John Shuttleworth (1786 – 26 April 1864) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

political activist and campaigner for

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

ary reform in nineteenth century

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

Life

Shuttleworth was born in Manchester. He became a cotton dealer there, and was for a time a business partner of

John Edward Taylor John Edward Taylor (11 September 1791 – 6 January 1844) was an English business tycoon, editor, publisher and member of The Portico Library, who was the founder of the ''Manchester Guardian'' newspaper in 1821, which was renamed in 1959 ...

. In 1814 Shuttleworth was a supporter of the

Lancasterian school The Monitorial System, also known as Madras System or Lancasterian System, was an education method that took hold during the early 19th century, because of Spanish, French, and English colonial education that was imposed into the areas of expansion. ...

in Manchester; and in 1815 he spoke against the

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 were ...

in the year of their introduction at a Manchester meeting. In the following years he was part of the "small determined band" or

Little Circle The Little Circle was a Manchester-based group of Non-conformist Liberals, mostly members of the Portico Library, who held a common agenda with regards to political and social reform. The first group met from 1815 onwards to campaign for expande ...

that discussed economics, with Taylor,

Archibald Prentice Archibald Prentice (1792–1857) was a Scottish journalist, known as a radical reformer and temperance campaigner. Life The son of Archibald Prentice of Covington Mains in the Upper Ward of Lanarkshire, and Helen, daughter of John Stoddart of The ...

Absalom Watkin Absalom Watkin (1787–1861), was an English social and political reformer, an anti corn law campaigner, and a member of Manchester's ''Little Circle'' that was key in passing the Reform Act 1832. Early life Absalom Watkin was born in London t ...

and others. The ''

Manchester Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' was founded in 1821, and in 1823 Taylor gave up his partnership with Shuttleworth, dealing in cotton, twist and weft, to become its full-time editor. In 1824 the Circle took control of the ''

Manchester Gazette The ''Manchester Gazette'' was a conformist non-Tory newspaper based in Manchester, England. Founded by William Cowdroy (previously editor of the ''Chester Chronicle'') in 1795, the newspaper was written and printed by him and his four sons. Alt ...

'', with Prentice becoming its editor. In 1828 Prentice and the Circle's vehicle shifted to the ''

Manchester Times The ''Manchester Times'' was a weekly newspaper published in Manchester, England, from 1828 to 1922. It was known for its free trade radicalism. From 1828 to 1847, the newspaper was edited by Archibald Prentice, a political radical and advocate ...

''. In 1821 Shuttleworth provided support to

Rowland Detrosier Rowland Detrosier, also Rowley Barnes, (c. 1800 - 23 November 1834) was an English autodidact, radical politician, preacher and educator, particularly associated with Manchester. Early life Detrosier's parents were Manchester merchant Robert Norri ...

, finding him work in the factory of the cotton spinner Benjamin Naylor. Shuttleworth was a Unitarian, a member of the

Cross Street Chapel Cross Street Chapel is a Unitarian church in central Manchester, England. It is a member of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches, the umbrella organisation for British Unitarians. Its present minister is Cody Coyne. His ...

congregation of

William Gaskell William Gaskell (24 July 1805 – 12 June 1884) was an English Unitarian minister, charity worker and pioneer in the education of the working class. The husband of novelist and biographer Elizabeth Gaskell, he was himself a writer and poet, and ...

Notes

External links

* 1786 births 1864 deaths English businesspeople English activists History of Manchester 19th-century British businesspeople {{UK-activist-stub