W. P. Roberts (1806–1871) was a noted Chartist who became known as the ''"attorney-general"'' of the coal miners in the 1840s.

Family

William Prowting Roberts was born in

Chelmsford, Essex Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Southend-on-Sea and Colchester. It is located north-east of London a ...

to Revd Thomas Roberts, who was head of the local grammar school, and to a daughter of William Prowting who was surgeon and treasurer of

St Luke's Hospital for Lunatics St Luke's Hospital for Lunatics was founded in London in 1751 for the treatment of incurable pauper lunatics by a group of philanthropic apothecaries and others. It was the second public institution in London created to look after mentally ill pe ...

. He married Mary Moody (d. 1837), daughter of Revd William Moody of Bathamton House,

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

, and had two children, a boy and a girl. He then later married Mary Hill Hopkins who he had two sons and two daughters with.

Chartism

Roberts established a legal practice in

Bath, Somerset Bath () is a city in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary area in the county of Somerset, England, known for and named after its Roman-built baths. At the 2021 Census, the population was 101,557. Bath is in the valley of the River Avon, ...

, where he became involved in local politics. He became the head of the Bath Working Men's Association. His involvement with the Chartist movement subsequently meant that he became friends with

Henry Vincent Henry Vincent (10 May 1813 – 29 December 1878) was active in the formation of early Working Men's Associations in Britain, a popular Chartist leader, brilliant and gifted public orator, prospective but ultimately unsuccessful Victorian membe ...

. Roberts was a popular public speaker in the West Country where he also defended fellow

Chartists Chartism was a working-class movement for political reform in the United Kingdom that erupted from 1838 to 1857 and was strongest in 1839, 1842 and 1848. It took its name from the People's Charter of 1838 and was a national protest movement, w ...

in court. He himself was sentenced to two years of imprisonment in March 1840"W.P.Roberts"
''Looking at History: Chartist Lives'' Published 1 September 2007 Retrieved 25 June 2014 after a turbulent meeting in Devizes, Wiltshire. He secured an early release in July 1840 and undeterred by imprisonment he continued his Chartist associations. He was delegate to the 1842 convention and was treasurer of the Chartist Co-operative Land Company. Roberts stood as Chartist candidate for the

General Election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

1847 and 1857. He arranged a speaking tour for John Frost, leader of the

Newport Rising The Newport Rising was the last large-scale armed rising in Wales, by Chartists whose demands included democracy and the right to vote with a secret ballot. On Monday 4 November 1839, approximately 4,000 Chartist sympathisers, under the lead ...

, around the United States.

Northumberland and Durham Miners' Union

Being one of the first solicitors to concentrate on Trade Unions, Roberts was appointed as the legal adviser for the

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

and

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county *Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in No ...

Miners' Union. He became popularly known as the miners' "attorney-general". His philosophy was simple: ''"We resist every individual act of oppression, even in cases we were sure of losing."'' Roberts challenged the ''Bond'', the oppressive terms of employment under which the miners worked. He won many legal battles against the ''Bond'' and gained notoriety for securing the release of pitmen from

Thornley, Durham :''See also Thornley in Weardale.'' Thornley is a village in County Durham, in England. It is situated about 5 miles (9 km) to the east of Durham and 5 miles (7 km) west of Peterlee. Thornley is part of the Sedgefield parliamentary c ...

colliery in 1843, who had been imprisoned for breaking the ''Bond''. He also attacked the ''Truck'' system in which miners were paid by kind rather than cash.

Friedrich Engels Friedrich Engels ( ,"Engels"
'' Haswell colliery explosion, September 1844, in which 95 miners lost their lives. His accounts led to a government inquiry into mine safety. During his time as a legal adviser to the mining union he edited the ''Miners' Monthly Magazine'' between March–July 1844. ''"In making this arrangement, Mr R's principle motive is to give an opportunity to the pitmen in that neighbourhood of consulting him without their having the trouble of coming to Newcastle."'' He also contributed to the union journal, the Miners' Journal which later was named the ''Miners' Advocate''.

Manchester

The coal owners severely weakened the Union after a prolonged dispute. The Union could no longer afford the services of Roberts. Roberts moved to

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

in the summer of 1845 and became legal adviser to the Lancashire Miners' Association. He became friends and neighbours with Richard Marsden Pankhurst and later

Annie Besant Annie Besant ( Wood; 1 October 1847 – 20 September 1933) was a British socialist, theosophist, freemason, women's rights activist, educationist, writer, orator, political party member and philanthropist. Regarded as a champion of human f ...

. He also notably fought cases involving trade unionists including the case involving engineers from

Newton-le-Willows Newton-le-Willows is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens, Merseyside, England. The population at the 2011 census was 22,114. Newton-le-Willows is on the eastern edge of St Helens, south of Wigan and north of Warrington. The ...

indicted for picketing. He also helped

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

in his legal affairs. In 1854 he attacked the bill restricting trade on Sundays as ''a hypocritical encroachment on the liberties of the poor''.

Last cases

Roberts was the legal adviser to the Miners' National Association from 1858 to 1863 where he was forced out by the president, Alexander MacDonald as his approach was too ''anachronistic'' and ''out of touch''. The unions did not require a lawyer that could humiliate the employers' but a someone who could use the law to settle disagreements. The also did not like Roberts interfering with internal affairs. However, he did succeed in the case of Janet Jones of Blaenau. Janet Jones had been forced to work for two years in the colliery without payment to repay her debts incurred by their ''Tommy Shop'' when her father died. Roberts actions in court led to her getting her wages and started a large campaign against the ''Truck'' system. In October 1867 he acted for the Fenians who were tried for the murder of a policeman, he was taken into custody after the judge, Colin Blackburn, ordered that his conduct in court was unorderly. In December of the same year he secured the release of Ann Justice who was among the six Irish who were charged for the

Clerkenwell explosion The Clerkenwell explosion, also known as the Clerkenwell Outrage, was a bombing in London on 13 December 1867. The Irish Republican Brotherhood, nicknamed the "Fenians", exploded a bomb to try to free one of their members being held on remand a ...

. Roberts helped the Irish in the battle against Irish-English racism. His last notable case was in 1869 involving the miners at Monkwearmouth Colliery where he finally managed to abolish the ''Bill''. In 1871 he published a pamphlet highlighting the dangers of the government's Trade Union Bill.

Later life

Dedicating himself to the poor, Roberts realised that it was impossible for most of the poor to live out proper Christian lives. He visited the

Holy Land The Holy Land; Arabic: or is an area roughly located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River, traditionally synonymous both with the biblical Land of Israel and with the region of Palestine. The term "Holy ...

with his wife in 1862 and again in 1863Charles William Sutton "Roberts, William Prowting" ''Dictionary of National Biography'' 1885–1900, Volume 48: Retrieved 25 June 2014 and lectured at

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

societies. They moved to

Heronsgate Heronsgate (or formerly Herringsgate) is a settlement on the outskirts of Chorleywood, Hertfordshire founded by Feargus O'Connor and the National Land Company, Chartist Cooperative Land Company (later the National Land Company) as O'Connorsville ...

House in 1867 which was an old school built on O'Connorsville which was the first Chartist land settlement at

Chorleywood, Hertfordshire Chorleywood is both a village and a civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and co ...

. Roberts died there on 7 September 1871 and is buried in Chorleywood churchyard.

Sources and further reading

"W.P.Roberts"
''Looking At History: Chartist Lives'' * North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers: ''The Miners' Monthly Magazine'', April 1844: Tracts Vol.28

''Morpeth Herald'': 11 June 1859; page 5; column 2:
''The History of the Wiltshire Constabulary 1839–2003''
by Paul Sample; page 6; Riots and Rebellion:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, W.P. 1806 births 1871 deaths Chartists People from Chelmsford 19th-century English lawyers People from Bath, Somerset People from Chorleywood