John Grey (1785–1868), of Dilston, was an English land agent and agriculturist. He was the father of

Josephine Butler Josephine Elizabeth Butler (' Grey; 13 April 1828 – 30 December 1906) was an English feminist and social reformer in the Victorian era. She campaigned for women's suffrage, the right of women to better education, the end of coverture ...

, the feminist campaigner.

Life

The eldest son of George Grey of West Ord, near

Berwick-on-Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...

, who died in 1793, by Mary, daughter of John Burn of Berwick, he was born at Millfield Hill,

Glendale, Northumberland Glendale is the name of a valley in North Northumberland that runs from the Cheviot Hills at Kirknewton, Northumberland, Kirknewton onto the Milfield Plain, formed by the River Glen, Northumberland, River Glen. However, the name is generally tak ...

, in August 1785, and was educated at Richmond grammar school. While still young he met

Francis Jeffrey Francis Jeffrey, Lord Jeffrey (23 October 1773 – 26 January 1850) was a Scottish judge and literary critic. Life He was born at 7 Charles Street near Potterow in south Edinburgh, the son of George Jeffrey, a clerk in the Court of Session ...

Thomas Chalmers Thomas Chalmers (17 March 178031 May 1847), was a Scottish minister, professor of theology, political economist, and a leader of both the Church of Scotland and of the Free Church of Scotland. He has been called "Scotland's greatest nine ...

Edward Irving Edward Irving (4 August 17927 December 1834) was a Scottish clergyman, generally regarded as the main figure behind the foundation of the Catholic Apostolic Church. Early life Edward Irving was born at Annan, Annandale the second son of Ga ...

, and

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy' ...

, and entered public life when seventeen years old. The first public question that Grey took part in was the

abolition of slavery Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

. He was entrusted by

Thomas Clarkson Thomas Clarkson (28 March 1760 – 26 September 1846) was an English abolitionist, and a leading campaigner against the slave trade in the British Empire. He helped found The Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade (also known ...

in 1823 with the task of collecting petitions in some of the towns of the

Borders A border is a geographical boundary. Border, borders, The Border or The Borders may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Border'' (1997 film), an Indian Hindi-language war film * ''Border'' (2018 Swedish film), ...

. He accompanied

Lord Brougham Henry Peter Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux, (; 19 September 1778 – 7 May 1868) was a British statesman who became Lord High Chancellor and played a prominent role in passing the 1832 Reform Act and 1833 Slavery Abolition Act. ...

in his abolitionist tour in Northumberland and Cumberland in 1826, and seconded him with speeches. He took part in the agitation for

Catholic Emancipation Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, and later the combined United Kingdom in the late 18th century and early 19th century, that involved reducing and removing many of the restricti ...

, and in the struggle which preceded the

Reform Bill of 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 of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major changes to the electo ...

. He enjoyed the confidence of

Earl Grey Earl Grey is a title in the peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1806 for General Charles Grey, 1st Baron Grey. In 1801, he was given the title Baron Grey of Howick in the County of Northumberland, and in 1806 he was created Viscou ...

and Lord Althorp (Lord Spencer), and spoke on the hustings at

Alnwick Alnwick ( ) is a market town in Northumberland, England, of which it is the traditional county town. The population at the 2011 Census was 8,116. The town is on the south bank of the River Aln, south of Berwick-upon-Tweed and the Scottish bor ...

. In 1833 Sir James Graham placed under Grey's sole management the northern estates belonging to Greenwich Hospital in Northumberland and Cumberland. Grey then ceased to take an active part in politics; but was consulted on some measures, such as the Tithe Commutation Act, the land drainage scheme, and free trade. From early years (1803) he had concentrated on agricultural improvement. He had originally farmed in north Northumberland, where, with others, he created a new system of agriculture, both in breeding cattle and cultivating the land. In the administration of the agricultural and mining estates of Greenwich Hospital, Grey was raised the net rental of the property in twenty years from £30,000 to £40,000. He was visited by foreigners, and Baron Liebig saw on visiting Dilston his own discoveries applied to the improvement of the Northumbrian crops. Grey's management was denounced in some newspapers. In the autumn of 1857 he lost the greater part of his savings by the failure of the Newcastle bank. Grey retired from the management of the Greenwich Hospital estates in 1863, aged 77. He moved to Lipwood House on the banks of the

River Tyne The River Tyne is a river in North East England. Its length (excluding tributaries) is . It is formed by the North Tyne and the South Tyne, which converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Wate ...

, near

Haydon Bridge Haydon Bridge is a village in Northumberland, England, with a population of about 2000, the civil parish Haydon being measured at 2,184 in the Census 2011. Its most distinctive features are the two bridges crossing the River Tyne, River South T ...

, where he died on 22 January 1868.

Family

Grey married, in 1815, Hannah Eliza, daughter of Ralph Annette of The Fence, near Alnwick, by whom he had a family of three sons and seven daughters, who included

. Hannah Grey died at Dilston on 15 May 1860. Charles Grey succeeded to his father's position in the management of the Greenwich Hospital estates. His niece was the hymnwriter, Jane Lundie Bonar.

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Grey, John 1785 births 1868 deaths English agriculturalists People from Northumberland