John Drakard (1775?–1854) was an English newspaper proprietor, publisher, and political radical, imprisoned for his journalism.

Life

He went into business at

Stamford, Lincolnshire Stamford is a town and civil parish in the South Kesteven District of Lincolnshire, England. The population at the 2011 census was 19,701 and estimated at 20,645 in 2019. The town has 17th- and 18th-century stone buildings, older timber-framed ...

as a printer and book-seller at the beginning of the 19th century. On 15 September 1809 he started a weekly paper, the '' Stamford News''.''

Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'', Drakard, John (1775?–1854), newspaper proprietor and publisher, by G. F. R. Barker. Published 1888. The first editor was the topographer

Thomas Blore Thomas Blore (1754–1818) was an English topographer. Life Blore was born at Ashbourne, Derbyshire, on 1 December 1764. He received his education at the grammar school there, and afterwards became a solicitor at Derby. He then moved to Hopton ...

, but he and Drakard soon fell out. On 13 March 1811 Drakard was tried at Lincoln before Baron George Wood and a special jury on an ''ex officio'' information for libel, and was sentenced to eighteen months' imprisonment in Lincoln Castle, and fined £200. The subject matter of the libel was an article published in Drakard's paper for 24 August 1810, entitled "One Thousand Lashes", which dealt with the question of corporal punishment in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

. Drakard was defended by Henry Brougham, but was convicted, even though the Hunts, proprietors of '' The Examiner'', had been previously acquitted on the charge of libel for publishing most of the same article. Drakard was a defendant in other libel suits. He was horsewhipped by

Robert Brudenell, 6th Earl of Cardigan Robert Brudenell, 6th Earl of Cardigan (25 April 1760 – 14 August 1837) was an English peer and Member of Parliament. Early life Robert Brudenell was born in Westminster, the posthumous son and heir of Colonel the Hon. Robert Brudenell and ...

for some remarks in the ''Stamford News''. Cardigan tracked him to

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England ...

, and gave him a public whipping on the racecourse. Drakard was also the proprietor of the '' Stamford Champion'', a weekly newspaper which first appeared on 5 January 1830, under the name of the ''Champion of the East''. The poet

John Clare John Clare (13 July 1793 – 20 May 1864) was an English poet. The son of a farm labourer, he became known for his celebrations of the English countryside and sorrows at its disruption. His work underwent major re-evaluation in the late 20th ce ...

wrote anonymous political satire in it. In 1834 the publication of both his newspapers ceased, and Drakard retired to

Ripley, North Yorkshire Ripley is a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire in England, a few miles north of Harrogate on the A61 road towards Ripon. The village name derives from Old English and is believed to mean wood of the ''Hrype'' or Ripon people. Ripley w ...

, where he lived on a meagre income. He died at

Ripon Ripon () is a cathedral city in the Borough of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the cit ...

on 25 January 1854, aged 79.

Works

The authorship of the two following works (both of which were published by him) has been attributed to Drakard, but it has also been doubted whether he had any part in their writing: * ''Drakard's Edition of the Public and Private Life of Colonel Wardle. … Introduced by an original Essay on Reform'', &c., Stamford 810? On

Gwyllym Lloyd Wardle Gwyllym Lloyd Wardle (c. 1762–1833) was a Welsh army officer and politician. Early life Born at Chester about 1762, he was the only son of Francis Wardle, J.P., of Hartsheath, near Mold, Flintshire, and Catherine, daughter of Richard Lloyd Gw ...

. * ''The History of Stamford, in the County of Lincoln, comprising its ancient, progressive, and modern state; with an Account of St. Martin's, Stamford Baron, and Great and Little Wothorpe, Northamptonshire'', Stamford, 1822. Octavius Graham Gilchrist is thought to have supplied much of the content.

References

External links

Libraries & Information, East Midlands, ''Drakard's Stamford News and General Advertiser''
;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Drakard, John 1775 births 1854 deaths English publishers (people) People from Stamford, Lincolnshire