William Rathbone IV (10 June 1757 – 11 February 1809) was an English ship-owner and

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

involved in the organisation of American trade with Liverpool, England. He was a political radical, supporting the abolition of the slave trade and universal suffrage. He was a member of the noted

Rathbone family The Rathbone family of Liverpool, England, were a family of nonconformist merchants and ship-owners who were known to engage in philanthropy and public service. The family origins trace back to Gawsworth, near Macclesfield, where the first Willi ...

Slave trade

Rathbone was a committed opponent to

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

and a founding member of the Liverpool Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade created in 1788, a society originating in London the year before. As a Liverpool merchant he benefited from the sale of timber for use in slave ships and imported goods, such as cotton, made with slave labour.

Political views

Rathbone was considered a political radical because he supported the abolition of slavery, universal

suffrage Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in representative democracy, public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally i ...

, free trade, and he was opposed to the 1793 war with France. He was called the "hoary traitor".The Liverpool Abolitionists by F. E. Sanderson Originally a member of the

Society of Friends Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abili ...

, he felt compelled to write the ''Narrative of Events in Ireland among the Quakers'' in 1786 in protest against religious intolerance in the Society, for which he was disowned from the

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

in 1805. He would never join another religious body, though he occasionally worshipped with local Unitarian congregations.

Personal life

In 1788, Rathbone took a lease on the house and estate of Greenbank, then part of the Toxteth Park property, to serve as a country retreat for his young family, and purchased the freehold of the house in 1809. Rathbone died on 11 February 1809 and was buried at Liverpool Friends' Burial Ground.

Family

Rathbone married Hannah Mary, (1761–1839) daughter of Richard Reynolds of Bristol and Hannah (née Darby) at the Friends Meeting House, Shrewsbury. They had eight children: *

William Rathbone V William Rathbone V (17 June 1787 – 1 February 1868) was an English merchant and politician, serving as Lord Mayor of Liverpool. Life The notability and prosperity of the Rathbone family of Liverpool was tied to the growth of that city as a ma ...

(1787–1868) *

Richard Rathbone Richard Rathbone (2 December 1788 – 10 November 1860) was a member of the noted Rathbone family of Liverpool in England. Life Rathbone was the second son of William Rathbone IV. Richard was a commission merchant, setting up in partnership with ...

(1788–1860) * Hannah Mary (1791–1865) * Joseph (1793–1794) * Theophilus (1795–1798) * Theodore Woolman (1798–1863) * Benson (1800–1834) * Basil (1802–1804)

References

External links

University of Liverpool — Rathbone Papers
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rathbone IV, William Businesspeople from Liverpool English abolitionists English Quakers 1757 births 1809 deaths

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

Quaker abolitionists