Sir Henry Norman, 1st Baronet (19 September 18584 June 1939) 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 ...
journalist
A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...
and
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
Member of Parliament and government minister. Norman was educated privately in France and at Harvard University, where he obtained his B.A. For several years he worked on the editorial staff of the ''
Pall Mall Gazette
''The Pall Mall Gazette'' was an evening newspaper founded in London on 7 February 1865 by George Murray Smith; its first editor was Frederick Greenwood. In 1921, '' The Globe'' merged into ''The Pall Mall Gazette'', which itself was absorbed int ...
'' and later joined the editorial staff of the ''
Daily Chronicle
The 'Daily Chronicle' was a British newspaper that was published from 1872 to 1930 when it merged with the ''Daily News (UK), Daily News'' to become the ''News Chronicle''.
Foundation
The ''Daily Chronicle'' was developed by Edward Lloyd (publis ...
'', being appointed Assistant Editor of the latter in 1895. He retired from journalism in 1899. During this time he travelled widely in Canada and the United States and in Russia, Japan, China, Siam, Malaya and Central Asia. Much of the material included in the two volumes mentioned in the description was amassed during these tours. He was knighted in 1906 and made a baronet in 1915.
Family and education
Norman was born in
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
, the son of Henry Norman, a merchant and local radical politician. Norman was educated at Leicester Collegiate School and
Grove House School
Grove House School was a Quaker school in Tottenham, United Kingdom.
School
The school was established in 1828 as a boarding school for 75 boys of the Quaker community, initially under Thomas Binns. One of its founders was Josiah Forster, who ...
and later studied
theology
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
and
philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
at
Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...
and
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
. His family were
Unitarians in religion and Norman first embarked in a career as a preacher but he gave up this calling and his religion on his return to England.
In 1891 he married author
Ménie Muriel Dowie
Ménie Muriel Dowie (15 July 1867 – 25 March 1945) was a British writer.
Early life and education
Dowie was born in Liverpool to Annie Dowie (née Chambers) and James Muir Dowie, a merchant. Dowie's maternal grandfather was a Scottish author ...
(1867–1945) but they divorced in 1903 on the grounds of her adultery with a family friend,
Edward Arthur Fitzgerald. Norman was awarded custody of their son
Henry Nigel St Valery Norman who was born in 1897.
In 1907 he married
Florence Priscilla McLaren (1884–1964), the daughter of the wealthy industrialist and Liberal MP,
Sir Charles McLaren. They had three children.
In 1922 he purchased
Ramster Hall, Chiddingfold, Guildford, Surrey with Lady Norman.
Journalism
Norman became a journalist working for the ''
Pall Mall Gazette
''The Pall Mall Gazette'' was an evening newspaper founded in London on 7 February 1865 by George Murray Smith; its first editor was Frederick Greenwood. In 1921, '' The Globe'' merged into ''The Pall Mall Gazette'', which itself was absorbed int ...
'' and the ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
.'' As a journalist he was famous for uncovering the truth behind the
Dreyfus Affair
The Dreyfus affair (french: affaire Dreyfus, ) was a political scandal that divided the French Third Republic from 1894 until its resolution in 1906. "L'Affaire", as it is known in French, has come to symbolise modern injustice in the Francop ...
. He was on the staff of the ''
Daily Chronicle
The 'Daily Chronicle' was a British newspaper that was published from 1872 to 1930 when it merged with the ''Daily News (UK), Daily News'' to become the ''News Chronicle''.
Foundation
The ''Daily Chronicle'' was developed by Edward Lloyd (publis ...
'' from 1892, becoming assistant editor. Norman travelled extensively in the East, where he took a number of photographs that are held at
Cambridge University
, mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts.
Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge.
, established =
, other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
. Later he founded and edited the magazine ''The World's Work'' (vols 1-42 1902-1923).
Business
He was appointed Assistant
Postmaster-General
A Postmaster General, in Anglosphere countries, is the chief executive officer of the postal service of that country, a Ministry (government department), ministerial office responsible for overseeing all other postmasters. The practice of having ...
in 1910 and his interest in international communications led to a number of appointments related to wireless and telegraphy, among them Chairman of the
War Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...
Committee on
Wireless Telegraphy
Wireless telegraphy or radiotelegraphy is transmission of text messages by radio waves, analogous to electrical telegraphy using cables. Before about 1910, the term ''wireless telegraphy'' was also used for other experimental technologies for ...
1912, and Chairman of the Imperial Wireless Telegraphy Committee of 1920, the latter convened to draw up a complete wireless scheme for the Empire. He was an early advocate of wireless broadcasting, opening the All British Wireless Exhibition at the
Royal Horticultural Hall
Lawrence Hall in Greycoat Street, Westminster was the newer of the two Royal Horticultural Halls owned by R.H.S. Enterprises Limited, which is part of the Royal Horticultural Society charity in central London. The other is Lindley Hall in Elvert ...
, Westminster in 1922 at which he predicted the ubiquitous uptake, to a very sceptical press, of the technology into all homes.
In other business, Norman was a director of a number of companies connected to the coal mining and iron trades industries.
World War One
Sir Henry was the
Munitions Inventions Department
The Munitions Inventions Department (MID) of the British Ministry of Munitions was created during the First World War in 1915. Its administrative structure encompassed university and industrial laboratories, private workshops, and military experime ...
's permanent attaché to the French Ministry of Inventions. At the end of the war Sir Henry got involved in the detailed planning for a proposed
transatlantic flight
A transatlantic flight is the flight of an aircraft across the Atlantic Ocean from Europe, Africa, South Asia, or the Middle East to North America, Central America, or South America, or ''vice versa''. Such flights have been made by fixed-wing air ...
using a F.B.27.
Vickers Vimy
The Vickers Vimy was a British heavy bomber aircraft developed and manufactured by Vickers Limited. Developed during the latter stages of the First World War to equip the Royal Flying Corps (RFC), the Vimy was designed by Reginald Kirshaw "Rex" ...
. This planning included the route to be flown and of course, the hangar facilities and the provision of fuel needed for preparation of the aircraft in Newfoundland.
Politics
Norman was a
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
for
Wolverhampton South from 1900 to 1910, and for
Blackburn
Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...
from 1910 to 1923. He was an advocate for a number of causes, notably women's suffrage. He was created Baronet of Honeyhanger in the Parish of Shottermill in the County of Surrey, in 1915. In 1918 he was admitted to the
Privy Council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...
. In January 1910 he was appointed
Assistant Postmaster General The Assistant Postmaster General is a defunct junior ministerial position in the United Kingdom Government.
The title of Postmaster General was abolished under the Post Office Act 1969. A new public authority governed by a chairman was established ...
, a position which fitted well with his interests in wireless communications. He sat on the War Office Committee on Wireless Telegraphy in 1912. In 1914, he became the first President of th
Derby Wireless Club founded in 1911. He was Chairman of the Imperial Wireless Telegraphy Committee from 1919, (The Norman Committee), which recommended wireless communications covering a range of 2,000 miles. He contributed to government committees including chairing a Select Committee on Patent Medicines (specifically advertisements for them and fraudulent claims), on rent restrictions, on betting duty and on industrial paints. He championed the rights and regulation of motorists in the House of Commons even though he had himself been fined for speeding (30 mph) under a scheme he himself had advocated to the Royal Commission. Norman was appointed a
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...
for
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
.
Norman was a supporter of
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for leading the United Kingdom during t ...
, organising the
Budget League
The Budget League was a British pressure group formed in 1909 by Winston Churchill to publicly campaign in favour of David Lloyd George's People's Budget in reaction to the activities of the Budget Protest League.
The foundation of the League had ...
in support of his
People's Budget
The 1909/1910 People's Budget was a proposal of the Liberal government that introduced unprecedented taxes on the lands and incomes of Britain's wealthy to fund new social welfare programmes. It passed the House of Commons in 1909 but was bloc ...
in 1909–10, personally representing Lloyd George in France on a number of occasions during the First World War, and helping organise the government's campaign during the "
Coupon Election
The 1918 United Kingdom general election was called immediately after the Armistice with Germany which ended the History of the United Kingdom during the First World War, First World War, and was held on Saturday, 14 December 1918. The governing ...
" of 1918.
Selected writings
* ''An Account of the Harvard Greek Play'' (1881)
* ''The Preservation of Niagara Falls'' (1882)
* ''The Real Japan'' (1892)
* ''The Peoples and Politics of the Far East'' (1895)
* ''The Treatment and Training of Disabled and Discharged Soldiers in France'' (1917)
* ''All the Russias'' (1902)
* ''Will No Man Understand?'' a play, (1934)
* ''Bodyke : A Chapter in the History of Irish Landlordism '' (1887)
Notes
References
*
*
* Obituary, ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'', 5 June 1939
* Patrick French, ''The Life of Henry Norman''. Unicorn Press 1995
* ''Who was Who'', OUP 2007
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norman, Henry
English male journalists
1858 births
1939 deaths
Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom
Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
UK MPs 1900–1906
UK MPs 1906–1910
UK MPs 1910–1918
UK MPs 1918–1922
UK MPs 1922–1923
Politics of Blackburn with Darwen
People educated at Leicester Collegiate School
Harvard University alumni
English justices of the peace
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Henry
Henry may refer to:
People
*Henry (given name)
*Henry (surname)
* Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry
Royalty
* Portuguese royalty
** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal
** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
National Liberal Party (UK, 1922) politicians