Louis John Jennings (12 May 1836 – 9 February 1893) was an English journalist and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

politician. Jennings was born in

Walworth Walworth () is a district of south London, England, within the London Borough of Southwark. It adjoins Camberwell to the south and Elephant and Castle to the north, and is south-east of Charing Cross. Major streets in Walworth include the Old ...

London London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, the son of John Jennings, a tailor, and his wife Sarah Michel. Following a period with the '' Saturday Review'', he joined ''

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 ...

'' newspaper and between 1863 and 1868 was its special correspondent, first in India and, from 1865, the USA, where he was successful in mending the paper's relations with the US Government following its support for the South during the Civil War. In 1868 he published his study of ''Eighty years of republican government in the United States''. He then joined 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 ...

'' of which he became editor from 1870 to 1876. As editor he was responsible for the exposure of the

Tweed Ring William Magear Tweed (April 3, 1823 – April 12, 1878), often erroneously referred to as William "Marcy" Tweed (see below), and widely known as "Boss" Tweed, was an American politician most notable for being the political boss of Tammany ...

and subsequently received a letter from

Chester A. Arthur Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 21st president of the United States from 1881 to 1885. He previously served as the 20th vice president under President James ...

assuring him that his services to the citizens of New York would not be forgotten.''LOUIS JOHN JENNINGS.''

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 ...

10 February 1893 Jennings returned to London in 1876, following the failure of an attempt to secure financial control of the ''New York Times'', and established a close working relationship with the publisher John Murray, both as book reviewer and author. His initial publications described walks in

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

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. ...

and the

Peak District The Peak District is an upland area in England at the southern end of the Pennines. Mostly in Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southe ...

of Derbyshire. He wrote a novel ''The Millionaire'' and in 1885 edited, in three volumes, the papers of

John Wilson Croker John Wilson Croker (20 December 178010 August 1857) was an Anglo-Irish statesman and author. Life He was born in Galway, the only son of John Croker, the surveyor-general of customs and excise in Ireland. He was educated at Trinity College Dubl ...

. Between 1881 and 1892 he wrote numerous articles for the ''Quarterly Review'', including its regular political article. A strong proponent of the policy of

Fair Trade Fair trade is an arrangement designed to help producers in developing countries achieve sustainable and equitable trade relationships. The fair trade movement combines the payment of higher prices to exporters with improved social and enviro ...

, in 1885 he was elected

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

Stockport Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here. Most of the town is within ...

. Following the 1886 election he wrote a critical account of

William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...

. This was followed by a collection of the speeches of

Lord Randolph Churchill Lord Randolph Henry Spencer-Churchill (13 February 1849 – 24 January 1895) was a British statesman. Churchill was a Tory radical and coined the term 'Tory democracy'. He inspired a generation of party managers, created the National Union of ...

, of whom he was for a time a political ally and supporter of Churchill's advocacy of

Tory Democracy One-nation conservatism, also known as one-nationism or Tory democracy, is a paternalistic form of British political conservatism. It advocates the preservation of established institutions and traditional principles within a political democr ...

. However, he later broke with Churchill during the last years of his life. His last work was the novel ''The Philadelphian''. Jennings died in office as an MP at the age of 55. His first biography, by David Morphet, appeared in 2001. In 1867 Jennings married Madeline Louise Henriques, daughter of David M Henriques of New York. His daughter Gertrude E. Jennings (1877-1958) became a notable author of one act theatrical plays in Britain.

Publications

*''Eighty years of republican government in the United States''- 1868 *''Field paths and green lanes; being country walks, chiefly in Surrey and Sussex''- 1877 *''Rambles among the hills in the Peak of Derbyshire, and the South Downs''- 1880 *''The Millionaire''- 1883 *''The Croker papers. The correspondence and diaries of the late Right Honourable John Wilson Croker ... secretary to the Admiralty from 1809 to 1830 by John Wilson Croker'' (Book)- 1884 *''Mr. Gladstone''- 1887 *''Speeches of the Right Honourable Lord Randolph Churchill, M.P., 1880-1888 by Randolph Henry Spencer Churchill'' (Book)- 1889 *''The Philadelphian''- 1891

References

* David Morphet ''Louis Jennings MP, editor of the New York Times and Tory Democrat'' Notion Books 2001

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jennings, Louis John 1836 births 1893 deaths English male journalists Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1886–1892 UK MPs 1892–1895 People from Walworth 19th-century British journalists Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Stockport