Edmund Broughton Barnard
Encyclopedia
Edmund Broughton Barnard (16 February 1856 – 27 January 1930) was a British Liberal
politician, landowner and sportsman.
Mill in Essex
and the nearby Sawbridgeworth
in Hertfordshire
. He was educated at Brighton College
and Downing College, Cambridge
where he gained his BA in 1879 and MA in 1882. He was a member of the Agricultural Board of Studies of Cambridge University. He married Alice Maude Richardson in 1887. His wife died in 1907.
, serving on and chairing many different committees and becoming its chairman in 1920 and an Alderman
. He was chairman of the County Council’s Education Committee and took a strong stand in favour of the retention of village schools, emphasising their importance to the preservation of village life. Barnard also served on Sawbridgeworth Urban District Council and was its chairman between 1905 and 1907
three times before getting elected. At the 1885 general election
he was Liberal candidate in Epping
; in 1886
he stood in Maldon
and then in Kidderminster
at the general election of 1900
. After nursing the constituency for the next few years , he was finally elected at Kidderminster in the Liberal landslide victory of 1906
where his Conservative
opponent was the future prime minister Stanley Baldwin
. He did not contest Kidderminster in the general elections of January 1910 but fought the December General Election and came close to winning back his old seat. He seemed to have had a falling out with the Liberals over the prosecution of the First World War and the conduct of party politics in general as in 1917 he fought a by-election
at Islington East
for the National Party
. He fought the 1918 general election
for the same party at Hertford
.
for both Essex and Hertfordshire and Chairman of Bishops Stortford Petty Sessions. Barnard was also sometime chairman of the Hertfordshire Agricultural Executive, chairman of the Board of Governors of The Bishops Stortford Secondary School for Girls
. He was also a Deputy Lieutenant
of Hertfordshire.
for Cambridge and rode in competitions under Jockey Club
Rules, on one occasion riding three winners in an afternoon at Lewes
races. He later took to regular attendance at race meetings and combined this with a reputation for being a pleasure seeker and convivial host at his Sawbridgeworth home.
’s Hall. Apparently Barnard was just about to move a resolution when he experienced a sudden seizure. The county medical officer went to his assistance but he had died almost instantly.
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
politician, landowner and sportsman.
Family and education
Barnard was the son of William Barnard who had connections to HarlowHarlow
Harlow is a new town and local government district in Essex, England. It is located in the west of the county and on the border with Hertfordshire, on the Stort Valley, The town is near the M11 motorway and forms part of the London commuter belt.The district has a current population of 78,889...
Mill in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
and the nearby Sawbridgeworth
Sawbridgeworth
Sawbridgeworth is a small, mainly residential, town and also a civil parish in Hertfordshire, England.- Location :Sawbridgeworth is four miles south of Bishop's Stortford, twelve miles east of Hertford and nine miles north of Epping. It lies on the A1184 and has a railway station that links to...
in Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
. He was educated at Brighton College
Brighton College
Brighton College is an institution divided between a Senior School known simply as Brighton College, the Prep School and the Pre-Prep School. All of these schools are co-educational independent schools in Brighton, England, sited immediately next to each another. The Senior School caters for...
and Downing College, Cambridge
Downing College, Cambridge
Downing College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1800 and currently has around 650 students.- History :...
where he gained his BA in 1879 and MA in 1882. He was a member of the Agricultural Board of Studies of Cambridge University. He married Alice Maude Richardson in 1887. His wife died in 1907.
Career
Barnard was an old-fashioned country gentleman, a patron of his locality on the Essex and Hertfordshire borders where his family had been extensive landowners and farmers for generations. He was a generous local benefactor and supporter of good causes.Local Politics
Barnard was an original member of Hertfordshire County CouncilHertfordshire County Council
Hertfordshire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Hertfordshire, in England, the United Kingdom. It currently consists of 77 councillors, and is controlled by the Conservative Party, which has 55 councillors, 17 Liberal Democrats, versus 3 Labour...
, serving on and chairing many different committees and becoming its chairman in 1920 and an Alderman
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
. He was chairman of the County Council’s Education Committee and took a strong stand in favour of the retention of village schools, emphasising their importance to the preservation of village life. Barnard also served on Sawbridgeworth Urban District Council and was its chairman between 1905 and 1907
Parliamentary Politics
He stood unsuccessfully for ParliamentParliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
three times before getting elected. At the 1885 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1885
-Seats summary:-See also:*List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1885*Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885–1918*Representation of the People Act 1884*Redistribution of Seats Act 1885-References:...
he was Liberal candidate in Epping
Epping (UK Parliament constituency)
Epping was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 to 1974. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
; in 1886
United Kingdom general election, 1886
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the UK general election, 1886*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
he stood in Maldon
Maldon (UK Parliament constituency)
Maldon is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
and then in Kidderminster
Kidderminster (UK Parliament constituency)
Kidderminster was a parliamentary constituency in Worcestershire, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post voting system.-History:...
at the general election of 1900
United Kingdom general election, 1900
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1900*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
. After nursing the constituency for the next few years , he was finally elected at Kidderminster in the Liberal landslide victory of 1906
United Kingdom general election, 1906
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1906*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
where his Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
opponent was the future prime minister Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley, KG, PC was a British Conservative politician, who dominated the government in his country between the two world wars...
. He did not contest Kidderminster in the general elections of January 1910 but fought the December General Election and came close to winning back his old seat. He seemed to have had a falling out with the Liberals over the prosecution of the First World War and the conduct of party politics in general as in 1917 he fought a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
at Islington East
Islington East (UK Parliament constituency)
Islington East was a constituency which returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885, until it was abolished for the February 1974 general election.-1885–1918:...
for the National Party
National Party (UK, 1917)
The National Party was a short-lived British political party created in August 1917 as a right-wing split from the Conservative Party.-Formation:...
. He fought the 1918 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1918
The United Kingdom general election of 1918 was the first to be held after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which meant it was the first United Kingdom general election in which nearly all adult men and some women could vote. Polling was held on 14 December 1918, although the count did...
for the same party at 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...
.
Other public appointments
In 1904 Barnard was elected Chairman of the Metropolitan Water Board. He was sometime Chairman of the Lee Conservancy Board and the Thames Conservancy Board. In connection with this work he was appointed the First Employers’ Chairman of the Joint Industrial Council for the Waterworks Undertakings Industry. He was sometime president of the Canal Association of Great Britain. He was a Justice of the PeaceJustice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
for both Essex and Hertfordshire and Chairman of Bishops Stortford Petty Sessions. Barnard was also sometime chairman of the Hertfordshire Agricultural Executive, chairman of the Board of Governors of The Bishops Stortford Secondary School for Girls
The Hertfordshire and Essex High School
The Hertfordshire and Essex High School and since 2004 named as The Hertfordshire & Essex High School and Science College, commonly referred as Herts and Essex is a secondary level comprehensive single-sex school and a mixed-sex sixth form on Warwick Road in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, England...
. He was also a Deputy Lieutenant
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
of Hertfordshire.
Sportsman
Barnard was an accomplished horseman. He played poloPolo
Polo is a team sport played on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Sometimes called, "The Sport of Kings", it was highly popularized by the British. Players score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team's goal using a...
for Cambridge and rode in competitions under Jockey Club
Jockey Club
The Jockey Club is the largest commercial organisation in British horseracing. Although no longer responsible for the governance and regulation of the sport, it owns 14 of Britain's famous racecourses, including Aintree, Cheltenham and Newmarket, amongst other concerns such as the National Stud and...
Rules, on one occasion riding three winners in an afternoon at Lewes
Lewes
Lewes is the county town of East Sussex, England and historically of all of Sussex. It is a civil parish and is the centre of the Lewes local government district. The settlement has a history as a bridging point and as a market town, and today as a communications hub and tourist-oriented town...
races. He later took to regular attendance at race meetings and combined this with a reputation for being a pleasure seeker and convivial host at his Sawbridgeworth home.
Death
Barnard died suddenly during a meeting of the Hertfordshire County Council which he was chairing on 27 January 1930. The meeting was being held in London in the Law SocietyLaw society
A Law Society in current and former Commonwealth jurisdictions was historically an association of solicitors with a regulatory role that included the right to supervise the training, qualifications and conduct of lawyers/solicitors...
’s Hall. Apparently Barnard was just about to move a resolution when he experienced a sudden seizure. The county medical officer went to his assistance but he had died almost instantly.