James Stuart PC (2 January 1843 – 12 October 1913) was a British educator and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. He was born in

Markinch Markinch (, (Scottish Gaelic: Marc Innis) is both a village and a parish in the heart of Fife, Scotland. According to an estimate taken in 2008, the village has a population of 2,420. The civil parish had a population of 16,530 (in 2011).Cens ...

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

, and attended

Madras College Madras College, often referred to as Madras, is a Scottish comprehensive secondary school located in St Andrews, Fife. It educates over 1,400 pupils aged between 11 and 18 and was founded in 1833 by the Rev. Dr Andrew Bell. History Madras ...

and the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

before going to

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

. He later became a Fellow of the College and Professor of Mechanism and Applied Mechanics at

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

from 1875; he was also Lord Rector of St Andrews from 1898 to 1901. Stuart was interested in popularising scientific topics and published several books on the subject. Stuart was an unsuccessful

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 ...

candidate for the

parliamentary seat in an 1882 by-election; in the

1884 by-election Events January–March * January 4 – The Fabian Society is founded in London. * January 5 – Gilbert and Sullivan's ''Princess Ida'' premières at the Savoy Theatre, London. * January 18 – Dr. William Price (physic ...

he was elected for Hackney. From the 1885 election he sat for the

Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. As a part of Shoreditch, it is often considered to be part of the East End – the historic core of wider East London. It was historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. I ...

division of Shoreditch. He became known for his contribution to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

politics and in February 1890 was chosen as an

Alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...

of the

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...

; the added work caused him to resign his chair at Cambridge. The Progressive Party on the LCC chose him as its Leader shortly after his election but he stood down after the 1892 council election. In the 1900 general election, Stuart lost his seat in Parliament. He returned briefly for

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

from

1906 Events January–February * January 12 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: A nationalistic coalition of merchants, religious leaders and intellectuals in Persia forces the shah Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar to grant a constitution, ...

until again being defeated in January 1910. He was appointed to the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

in 1909. Suffering poor health, he published his memoirs (''Reminiscences'') in 1912. He married Laura, the eldest daughter of

Jeremiah Colman (MP) Jeremiah James Colman (14 June 1830 – 18 September 1898) was an English mustard manufacturer and the third member of the family in charge of the eponymous company Colman's. He was a popular philanthropist in his home town of Norwich and a Liber ...

and

Caroline Colman Caroline Colman (9 May 1831 - 5 July 1895) was the wife of Jeremiah James Colman, the third member of the family in charge of the eponymous company Colman's mustard. Caroline Colman had exerted significant influence over the social welfare of the ...

. His sister in law

Ethel Colman Ethel Mary Colman (12 February 1863 – 23 November 1948) was a philanthropist and a member of the Colman family who was Lord Mayor of Norwich in 1923–24. Colman is notable for having been both the first woman to be Lord Mayor of Norwich, an ...

was the first female Lord Mayor of Norwich. He died in

Carrow Abbey Carrow Abbey is a former Benedictine priory in Bracondale, southeast Norwich, England. The village on the site used to be called Carrow (there are many alternative spellings) and gives its name to Carrow Road, the football ground of Norwich F.C. ...

, Norwich on 12 October 1913. His wife and sisters in law's memorial to him was the 1915 erection of a block of 22 flats, to re-house some of those affected by the Norwich flood of 1912. Stuart Court is still used for low-income housing, managed by Norwich Housing Society.

''Vanity Fair''

On 5 October 1899, his caricature appeared in '' Vanity Fair'', accompanied by the following biographical note- :"Statesmen No.715 :Dr James Stuart, M.P. :He became a Fifeshire Scotchman six-and-fifty years ago; and having been doubly educated (at St. Andrews University and at Trinity, Cambridge) he fashioned himself into a Professor of Mechanics and Applied Mechanics. Then he tried to become Member for Cambridge University; but Cambridge University refusing the honour, he went to Hackney, which place he represented for precisely one year. Since then he has sat for the Hoxton Division of Shoreditch, while he lives in Grosvenor Road. :He neither shoots nor fishes, and he seldom takes a holiday; but he yachts, he cycles, he plays golf, and he sketches. He has also dabbled in journalism, being Chairman of the Board of ''The Star'' and ''Morning Leader'' Newspaper and Publishing Company, Limited. He is also the husband of the eldest daughter of Jeremiah James Colman: wherefore ''The Pall Mall Gazette'' once accused him of introducing mustard into ''The Star''. He has done much to develop the pernicious system of University Extension; and his friends say that the most wonderful thing about him is how little he has been understood by the public. He is many-sided and too enthusiastic. He champions Women's Suffrage because, being a student of Exact Science, he cannot understand Woman. He has, indeed, championed more than one unpopular movement; though he is said to have more intimate knowledge of London political and social questions than anyone else. But he is a wicked Radical, whom the Water Companies hate, although he has friends among the Tories. He is a most tireless person of extraordinary physique, who can go all day without food; and though he can dine, he generally eats. :Although he is a Professor he is neither a prude nor a pedant; and if it were not for his pernicious Politics he would be a good fellow."

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stuart, James 1843 births 1913 deaths Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of London County Council Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Alumni of the University of St Andrews Rectors of the University of St Andrews UK MPs 1880–1885 UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1886–1892 UK MPs 1892–1895 UK MPs 1895–1900 UK MPs 1906–1910 Hackney Members of Parliament Progressive Party (London) politicians Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge People from Markinch People educated at Madras College Presidents of Co-operative Congress Professors of engineering (Cambridge, 1875)