John A. Roebuck
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

John Arthur Roebuck (28 December 1802 – 30 November 1879), British politician, was born at Madras, in
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. He was raised in Canada, and moved to England in 1824, and became intimate with the leading radical and utilitarian reformers. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Bath from 1832 to 1847, and MP for the Sheffield constituency from 1849. He took up the general attitude of hostility to the government of the day, whatever it was, which he retained throughout his life. He twice came to public prominence: in 1838, when, although at the time without a seat in parliament, he appeared at the bar of the
Commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons c ...
to protest, in the name of the Canadian Assembly, against the suspension of the Canadian constitution; and in 1855, when, having overthrown Lord Aberdeen's ministry by carrying a resolution for the appointment of a committee of inquiry into the mismanagement in the
Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...
, he presided over its proceedings.


Life

John Arthur Roebuck was born at Madras in 1801, was fifth son of Ebenezer Roebuck, a civil servant in India, and a grandson of the inventor
John Roebuck John Roebuck of Kinneil FRS FRSE (1718 – 17 July 1794) was an English inventor and industrialist who played an important role in the Industrial Revolution and who is known for developing the industrial-scale manufacture of sulphuric aci ...
. He was taken to England in 1807 following the death of his father. His mother remarried and he was taken to Canada, where he was educated. He returned to England in 1824, and was entered at the
Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and ...
, and called to the bar in 1831. In 1834, he married, Henrietta Falconer, a daughter of Thomas Falconer. In 1835 he became the agent in England for the
Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada The Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada was the lower house of the bicameral structure of provincial government in Lower Canada until 1838. The legislative assembly was created by the Constitutional Act of 1791. The lower house consisted of el ...
during the dispute between the executive government and the House of Assembly. "Roebuck, John Arthur", ''Dictionary of National Biography, 1885–1900, Volume 49'' In 1838, when, although at the time without a seat in parliament, he appeared at the bar of the
Commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons c ...
to protest, in the name of the Canadian Assembly, against the suspension of the Canadian constitution. In 1843 he was appointed
Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister o ...
, and was elected a bencher of his inn.


Political career

He was elected as a member of parliament for Bath in 1832, declaring himself "an independent member of that house". A disciple of
Jeremy Bentham Jeremy Bentham (; 15 February 1748 Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._4_February_1747.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 4 February 1747">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.htm ...
and a friend of John Stuart Mill, Roebuck professed advanced political opinions, which he resolved to uphold in the House of Commons. In general, he took up an attitude of hostility to the government of the day, whatever it was, which he retained throughout his life. He attacked everyone who differed from him with such vehemence as to earn the nickname of "Tear 'em." He was never sympathetic with the Whigs, and never let an opportunity go to exhibit his contempt for them. In 1852, he wrote "The whigs, have ever been an exclusive and aristocratic faction, though at times employing democratic principles and phrases as weapons of offence against their opponents. ... When out of office they are demagogues; in power they become exclusive oligarchs". He opposed the use of coercion in Ireland; advocated the abolition of sinecures; and proposed withdrawing the veto from the
House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
. In 1835 he collected in a volume a series of ''Pamphlets for the People'' in support of his political views. In one of his pamphlets Roebuck denounced newspapers and everybody connected with them. As a result, John Black, the then editor of ''
The Morning Chronicle ''The Morning Chronicle'' was a newspaper founded in 1769 in London. It was notable for having been the first steady employer of essayist William Hazlitt as a political reporter and the first steady employer of Charles Dickens as a journalist. It ...
'', challenged him to a duel which was fought on 19 November 1835. Neither party was injured. He failed to be re-elected for Bath in 1837, but he regained the seat in 1841. In 1843, he proposed a motion in favour of secular education, which was rejected. In the debate on the Irish Colleges Bill, he taunted the Irish supporters of the bill with such bitterness that
John Patrick Somers John Patrick Somers (1791–1862) was an Irish Liberal, Repeal Association and Whig politician. Political career Somers was first elected MP as a Whig candidate for Sligo Borough in the 1837 general election, and was re-elected several tim ...
, MP for Sligo, threatened to challenge him to a duel. In April 1844 Roebuck defended the Home Secretary Sir James Graham from various charges, and was denounced by
George Smythe, 7th Viscount Strangford George Smythe, 7th Viscount Strangford (16 April 181823 November 1857), styled The Honourable George Smythe until 1855, was a British Conservative politician, best known for his association with Benjamin Disraeli and the Young England movement ...
, as the " Diogenes of Bath," whose actions were always contradictory. Roebuck's reply to this led to Smythe demanding a duel or a retraction. Roebuck lost his seat in the general election of 1847. He spent some of his time in writing ''A Plan for Governing our English Colonies'', which was published in 1849. He was returned to parliament for the Sheffield constituency in a by-election in 1849. Roebuck championed a vigorous foreign policy. In 1850 he moved a strongly worded vote of confidence in
Lord Palmerston Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, (20 October 1784 – 18 October 1865) was a British statesman who was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century. Palmerston dominated British foreign policy during the period ...
's recent foreign policy, following the Don Pacifico affair. In 1854 he defended the
Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...
; but the inefficiency which soon became apparent in carrying it on excited his disgust. In 1855, when, having overthrown Lord Aberdeen's ministry by carrying a resolution for the appointment of a committee of inquiry into the mismanagement in the Crimean War, he presided over its proceedings. In his latter years his political opinions became greatly modified. A speech at
Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of ...
in 1862, in which he alleged that working men were spendthrifts and wife-beaters, made him unpopular for a time. He strongly denounced the trade unionist
Sheffield Outrages The Sheffield Outrages were a series of explosions and murders by a small group of trade unionist militants carried out in Sheffield, England in the 1860s. Sheffield's early success in steel production had involved long working hours, in condition ...
of 1867. During the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
he firmly championed the slave-holders of the South, boasting that Lord Palmerston had confessed to him that he was on the same side. In June 1863 Roebuck moved a resolution in the House of Commons calling for the Government to "enter into negotiations with the Great Powers of Europe, for the purpose of obtaining their co-operation in the recognition of the independence of the Confederate States of North America." During the debate on the motion Roebuck claimed to have recently received an audience with the
Emperor of the French Emperor of the French (French: ''Empereur des Français'') was the title of the monarch and supreme ruler of the First and the Second French Empires. Details A title and office used by the House of Bonaparte starting when Napoleon was procla ...
who he said had assured him that France stood ready to recognise the Confederacy if the United Kingdom would do likewise. Roebuck later dropped the motion under pressure from the Government. Roebuck also defended Austrian rule in Italy. These uncompromising attitudes led to Roebuck's rejection by Sheffield voters at the election of 1868. He regained the seat in 1874. In 1878 he was made a privy councillor by the Tory government. He died at Westminster, in 1879. He was survived by his wife and a daughter.


Works

* ''Remarks on the Proposed Union of the Canadas'', 1822 * ''Debate in the House of Commons, on 15 April 1834, on Mr. Roebuck's Motion for "a Select Committee to inquire the means of remedying the evils which exist in the form of the governments now existing in Upper and Lower Canada"'', 1834 * ''The Canadas and Their Grievances'', 1835 * ''Existing Difficulties in the Government of the Canadas'', 1836 * ''The Colonies of England : A Plan for the Government of Portion of Our Colonial Possessions'', 1849 * ''History of the Whig Ministry of 1830, to the Passing of the Reform Bill'', 1852


References


Further reading

* Briggs, Asa. “John Arthur Roebuck and the Crimean War" in Briggs, ''Victorian People'' (1955) pp. 52–86
online


External links

*
Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
* * * ''Life and Letters of John Arthur Roebuck, P.C., Q.C., M.P.: With Chapters of Autobiography'', London: E. Arnold, 1897, 392 p.
online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roebuck, John Arthur 1802 births 1879 deaths Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies History of Sheffield UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1835–1837 UK MPs 1841–1847 UK MPs 1847–1852 UK MPs 1852–1857 UK MPs 1857–1859 UK MPs 1859–1865 UK MPs 1865–1868 UK MPs 1874–1880 Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom