the north bank of the River Ayr. Auchincruive House was built in the 18th century on the site of an earlier mansion. In 1927, the estate ...

, and the estates of Cavens and Preston in

Kirkcudbright Kirkcudbright ( ; sco, Kirkcoubrie; gd, Cille Chùithbeirt) is a town, parish and a Royal Burgh from 1455 in Kirkcudbrightshire, of which it is traditionally the county town, within Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The town lies southwest of C ...

, by deed of Entail (

Fee tail In English common law, fee tail or entail is a form of trust established by deed or settlement which restricts the sale or inheritance of an estate in real property and prevents the property from being sold, devised by will, or otherwise alien ...

) specified by

Career

Shortly after the founding of the Glasgow Bank by

Alexander Dennistoun Alexander Dennistoun (also known as Alex Dennistoun; 1789–1874) was a Scottish merchant, bank director, property developer and, for a two years, from 1835 to 1837, Member of Parliament for Dunbartonshire. He was responsible for establishing the ...

in 1809, Oswald joined other influential merchants there. Oswald's older brother, Richard Alexander Oswald was also a merchant in Glasgow and together they owned a

mill Mill may refer to: Science and technology * * Mill (grinding) * Milling (machining) * Millwork * Textile mill * Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel * List of types of mill * Mill, the arithmetic unit of the Analytical Engine early ...

Barrowfield Barrowfield is a neighbourhood of Glasgow, Scotland, close to Celtic Park, home of Celtic F.C., which lies immediately to the east. It is bounded by the A89 road (Gallowgate) to the north and the A74 (London Road) to the south. History Being ...

. In 1812, they formed Oswald, Stevenson & Co., a company formed for mercantile transactions in

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...

s and

yarn Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, used in sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery, ropemaking, and the production of textiles. Thread is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern manufact ...

s, with Nathaniel Stevenson and his brother James. On the death of Richard Alexander Oswald in 1821, James Stevenson took control of the cotton branch while Oswald remained in partnership with Nathaniel for a further nearly 40 years, with Nathaniel's son, James "Croesus" Stevenson, taking over in 1843. Oswald retired from the company, which operated in Glasgow and Manchester, on 31 December 1848. Another of Oswald's business ventures was a company called Oswald, Tennant & Co., which went into

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

due to a "trail of rapid commercial misfortunes connected with India". It is not clear when this occurred, but the company was still trading in 1837 In 1828 James Oswald was on the Committee of the Trustees for the Parish of

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric?: ''Gwovan'?''; Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of south-west City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south ba ...

Prior to becoming an M.P., Oswald commanded the Glasgow squadron of mounted Yeomanry. James Oswald was

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

Member of Parliament for

from 10 December 1832 until 26 May 1837, when he accepted the

Chiltern Hundreds The Chiltern Hundreds is an ancient administrative area in Buckinghamshire, England, composed of three " hundreds" and lying partially within the Chiltern Hills. "Taking the Chiltern Hundreds" refers to one of the legal fictions used to effect r ...

. Oswald returned to Parliament upon the death of

Lord William Bentinck Lieutenant General Lord William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck (14 September 177417 June 1839), known as Lord William Bentinck, was a British soldier and statesman who served as the Governor of Fort William (Bengal) from 1828 to 1834 and the First G ...

on 24 June 1839, when he stood against Feargus O’Connor, a well known Chartist."The Times", Thursday 27 June 1839; pg. 6; Issue 17079; col B in Infotrac Gale Group on-line databas

(subscription required) accessed 27 November 2011 Oswald was one of the leading supporters of the movement that led to the

Reform Act 1832 The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the 1832 Reform Act, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an Act of Parliament, Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major chan ...

."Caledonian Mercury" (Edinburgh, Scotland), Monday 9 January 1837; Issue 18212 in Infotrac Gale Group on-line databas

(subscription required) accessed 27 November 2011 and one of the first M.P.'s for Glasgow to be elected by manhood suffrage. Described as a "powerful orator", and a "steady, consistent, honourable man" who claimed to "always put the interests of my country and cause of reform first" he is credited with 20 recorded contributions in Parliament during his terms of office. Hansard 1803–2005
/ref> It is said that while in Parliament, Oswald "seldom troubled the House unless he had something particular to say". On 20 February 1833, Oswald was appointed with Sir

Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet, (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850) was a British Conservative statesman who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835 and 1841–1846) simultaneously serving as Chancellor of the Exchequer ...

and others to a parliamentary

select committee Select committee may refer to: *Select committee (parliamentary system), a committee made up of a small number of parliamentary members appointed to deal with particular areas or issues *Select or special committee (United States Congress) *Select ...

to classify and prepare abstracts for

petition A petition is a request to do something, most commonly addressed to a government official or public entity. Petitions to a deity are a form of prayer called supplication. In the colloquial sense, a petition is a document addressed to some offici ...

s presented to the house. In February the following year, he was appointed to another select committee to scrutinise the education, practice and usage of the medical profession in the United Kingdom. Oswald is described variously as a Liberal or Whig. In 1835, he was appointed to the acting committee for the management of the affairs of the Radical Whig Association, formed to protect the interests during a surge in conservative activity. On 16 February 1841 he was appointed to a select committee to investigate the laws concerning the exportation of machinery. He remained in Parliament until 29 July 1847. Oswald died on 3 June 1853 at

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. He was buried at

Glasgow Cathedral Glasgow Cathedral ( gd, Cathair-eaglais Ghlaschu) is a parish church of the Church of Scotland in Glasgow, Scotland. It is the oldest cathedral in mainland Scotland and the oldest building in Glasgow. The cathedral was the seat of the Archbishop ...

.Old Parish Deaths and Burials in Scotlands People on-line database ww.scotlandspeople.gov.uk(purchase required) accessed 27 November 2011

Artistic recognition

In 1856, friends and admirers of Oswald commissioned a statue by Baron Marochetti. Originally erected in Sandyford Place, off

Sauchiehall Street Sauchiehall Street () is one of the main shopping streets in the Glasgow city centre, city centre of Glasgow, Scotland, along with Buchanan Street and Argyle Street, Glasgow, Argyle Street. Although commonly associated with the city centre, Sau ...

, it was moved to the north-east corner of

George Square George Square ( gd, Ceàrnag Sheòrais) is the principal civic square in the city of Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of six squares in the city centre, the others being Cathedral Square, St Andrew's Square, St Enoch Square, Royal Exchange Sq ...

in 1875, after the council were petitioned by his great-nephew, Richard Alexander Oswald. It had long been felt by Oswald's friends and family that he should be accorded the same honour as his political opponent

, whose monument had been erected in George Square in 1859. He was also sculpted by

James Fillans James Fillans (27 March 1808 – 27 September 1852) was a Scottish sculptor, poet and artist with a short but influential career in the early 19th century. Life He was born in Wilsontown, Lanarkshire. In early life he worked as a handloom w ...

.Illustrated Catalogue of the Exhibition of Portraits on Loan in the New Galleries of Art, Glasgow 1887

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oswald, James 1779 births 1853 deaths Scottish merchants 19th-century Scottish people Scottish Liberal Party MPs UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1835–1837 UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1841–1847 Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Glasgow constituencies