Charles Bradlaugh: a nineteenth century radical

Charles Bradlaugh at age 20.

I am pleased to present a few short articles about the early life of Charles Bradlaugh, a remarkable radical thinker born in Hoxton in 1833. The son of a clerk, he founded the National Secular Society in 1866. He was elected as a Liberal MP for Northampton in 1860 but he refused to take a religious oath and was not allowed to sit in the House of Commons. It took six years to change the law and he was finally allowed to take his seat in 1886.

Bradlaugh was a freethinker, an atheist, a republican and promoter of birth control. The first articles in this blog are about Bradlaugh's early life in Hackney / Bethnal Green. I was inspired to write these articles by his Great-great-grandson, Robin Bradlaugh Bonner, who has been my close friend for over four decades. Robin, who lives in Stoke Newington not far from where Bradlaugh grew up, invited me to accompany him on local walks to discover where his predecessor lived.

 

During those walks, we used notes by Di Ridley prepared for the Charles Bradlaugh Society. I am indebted to her for those notes and the sources she used which provided the inspiration for this research.

 

I have referred to the biography of Bradlaugh titled Charles Bradlaugh: a record of his life and work, volume 1, by his daughter Hypatia Bradlaugh Bonner, Bradlaugh’s daughter, and John Mackinnon Robertson. This is available as an e-book from The Project Gutenberg at www.gutenberg.org.

 

I have used secondary sources online for information on the growth of London in the early nineteenth century and the role of radical and Freethinker movements.

 

Any errors are mine.

 

Derek Perry

Welcome to 'Curious about history'

Picture: London and its bridges 1840

Why I write about history

I was never very good at history, with all those names and dates, kings and queens, battles and plagues. I could never memorise them in the correct order. It was a confusing jigsaw with pieces that sometimes did not fit.

    I was much better at science, with its principles, rules and processes. One thing would lead to another; it was all interlinked. When I first went to university, a very long time ago, I studied practical sciences, chemical analysis, microscopic cytology, pharmacology etc. etc. I had to learn a lot of theoretical stuff too, such as atomic theory and biochemical processes. But it all fitted together.
    Then a professor told me that science wasn't always like this. He reminded me that what we call 'science' today is very different from the alchemy, magic, and invention that preceded it. I opted for a course entitled 'The history of scientific thought'. This was not 'history of science' which would have resulted in more lists of discoveries and discoverers to memorise. Neither was it 'philosophy of science' looking at what scientists do and if their results are 'true'.
    The history of scientific thought describes a process in which ideas are developed, are accepted, and then become dogma. Until they are replaced by a new theory. This can be catastrophic, or evolutionary. As I began to appreciate how these contradictions were resolved, my approach to the history of ideas became dialectical
    Decades later, a course of study in 'the history of ideas' earned me a Master of Arts (Birkbeck, University of London 2012). I am quoting this as my academic credentials for this blog. I will be writing about radical ideas in history, and about radical thinkers who changed our ideas about the world and how it works.
    The streets of London, my home for nearly fifty years, are an encyclopedia of ideas. Big Ideas such as 'empire' and 'capitalism'. Culture and creativity in literature, drama, cinema, broadcasting, etc. Progress in society through science, technology, trade, economics, politics, and much else. London will be central to much of what I write here.

Derek Perry