Sir Charles Ernest Swann, 1st Baronet, (25 January 1844 – 13 July 1929) was a British businessman and

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

politician. He was born as Charles Ernest Schwann, fifth son of J Frederick Schwann of Gloucester Square, London (and originally from Frankfurt, Germany) and Henrietta Kell of Birmingham.''Obituary: Sir C. E. Swann'', The Times, 15 July 1929, p.19''Biographies of Candidates, England And Wales, Lancashire'', The Times, 29 June 1892, p. 3 His father carried on business in

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confl ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

, and Charles received his early education in the town. He subsequently attended

Owen's College The Victoria University of Manchester, usually referred to as simply the University of Manchester, was a university in Manchester, England. It was founded in 1851 as Owens College. In 1880, the college joined the federal Victoria University. Af ...

, Manchester and

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

. Swann became a merchant in Manchester, and became a leading member of the Liberal movement in the city. He was, by turn, the secretary, treasurer and president of the Manchester Liberal Federation. He was also president of the Manchester Reform Club and for nine years president of the National Reform Union. In

1885 Events January * January 3– 4 – Sino-French War – Battle of Núi Bop: French troops under General Oscar de Négrier defeat a numerically superior Qing Chinese force, in northern Vietnam. * January 17 – Mahdist ...

he was the unsuccessful Liberal candidate for the new

constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

of Manchester North. However, another general election was held in the following year, and Swann was elected as member of parliament. He was to remain Manchester North's MP until 1918. He was regarded as an "advanced radical", and took an interest in the constitutional affairs of India, attending the opening of the National Indian Congress in 1890. In 1906 Charles Schwann was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

"of Prince's Gardens in the

Royal Borough of Kensington The Metropolitan Borough of Kensington was a metropolitan borough in the County of London from 1900 to 1965, which since 1901 was known as the Royal Borough of Kensington, following the death of Queen Victoria, in accordance with her wishes. His ...

" and in 1911 he was as appointed to the Privy Council. In 1913 Schwann changed his surname to Swann by royal licence. He married Elizabeth Duncan in 1876, and they had four sons and a daughter. in 1896, Elizabeth was one of a group of Victorian women and men who founded the Union of Ethical Societies (now known as

Humanists UK Humanists UK, known from 1967 until May 2017 as the British Humanist Association (BHA), is a charitable organisation which promotes secular humanism and aims to represent Irreligion in the United Kingdom, non-religious people in the UK throug ...

) and presided over its inaugural meeting. Sir C E Swann died at his residence in Birkdale,

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

in 1929, aged 85. He was buried in

Putney Vale Cemetery Putney Vale Cemetery and Crematorium in southwest London is located in Putney Vale, surrounded by Putney Heath and Wimbledon Common and Richmond Park. It is located within of parkland. The cemetery was opened in 1891 and the crematorium in 193 ...

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* 1844 births 1929 deaths Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1886–1892 UK MPs 1892–1895 UK MPs 1895–1900 UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs 1906–1910 UK MPs 1910 UK MPs 1910–1918 Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Alumni of University College London Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom {{England-Liberal-UK-MP-stub