Western Wood (MP)
Encyclopedia
Western Wood was a British businessman and a Liberal Party
politician. He sat in the House of Commons from 1861 to 1863.
(1768–1843) and his wife Maria née Page. His father had been a Lord Mayor of London
, and was a Member of Parliament
(MP) for 36 years. His brother William
(1801–1881) was a barrister and Liberal MP who was ennobled as Lord Hatherley and became Lord Chancellor
; his older brother John (1796–1866) was the father of Katharine O'Shea, whose divorce from her husband remarriage Charles Stuart Parnell became a major political scandal in 1890.
, and a member of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers
, of which he was a warden by 1861.
When the Lord John Russell
, the Liberal Member of Parliament
(MP) for the City of London
, was elevated to the peerage as Earl Russell
, Wood was chosen as the Liberal candidate for the resulting by-election.
At the selection meeting in the London Tavern on 18 July, one person favoured inviting the Chancellor of the Exchequer
, William Ewart Gladstone
, to be their candidate, but the others preferred Wood. He told the meeting that, like his father Sir Matthew
and his brother Sir William
, he supported the secret ballot
. In an election address issued that evening he stated his selection was due "entirely to the favourable recollection of the services of my late father". He said that he had been a reformer since his youth, when those principles were not dominant, and pledged himself to support any measures to extend the franchise
, expand education, and to achieve an "equitable adjustment of the vexed question of church-rates
". In foreign policy
, he pledged to follow the principles of Lord John Russell when Foreign Secretary, and said that while it was Britain's duty to express a "lively sympathy for the efforts of other nations to secure their civil and religious liberty", they should abstain "from all interfence with the development of the national will".
He asserted that his own personal interests in the commercial of affairs of the city would ensure that he gave them due attention, and that his experience was that in business matters public and private interests were "identical". Finally, he asked the electors not to vote for him on any grounds other than that his opinions coincided with theirs.
His Conservative opponent was the then Lord Mayor of London
, William Cubitt, who had resigned
as MP for Andover
in order to contest the by-election. The election began as a personal contest between two prominent figures in the City, but developed into a vigorous contest of political principles.
Nominations took place at a hustings in the London Guildhall
on 29 July,
with polling on 30 July 1861.
When the result was formally declared on 31 July, Wood had won with a majority of 506 votes out of a total of 10,988. Cubitt had a significant lead amongst the city's Liverymen, but that was not enough to offset Wood's lead amongst the householders.
Wood died in office less than two years later, on 17 May 1863, at his home North Crayplace in Kent
. He had an inflammation of both lungs
, accompanied by pleurisy
.
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. He sat in the House of Commons from 1861 to 1863.
Family
Wood was the fourth child, and second son, of Sir Matthew Wood, 1st BaronetSir Matthew Wood, 1st Baronet
Sir Matthew Wood, 1st Baronet was a British Whig politician.-Life:Matthew Wood was the son of William Wood, a serge maker from Exeter and Tiverton, and his wife Catherine Cluse . He was educated briefly at Blundell's School, before being obliged to help his ailing father...
(1768–1843) and his wife Maria née Page. His father had been a Lord Mayor of London
Lord Mayor of London
The Right Honourable Lord Mayor of London is the legal title for the Mayor of the City of London Corporation. The Lord Mayor of London is to be distinguished from the Mayor of London; the former is an officer only of the City of London, while the Mayor of London is the Mayor of Greater London and...
, and was 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,...
(MP) for 36 years. His brother William
William Wood, 1st Baron Hatherley
William Page Wood, 1st Baron Hatherley PC, QC was a British lawyer and statesman who served as a Liberal Lord Chancellor between 1868 and 1872 in William Ewart Gladstone's first ministry.-Background and education:...
(1801–1881) was a barrister and Liberal MP who was ennobled as Lord Hatherley and became Lord Chancellor
Lord Chancellor
The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
; his older brother John (1796–1866) was the father of Katharine O'Shea, whose divorce from her husband remarriage Charles Stuart Parnell became a major political scandal in 1890.
Career
Wood was a merchant in the City of LondonCity of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
, and a member of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers
Worshipful Company of Fishmongers
The Worshipful Company of Fishmongers is one of the 108 Livery Companies of the City of London, being a guild of the sellers of fish and seafood in the City...
, of which he was a warden by 1861.
When the Lord John Russell
John Russell, 1st Earl Russell
John Russell, 1st Earl Russell, KG, GCMG, PC , known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was an English Whig and Liberal politician who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century....
, the Liberal 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,...
(MP) for the City of London
City of London (UK Parliament constituency)
The City of London was a United Kingdom Parliamentary constituency. It was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1950.-Boundaries and boundary...
, was elevated to the peerage as Earl Russell
Earl Russell
Earl Russell, of Kingston Russell in the County of Dorset, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 30 July 1861 for the prominent Liberal politician Lord John Russell. He was Home Secretary from 1835 to 1839, Foreign Secretary from 1852 to 1853 and 1859 to 1865 and Prime...
, Wood was chosen as the Liberal candidate for the resulting by-election.
At the selection meeting in the London Tavern on 18 July, one person favoured inviting the Chancellor of the Exchequer
Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title held by the British Cabinet minister who is responsible for all economic and financial matters. Often simply called the Chancellor, the office-holder controls HM Treasury and plays a role akin to the posts of Minister of Finance or Secretary of the...
, William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times , more than any other person. Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time...
, to be their candidate, but the others preferred Wood. He told the meeting that, like his father Sir Matthew
Sir Matthew Wood, 1st Baronet
Sir Matthew Wood, 1st Baronet was a British Whig politician.-Life:Matthew Wood was the son of William Wood, a serge maker from Exeter and Tiverton, and his wife Catherine Cluse . He was educated briefly at Blundell's School, before being obliged to help his ailing father...
and his brother Sir William
William Wood, 1st Baron Hatherley
William Page Wood, 1st Baron Hatherley PC, QC was a British lawyer and statesman who served as a Liberal Lord Chancellor between 1868 and 1872 in William Ewart Gladstone's first ministry.-Background and education:...
, he supported the secret ballot
Secret ballot
The secret ballot is a voting method in which a voter's choices in an election or a referendum are anonymous. The key aim is to ensure the voter records a sincere choice by forestalling attempts to influence the voter by intimidation or bribery. The system is one means of achieving the goal of...
. In an election address issued that evening he stated his selection was due "entirely to the favourable recollection of the services of my late father". He said that he had been a reformer since his youth, when those principles were not dominant, and pledged himself to support any measures to extend the franchise
Suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply the franchise, distinct from mere voting rights, is the civil right to vote gained through the democratic process...
, expand education, and to achieve an "equitable adjustment of the vexed question of church-rates
Church Rate
The Church Rate was a tax formerly levied in each parish in England and Ireland for the benefit of the parish church. Out of these rates were defrayed the expenses of carrying on divine service, repairing the fabric of the church, and paying the salaries of the officials connected with it...
". In foreign policy
Foreign policy
A country's foreign policy, also called the foreign relations policy, consists of self-interest strategies chosen by the state to safeguard its national interests and to achieve its goals within international relations milieu. The approaches are strategically employed to interact with other countries...
, he pledged to follow the principles of Lord John Russell when Foreign Secretary, and said that while it was Britain's duty to express a "lively sympathy for the efforts of other nations to secure their civil and religious liberty", they should abstain "from all interfence with the development of the national will".
He asserted that his own personal interests in the commercial of affairs of the city would ensure that he gave them due attention, and that his experience was that in business matters public and private interests were "identical". Finally, he asked the electors not to vote for him on any grounds other than that his opinions coincided with theirs.
His Conservative opponent was the then Lord Mayor of London
Lord Mayor of London
The Right Honourable Lord Mayor of London is the legal title for the Mayor of the City of London Corporation. The Lord Mayor of London is to be distinguished from the Mayor of London; the former is an officer only of the City of London, while the Mayor of London is the Mayor of Greater London and...
, William Cubitt, who had resigned
Resignation from the British House of Commons
Members of Parliament sitting in the House of Commons in the United Kingdom are technically forbidden to resign. To circumvent this prohibition, a legal fiction is used...
as MP for Andover
Andover (UK Parliament constituency)
Andover was the name of a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England from 1295 to 1307, and again from 1586, then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1918. It was a parliamentary borough in Hampshire,...
in order to contest the by-election. The election began as a personal contest between two prominent figures in the City, but developed into a vigorous contest of political principles.
Nominations took place at a hustings in the London Guildhall
Guildhall, London
The Guildhall is a building in the City of London, off Gresham and Basinghall streets, in the wards of Bassishaw and Cheap. It has been used as a town hall for several hundred years, and is still the ceremonial and administrative centre of the City of London and its Corporation...
on 29 July,
with polling on 30 July 1861.
When the result was formally declared on 31 July, Wood had won with a majority of 506 votes out of a total of 10,988. Cubitt had a significant lead amongst the city's Liverymen, but that was not enough to offset Wood's lead amongst the householders.
Wood died in office less than two years later, on 17 May 1863, at his home North Crayplace in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. He had an inflammation of both lungs
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
, accompanied by pleurisy
Pleurisy
Pleurisy is an inflammation of the pleura, the lining of the pleural cavity surrounding the lungs. Among other things, infections are the most common cause of pleurisy....
.