John Biggs (11 April 1801 – 4 June 1871)
was a
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
hosier and
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 ...
and
Radical politician.
Early life and business
Biggs was born in
Leicester, the oldest of the seven children of John Biggs (1774–1827) and his wife Elizabeth Heggs (1780–1862).
John Biggs the elder had come to the town from
Withybrook in
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Av ...
at the end of the eighteenth century and set up a small
hosiery
Hosiery, also referred to as legwear, describes garments worn directly on the feet and legs. The term originated as the collective term for products of which a maker or seller is termed a hosier; and those products are also known generically as ...
business. Young John and his three brothers, Thomas,
William
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
and Joseph, joined the business and built it up to such an extent that, by the time of their father's death in 1827, ''John Biggs and Sons'' was one of the largest firms in Leicester, with exports to North America and Australia.
In Biggs's hands, the business innovated in hosiery and glovemaking, and invested heavily in equipping a steam-powered factory.
Political career
Reformer
Biggs engaged in campaigning for political reform early into his life, helping found the Political Union and Reform Society in 1826, and supporting the anti-
Corn Laws
The Corn Laws were tariffs and other trade restrictions on imported food and corn enforced in the United Kingdom between 1815 and 1846. The word ''corn'' in British English denotes all cereal grains, including wheat, oats and barley. They wer ...
campaign. By 1846, he and a fellow hosier were named as 'the Cobden and Bright of the Midland Counties', referring to Radical leaders
Richard Cobden
Richard Cobden (3 June 1804 – 2 April 1865) was an English Radical and Liberal politician, manufacturer, and a campaigner for free trade and peace. He was associated with the Anti-Corn Law League and the Cobden–Chevalier Treaty.
As a you ...
and
John Bright
John Bright (16 November 1811 – 27 March 1889) was a British Radical and Liberal statesman, one of the greatest orators of his generation and a promoter of free trade policies.
A Quaker, Bright is most famous for battling the Corn La ...
.
His reform views led him to become one of the leaders of the reformed corporation of Leicester, and he was made mayor in 1840, 1847 and 1856, while also a borough magistrate from 1849. Yet, his views were rejected while he was in office, with "modest proposals" for street-widening and a town hall dismissed by the Improvement committee in 1845.
Becoming disillusioned with the Reform Society and local MPs
Joshua Walmsley
Sir Joshua Walmsley (1794–1871) was an English businessman and Liberal Party politician.
Life
The son of John Walmsley, an architect, builder and marble mason, he was born in Liverpool on 29 September 1794, and educated at Knowsley, Lancash ...
and
Richard Gardner, Biggs turned "ultra-radical" and sought to return what he believed truly radical MPs for Leicester and a popular franchise. Eventually, this led to Walmsley and Gardner being unseated and replaced by
John Ellis and
Richard Harris
Richard St John Francis Harris (1 October 1930 – 25 October 2002) was an Irish actor and singer. He appeared on stage and in many films, notably as Corrado Zeller in Michelangelo Antonioni's '' Red Desert'', Frank Machin in '' This Sporting ...
, causing a 15-year battle between local Liberal factions.
Member of Parliament
Biggs was elected Radical MP for
Leicester at a
by-election in 1856—caused by the death of
Richard Gardner—and became known as the 'Dictator' of a 'Chartist clique' by local opponents.
Biggs held the seat until 1863, when he recognised a union was needed between the warring Liberal factions—spurred by a Conservative victory by
William Unwin Heygate
William Unwin Heygate (12 March 1825 - 2 March 1902) was a British Conservative Member of Parliament and Leicestershire politician.
Biography
Heygate was born on 12 March 1825, the second son of Sir William Heygate, 1st Baronet (1782-1844), Memb ...
at an
1861 by-election for the borough—and resigned from politics altogether.
Later life
Following his departure from politics, Biggs fell foul of several other personal problems, starting with financial failure. After racking up debts of more than £10,000, his house had to be sold, along with paintings he owned, and his business was sold to another firm as a going concern.
Meanwhile, his sister died, and her husband James Francis Hollings—editor of the Leicestershire Mercury and historian and luminary of the Literary and Philosophical Society—committed suicide.
In 1871, living unmarried, Biggs too died, leaving behind little wealth but what some historians describe as a significant impact on the city. The town hall he had campaigned for during his earlier political life was approved and build, frame-rent was abolished, and the reunited Liberal party was "rescued... from their inertia".
Biggs was buried at
Welford Road Cemetery
Welford Road Cemetery is a public cemetery in Leicester, England.
History
The Leicester General Cemetery Company was founded in 1845, and the cemetery itself opened in 1849. The buildings and plan of the cemetery were designed by J. R. Hamilton ...
.
Memorials
After Biggs' death, his friends launched a public subscription to fund a simple plaque over his grave. Encouraged by the campaigning of local printer John Burton, the response was so great that the plan was changed to involve the erection of a statue in the town.
The result, a statue in
Sicilian marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...
by
George Anderson Lawson
George Anderson Lawson (Edinburgh 1832 – 23 September 1904) was a British Victorian era sculptor who was associated with the New Sculpture movement.
Life
He was born at Edinburgh in 1832, the son of David Lawson and Anne Campbell. He wa ...
was unveiled in Welford Place on 15 April 1873. Unfortunately, it was damaged in a collision with a
tram
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
, and replaced by a bronze cast of the original in 1930.
[ The statue was grade II listed on 14 March 1975.
P. L. Quinn suggests that the character of Augustus Debarry in ]George Eliot
Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wrot ...
's novel Felix Holt, the Radical
''Felix Holt, the Radical'' (1866) is a social novel written by George Eliot about political disputes in a small English town at the time of the First Reform Act of 1832.
In January 1868, Eliot penned an article entitled "Address to Working M ...
is based upon John Biggs.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Biggs, John
UK MPs 1852–1857
UK MPs 1857–1859
UK MPs 1859–1865
1801 births
1871 deaths
Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
People from Leicester