Charles Roden Buxton
Encyclopedia
Charles Roden Buxton was an English
philanthropist and politician.
He was born in London, the third son of Sir Thomas Buxton, 3rd Baronet. His elder brother Noel Buxton was a prominent figure in British politics, as was his cousin Sidney Buxton
.
He grew up on the family estate in Essex and was educated at Harrow
and Trinity College, Cambridge
, taking a first in Classics and becoming president of the Cambridge Union. After leaving university he travelled to South Australia
, where his father was Governor
, as well as other locations in France, the Far East, India and America.
He took up law and was called to the bar in 1902. He gave lectures at Morley College
and was principal there from 1902 to 1910. He wrote articles on various subjects and edited the Albany Review from 1906 to 1908.
In 1904 he married Dorothy Frances Jebb. The Jebbs, apart from being a well-off family, also had a strong social conscience and commitment to public service; her mother, Eglantyne Louisa Jebb
, had founded the Home Arts and Industries Association
, to promote Arts and Crafts among young people in rural areas, her sister Louisa would help found the Women's Land Army
in World War I
, and Dorothy and her sister Eglantyne Jebb
co-founded the international charity and movement Save the Children
.
The Buxtons lived a frugal lifestyle - on their walking tours in the south of England, they were sometimes mistaken for tramps - and moved to Kennington
, a working class area of London. They had two children and later moved to the more affluent area of Golders Green
.
He stood as a Liberal candidate in Hertford
in 1906 and Ashburton
in 1908. Eventually he was elected as a member of Parliament
in Ashburton
in 1910 but lost his seat in the second election of that year. In 1914 he went to Bulgaria
with his brother Noel and was wounded in an attack by a Turkish assassin. He was shot through the lung, but survived.
During the First World War, he was one of the minority arguing for a negotiated peace and was a founder member of the Union of Democratic Control
. In 1917 he left the Liberal Party and joined the Independent Labour Party
. As secretary to the Labour Party's delegation to the Soviet Union
in 1920, he was very impressed by what he saw, and wrote a book about it, In A Russian Village (1922). In 1918 he contested Accrington
for the Labour Party and lost, won the seat in 1922, and lost again in 1923. He won the seat of Elland
in 1929, but was defeated in 1931 and 1935.
Buxton was always much more effective behind the scenes, acting as policy advisor on foreign and colonial issues to the Labour Party. He showed particular interest in the rights of indigenous people of Africa, and travelled widely in the continent.
Another of his interests was Esperanto
, becoming president of the British Esperantists.
With Dorothy, he became a member of the Society of Friends. They were eager campaigners for peace, and were critical of what they perceived as the unfairness to Germany of the treaty of Versailles
. Shortly before the outbreak of World War II they still argued that peace could be attained by responding to German grievances. The outbreak of war was a great disappointment to them both. Charles retired from politics in 1939 and lived in his daughter's house in Peaslake
, Surrey, where he died and was buried in 1942. Although he had two children, he left most of his estate to charity.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
philanthropist and politician.
He was born in London, the third son of Sir Thomas Buxton, 3rd Baronet. His elder brother Noel Buxton was a prominent figure in British politics, as was his cousin Sidney Buxton
Sydney Buxton, 1st Earl Buxton
Sydney Charles Buxton, 1st Earl Buxton GCMG, PC was a British Liberal politician of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.-Background and education:...
.
He grew up on the family estate in Essex and was educated at Harrow
Harrow School
Harrow School, commonly known simply as "Harrow", is an English independent school for boys situated in the town of Harrow, in north-west London.. The school is of worldwide renown. There is some evidence that there has been a school on the site since 1243 but the Harrow School we know today was...
and Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
, taking a first in Classics and becoming president of the Cambridge Union. After leaving university he travelled to South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
, where his father was Governor
Governors of South Australia
The Governor of South Australia is the representative in the Australian state of South Australia of Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia. The Governor performs the same constitutional and ceremonial functions at the state level as does the Governor-General of Australia at the national level.In...
, as well as other locations in France, the Far East, India and America.
He took up law and was called to the bar in 1902. He gave lectures at Morley College
Morley College
Morley College is an adult education college in London, England. It was founded in the 1880s and has a student population of 10,806 adult students...
and was principal there from 1902 to 1910. He wrote articles on various subjects and edited the Albany Review from 1906 to 1908.
In 1904 he married Dorothy Frances Jebb. The Jebbs, apart from being a well-off family, also had a strong social conscience and commitment to public service; her mother, Eglantyne Louisa Jebb
Eglantyne Louisa Jebb
Eglantyne Louisa Jebb was a social reformer. Born in Killiney, Ireland, she married her cousin Arthur Trevor Jebb , a barrister and landowner from Ellesmere, Shropshire. Her brother was the classicist Sir Richard Claverhouse Jebb...
, had founded the Home Arts and Industries Association
Home Arts and Industries Association
The Home Arts and Industries Association was an organisation that functioned as a precursor to the Art Workers Guild in the development of the Arts and Crafts Movement in Britain. It was founded in 1884 by Eglantyne Louisa Jebb who was inspired by an initiative of Charles Godfrey Leland in...
, to promote Arts and Crafts among young people in rural areas, her sister Louisa would help found the Women's Land Army
Women's Land Army
The Women's Land Army was a British civilian organisation created during the First and Second World Wars to work in agriculture replacing men called up to the military. Women who worked for the WLA were commonly known as Land Girls...
in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, and Dorothy and her sister Eglantyne Jebb
Eglantyne Jebb
Eglantyne Jebb was a British social reformer.- Early life :She was born in 1876 in Ellesmere, Shropshire, and grew up on her family's estate. The Jebbs were a well-off family and had a strong social conscience and commitment to public service...
co-founded the international charity and movement Save the Children
Save the Children
Save the Children is an internationally active non-governmental organization that enforces children's rights, provides relief and helps support children in developing countries...
.
The Buxtons lived a frugal lifestyle - on their walking tours in the south of England, they were sometimes mistaken for tramps - and moved to Kennington
Kennington
Kennington is a district of South London, England, mainly within the London Borough of Lambeth, although part of the area is within the London Borough of Southwark....
, a working class area of London. They had two children and later moved to the more affluent area of Golders Green
Golders Green
Golders Green is an area in the London Borough of Barnet in London, England. Although having some earlier history, it is essentially a 19th century suburban development situated about 5.3 miles north west of Charing Cross and centred on the crossroads of Golders Green Road and Finchley Road.In the...
.
He stood as a Liberal candidate in Hertford
Hertford (UK Parliament constituency)
Hertford was the name of a parliamentary constituency in Hertfordshire, which elected Members of Parliament from 1298 until 1974. It was represented in the House of Commons of England from 1298 to 1707, then of the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800, and finally in the House of...
in 1906 and Ashburton
Ashburton (UK Parliament constituency)
Ashburton was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament at Westminster, for one Parliament in 1298 and regularly from 1640 until it was abolished for the 1868 general election. It was one of three Devon borough constituencies newly enfranchised in the Long...
in 1908. Eventually he was elected as a member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
in Ashburton
Ashburton (UK Parliament constituency)
Ashburton was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament at Westminster, for one Parliament in 1298 and regularly from 1640 until it was abolished for the 1868 general election. It was one of three Devon borough constituencies newly enfranchised in the Long...
in 1910 but lost his seat in the second election of that year. In 1914 he went to Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
with his brother Noel and was wounded in an attack by a Turkish assassin. He was shot through the lung, but survived.
During the First World War, he was one of the minority arguing for a negotiated peace and was a founder member of the Union of Democratic Control
Union of Democratic Control
The Union of Democratic Control was a British pressure group formed in 1914 to press for a more responsive foreign policy. While not a pacifist organization, it was opposed to military influence in government.-World War I:...
. In 1917 he left the Liberal Party and joined the Independent Labour Party
Independent Labour Party
The Independent Labour Party was a socialist political party in Britain established in 1893. The ILP was affiliated to the Labour Party from 1906 to 1932, when it voted to leave...
. As secretary to the Labour Party's delegation to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in 1920, he was very impressed by what he saw, and wrote a book about it, In A Russian Village (1922). In 1918 he contested Accrington
Accrington (UK Parliament constituency)
Accrington was a parliamentary constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 to 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election.-History:...
for the Labour Party and lost, won the seat in 1922, and lost again in 1923. He won the seat of Elland
Elland (UK Parliament constituency)
Elland was a parliamentary constituency in the West Riding of Yorkshire that existed between 1885 and 1950. It elected one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons, by the first-past-the-post voting system....
in 1929, but was defeated in 1931 and 1935.
Buxton was always much more effective behind the scenes, acting as policy advisor on foreign and colonial issues to the Labour Party. He showed particular interest in the rights of indigenous people of Africa, and travelled widely in the continent.
Another of his interests was Esperanto
Esperanto
is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...
, becoming president of the British Esperantists.
With Dorothy, he became a member of the Society of Friends. They were eager campaigners for peace, and were critical of what they perceived as the unfairness to Germany of the treaty of Versailles
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1919, exactly five years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The other Central Powers on the German side of...
. Shortly before the outbreak of World War II they still argued that peace could be attained by responding to German grievances. The outbreak of war was a great disappointment to them both. Charles retired from politics in 1939 and lived in his daughter's house in Peaslake
Peaslake
Peaslake is in the centre of the Surrey Hills area, close to the market town of Guildford, England. Surrounded by acres of forest and downland, visitors come here to walk and cycle and to enjoy the views of the local countryside. Nearby to the south is Pitch Hill which at is the fifth highest...
, Surrey, where he died and was buried in 1942. Although he had two children, he left most of his estate to charity.