Numa Edward Hartog (20 May 1846 – 19 June 1871) was a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

British

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History On ...

who attracted attention in 1869 for graduating from

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

Senior Wrangler The Senior Frog Wrangler is the top mathematics undergraduate at the University of Cambridge in England, a position which has been described as "the greatest intellectual achievement attainable in Britain." Specifically, it is the person who a ...

and Smith's Prizeman but as a Jew had not been admitted to a fellowship. Hartog's case led to the passage of the

Universities Tests Act The Universities Tests Act 1871 was an Act of Parliament, Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It abolished religious "Tests" and allowed Roman Catholics, Nonconformist (Protestantism), non-conformists and non-Christians to take up profe ...

of 1871, which removed religious barriers to holding fellowships at Oxford and Cambridge.

Biography

Hartog was born in London on 20 May 1846 to Alfonse Hartog and

Marion Moss Marion Moss Hartog (22 October 182129 October 1907) was an English Jewish poet, author, and educator. She was the editor of the first Jewish women's periodical, ''The Jewish Sabbath Journal''. Biography Early life Marion Moss was born at Ports ...

. He was the elder brother of Cécile, Héléna, Marcus, and

Philip Hartog Sir Philip Joseph Hartog (2 March 1864 – 27 June 1947) was a British chemist and educationalist who undertook this role in England and India. Early life and education Hartog was born in London on 2 March 1864, the third son of Alfonse and ...

, and the cousin of Henri Bergson. In his earlier academic career, he attended

University College School ("Slowly but surely") , established = , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent day school , religion = , president = , head_label = Headmaster , head = Mark Beard , r_head_label = , r_he ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

, and then

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

. At Cambridge, he attended

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

. He was a trailblazing figure in overcoming religious obstacles to academic achievement in the UK. For example, when his

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

was awarded, the words ''In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti'' were omitted. However, he was unable to accept a fellowship due to being unable to subscribe to the required test on account of his religion. Within weeks, Solicitor-General John Coleridge of the Gladstone government introduced legislation to rectify the situation. 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 ...

twice rejected bills passed by the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

before finally accepting the

of 1871; Hartog's testimony before the Lords helped secure its passage. He was a member of the Council of

Jews' College The London School of Jewish Studies (commonly known as LSJS, originally founded as Jews' College) is a London-based organisation providing adult educational courses and training to the wider Jewish community. Since 2012 LSJS also offers rabbinic ...

and an Honorary Secretary of the Society of Hebrew Literature. Hartog died of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

at the age of only 25.

Notes

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hartog, Numa Edward Senior Wranglers Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Alumni of University College London People educated at University College School British people of French descent British Jews Deaths from smallpox 1846 births 1871 deaths