Leonard Montefiore (1853,

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

– 1879) was an author and philanthropist. He was a grandnephew of

Moses Montefiore Sir Moses Haim Montefiore, 1st Baronet, (24 October 1784 – 28 July 1885) was a British financier and banker, activist, philanthropist and Sheriff of London. Born to an Italian Sephardic Jewish family based in London, afte ...

and a nephew of

Francis Goldsmid Sir Francis Henry Goldsmid, 2nd Baronet (1 May 1808 – 2 May 1878) was an Anglo-Jewish barrister and politician. Early life The son of Sir Isaac Lyon Goldsmid and a member of the Goldsmid banking family, Francis was born in London, and private ...

Education

In October 1870 Montefiore entered

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

where he attended lectures for the next two years. It was at this time that he formed a friendship with

Henry Birchenough Sir John Henry Birchenough, 1st Baronet, (7 March 1853 – 12 May 1937) was an English businessman and public servant. Early life and education Birchenough was born in Macclesfield, Cheshire, the second son of John Birchenough, a silk manufac ...

that was described in his "Essays and Letters" as "the greatest friendship of his life" Montefiore attended

Balliol College Balliol College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. One of Oxford's oldest colleges, it was founded around 1263 by John I de Balliol, a landowner from Barnard Castle in County Durham, who provided the f ...

, Oxford where his posthumous memoire reports that he was a devotee of Ruskin. Whilst at Balliol he became a friend of

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...

who, after Montefiore's death allegedly proposed to his sister Charlotte.The Secret Life of Oscar Wilde, Neil Mckenna, Random House, 2011-02-28 He was also influenced by Arnold Toynbee and

Benjamin Jowett Benjamin Jowett (, modern variant ; 15 April 1817 – 1 October 1893) was an English tutor and administrative reformer in the University of Oxford, a theologian, an Anglican cleric, and a translator of Plato and Thucydides. He was Master of Bal ...

Philanthropic work

Montefiore was Chief assistant to reformer Samuel Barnett in his work regarding the extension of Oxford University to London and was secretary of the

Tower Hamlets The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough covering much of the traditional East End. It was formed in 1965 from the merger of the former metropolitan boroughs of Stepney, Poplar, and Bethnal Green. 'Tower Hamlets' was originally ...

branch of the Society for the extension of University Teaching. Montefiore was the Secretary of the Jewish Schools in

Red Lion Square Red Lion Square is a small square in Holborn, London. The square was laid out in 1684 by Nicholas Barbon, taking its name from the Red Lion Inn. According to some sources, the bodies of three regicides—Oliver Cromwell, John Bradshaw and Hen ...

from April 1877 until his departure for America and became a member of the Jewish Board of Guardians in 1878. The Jewish Encyclopedia says "Montefiore was associated with many philanthropic movements, especially with the movement for women's emancipation." Montefiore died at

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...

, aged 27. According to the Women's rights activist

Emily Faithfull Emily Faithfull (27 May 1835 – 31 May 1895) was an English women's rights activist who set up the Victoria Press to publish the ''English Woman's Journal''. Biography Emily Faithfull was born on 27 May 1835 at Headley Rectory, Surrey. She wa ...

in her book "Three Visits to America" published in 1884 Montefiore died "''While he was visiting the United States, in order to see for himself what could be learned from the political and social condition of the people, must ever be deplored. The world can ill afford to lose men of such deep thought and energetic action.''"

Essays and Letters

Montefiore's posthumously published "Essays and Letters" are divided into three sections with a foreword by

Lord Milner Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner, (23 March 1854 – 13 May 1925) was a British statesman and colonial administrator who played a role in the formulation of British foreign and domestic policy between the mid-1890s and early 1920s. From De ...

who was a mutual friend of Henry Birchenough and Montefiore and had learnt to know the latter at

where both were influenced by

Toynbee Toynbee is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Arnold Toynbee (1852–1883), British economic historian * Arnold Joseph Toynbee (1889–1975), British historian * Geoffrey Toynbee (1885–1914), English cricketer * Henry Toynb ...

. The first section of "Essays and Letters" deals with primarily German politics including Alsace Lorraine since 1871, the second section covers German literature, including

Heine Heine is both a surname and a given name of German origin. People with that name include: People with the surname * Albert Heine (1867–1949), German actor * Alice Heine (1858–1925), American-born princess of Monaco * Armand Heine (1818–1883) ...

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...

Heinrich von Treitschke Heinrich Gotthard Freiherr von Treitschke (; 15 September 1834 – 28 April 1896) was a German historian, political writer and National Liberal member of the Reichstag during the time of the German Empire. He was an extreme nationalist, who favo ...

Heinrich Friedrich Karl vom und zum Stein Heinrich Friedrich Karl Reichsfreiherr vom und zum Stein (25 October 1757 – 29 June 1831), commonly known as Baron vom Stein, was a Prussian statesman who introduced the Prussian reforms, which paved the way for the unification of Germany. ...

and

Joseph Görres Johann Joseph Görres, since 1839 von Görres (25 January 1776 – 29 January 1848), was a German writer, philosopher, theologian, historian and journalist. Early life Görres was born in Koblenz. His father was moderately well off, and sent hi ...

. The third section is on social and miscellaneous issues, and includes articles on the

Oneida community The Oneida Community was a perfectionist religious communal society founded by John Humphrey Noyes and his followers in 1848 near Oneida, New York. The community believed that Jesus had already returned in AD 70, making it possible for them ...

, working women, the position of women in the labour market and the Art Museum in Berlin.

Memorial

A memorial fountain in memory of Montefiore exists in Stepney Green, East London.

Bibliography

Essays and Letters by Leonard A. Montefiore, in Memoriam, Privately Printed. London 1881.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Montefiore, Leonard Jewish philanthropists British women's rights activists 1853 births 1879 deaths

Leonard Leonard or ''Leo'' is a common English language, English masculine given name and a surname. The given name and surname originate from the Old High German ''Leonhard'' containing the prefix ''levon'' ("lion") from the Greek wikiwikiweb:Λέων, � ...