George William Foote (11 January 1850 – 17 October 1915) was an English secularist, freethinker, republican, writer and journal editor.

Early life

George William Foote was born in

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to ...

, the son of William Thomas Foot (a customs officer) and Ann Winzar.

Career

In his ''Reminiscences of Charles Bradlaugh'' he recalls coming to London in January 1868 with "plenty of health and very little religion". He was taken to Cleveland Hall by a friend, and "heard Mrs. arrietLaw knock the Bible about delightfully. She was not what would be called a woman of culture, but she had what some devotees of 'culchaw' do not posses—a great deal of natural ability..." A few weeks later Foote heard

Charles Bradlaugh Charles Bradlaugh (; 26 September 1833 – 30 January 1891) was an English political activist and atheist. He founded the National Secular Society in 1866, 15 years after George Holyoake had coined the term "secularism" in 1851. In 1880, Bradl ...

speaking at the hall. He became involved with the

secularism Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on secular, naturalistic considerations. Secularism is most commonly defined as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state, and may be broadened to a si ...

freethought Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an epistemological viewpoint which holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and that beliefs should instead be reached by other methods ...

and

republicanism Republicanism is a political ideology centered on citizenship in a state organized as a republic. Historically, it emphasises the idea of self-rule and ranges from the rule of a representative minority or oligarchy to popular sovereignty. ...

, joining the Young Men's Secular Association, the

National Secular Society The National Secular Society (NSS) is a British campaigning organisation that promotes secularism and the separation of church and state. It holds that no one should gain advantage or disadvantage because of their religion or lack of it. It was ...

, and contributing to Bradlaugh's ''National Reformer''. In 1877 Foote joined the anti-Bradlaughites in the breakaway

British Secular Union The British Secular Union was a secularist organisation, founded in August 1877, primarily as a response to what its founders regarded as the "dictatorial" powers of Charles Bradlaugh as President of the National Secular Society. The founding memb ...

. The split was caused by several factors: Bradlaugh's alleged autocratic style; Bradlaugh's association with

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 ...

; and Bradlaugh and Besant's involvement in promoting birth control and

neo-Malthusianism Malthusianism is the idea that population growth is potentially exponential while the growth of the food supply or other resources is linear, which eventually reduces living standards to the point of triggering a population die off. This event, c ...

. The BSU was relatively short-lived, and Foote himself was reconciled to Bradlaugh within a few years, becoming an NSS vice-president from 1882. ''The Secularist: A Liberal Weekly Review'' (1876-1877), Foote's first attempt to launch his own publication, in collaboration with

George Jacob Holyoake George Jacob Holyoake (13 April 1817 – 22 January 1906) was an English secularist, co-operator and newspaper editor. He coined the terms secularism in 1851 and "jingoism" in 1878. He edited a secularist paper, the ''Reasoner'', from 1846 to J ...

, did not last long. In May, 1881, Foote started a serial publication called ''The Freethinker'', which is still published. As a result of contents of this journal, Foote was charged with

blasphemy Blasphemy is a speech crime and religious crime usually defined as an utterance that shows contempt, disrespects or insults a deity, an object considered sacred or something considered inviolable. Some religions regard blasphemy as a religio ...

, and eventually imprisoned for one year with hard labour. On receiving his sentence from Mr Justice North (a devout Catholic), Foote said "with great deliberation" to the Judge "My Lord, I thank you; it is worthy of your creed". His description of this experience was published in 1886 as ''Prisoner for Blasphemy''. Once released, Foote continued to be active promoting his ideals, writing books and pamphlets, lecturing, and debating. Foote was well-versed in literature, and had extensive knowledge of ancient and contemporary writers, and ecclesiastical history. In 1890 Foote succeeded Bradlaugh as President of the National Secular Society and remained in that role for twenty-five years. His death was related by

Chapman Cohen Chapman Cohen (1 September 1868 – 4 February 1954) was an English freethinker, atheist, and secularist writer and lecturer. Life Chapman Cohen (known by his contemporaries as CC) was the elder son of Enoch Cohen, a confectioner, and his wife ...

in ''The Freethinker'' (31 October 1915):

When I saw him on the Friday (two days) before his death he said, "I have had another setback, but I am a curious fellow and may get all right again." But he looked the fact of death in the face with the same courage and determination that he faced Judge North many years ago. A few hours before he died he said calmly to those around him, "I am dying." And when the end came his head dropped back on the pillow, and with a quiet sigh, as of one falling to sleep, he passed away.

Publications

* Foote, George William (1879). ''Secularism, The True Philosophy of Life: An Exposition and a Defence.'' Reprint, London: GW Foote & Co., 2016. * Foote, George William (1885)
''The Jewish Life of Christ''
London: Progressive Publishing Co. * * Foote, George William (1889). ''Secularism and Theosophy: A Rejoinder to Mrs. Besant's Pamphlet''. London: Progressive Publishing Co. * Foote, George William (1889)

London: Progressive Publishing Co.

Notes

References

External links