- In full:
- Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th earl of Shaftesbury, Baron Cooper of Pawlett, Baron Ashley of Wimborne St. Giles
- Born:
- April 28, 1801, London, England
- Died:
- October 1, 1885, Folkestone, Kent (aged 84)
- Title / Office:
- House of Lords (1851-1885), United Kingdom
Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th earl of Shaftesbury
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Who was Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th earl of Shaftesbury?
Anthony Ashley Cooper, the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury [1801â1885], was a prominent British social and industrial reformer and a leader within the Church of England's evangelical movement.
As a member of the House of Commons from 1826, he championed reforms. He secured passage of the Lunacy Act of 1845, which changed the treatment of the mentally ill, and the Mines Act of 1842, which prohibited the employment of women and girls, and boys under 10, in underground coal mines.
Serving on the General Board of Health, he advocated for low-cost housing and careful inspection of existing housing for urban workers. As president of the Ragged Schools Union for 39 years, he enabled approximately 300,000 underprivileged children to receive free education.
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What is meant by 'industrial reformer'?
An industrial reformer is someone who seeks to improve social and working conditions through legislative and other actions. Anthony Ashley Cooper, the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, was one of the most influential industrial reformers in 19th-century Britain.
Shaftesbury's efforts included advocating for laws that limited the working day for textile workers. His Mines Act of 1842 prohibited employing women and girls, as well as boys under 10, in underground coal mines. He also pushed for low-cost housing projects and the inspection of existing housing for urban workers. Additionally, he was president of the Ragged Schools Union, which provided free education to destitute children.
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What problems did Shaftesbury want to solve during the Industrial Revolution?
Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, a prominent social and industrial reformer in 19th-century England, dedicated his efforts to addressing several critical issues during the Industrial Revolution.
Shaftesbury championed the cause of limiting the working day in textile mills to 10 hours. His Mines Act of 1842 sought to protect vulnerable groups by prohibiting the employment of all women and girls, and boys under the age of 10, from working in underground coal mines. As a member of the General Board of Health, he advocated for government-sponsored low-cost housing and inspections of existing housing for urban workers. Additionally, as president of the Ragged Schools Union, he facilitated free education for impoverished children.
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How did Shaftesbury help improve conditions for factory workers?
As a member of the House of Commons, Anthony Ashley Cooper, the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, championed the cause of factory reform. Succeeding Michael Thomas Sadler as the parliamentary leader in 1833, he advocated for a 10-hour workday in textile mills.
Although he was temporarily out of the House of Commons when the Ten Hours Act was passed in 1847, it was popularly known as Lord Ashleyâs Act. Furthermore, his Mines Act of 1842 prohibited all women and girls and all boys under the age of 10 from working in underground coal mines. He also pushed for low-cost housing projects for urban workers and inspections of existing housing.
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What laws or acts are associated with Shaftesburyâs work?
Several acts and laws are associated with the work of Anthony Ashley Cooper, the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury:
- Lunacy Act of 1845: As a lunacy commissioner and chairman, he secured passage of the Lunacy Act of 1845, which was the first British statute to treat the insane as "persons of unsound mind" rather than social outcasts.
- Mines Act of 1842: Ashley's Mines Act of 1842 excluded all women and girls and all boys under the age of 10 from underground coal mine employment.
- Public Worship Act (1874): As a staunch evangelical, he materially aided Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli in the passage of the Public Worship Act (1874), which checked the extension of Anglo-Catholic practices.
- Ten Hours Act of 1847: Although popularly known as Lord Ashleyâs Act, the Ten Hours Act of 1847 was passed while he was temporarily out of the House of Commons (January 1846âJuly 1847).
- Factory Act of 1833: MPs Michael Thomas Sadler and Anthony Ashley Cooper (later 7th earl of Shaftesbury), along with textile manufacturers in Lancashire and Yorkshire, joined Oastlerâs humanitarian fight for a 10-hour daily limit on factory work by persons under age 18. Ultimately, Parliament passed the Factory Act of 1833.
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How did Shaftesbury's reforms affect children and society in Britain?
Anthony Ashley Cooper, the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury (1801â1885), was a social and industrial reformer in 19th-century England.
Shaftesbury's reforms primarily focused on improving the lives of children and the working class. His Mines Act of 1842 barred all women and girls and boys under 10 from working in underground coal mines. He also advocated for legislation that would limit the workday in textile mills to 10 hours. Additionally, as president of the Ragged Schools Union, he enabled roughly 300,000 impoverished children to be educated free.
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Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th earl of Shaftesbury (born April 28, 1801, London, Englandâdied October 1, 1885, Folkestone, Kent) was one of the most effective social and industrial reformers in 19th-century England. He was also the acknowledged leader of the evangelical movement within the Church of England.
He was the eldest son of Cropley Cooper (a younger brother of the 5th earl of Shaftesbury) and of Anne, daughter of the 4th duke of Marlborough. He became Lord Ashley when his father succeeded to the earldom in 1811, was educated at Harrow and Christ Church College, Oxford, and succeeded his father as earl in 1851.
A member of the House of Commons from 1826, Ashley attacked the Reform Bill of 1832 for widening the franchise, but he favoured the political emancipation of Roman Catholics and the repeal in 1846 of the Corn Laws (import duties on grain). Becoming a lunacy commissioner in 1828 and commission chairman in 1834, he secured passage of the Lunacy Act of 1845, the first British statute to treat the insane as âpersons of unsound mindâ rather than social outcasts. He early was associated with the factory reform movement led by Richard Oastler and, in the House of Commons, by Michael Thomas Sadler. In 1833, after Sadlerâs defeat in an election, Ashley replaced him as parliamentary leader of the movement for shortening the working day in textile mills to 10 hours. Although popularly known as Lord Ashleyâs Act, the Ten Hours Act of 1847 was passed while he was temporarily out of the House of Commons (January 1846âJuly 1847). In his working for further factory reform legislation, he was accused by the radical reformer John Bright not only of ignorance of actual working conditions in factories but also of unconcern for rural labourers, including those on the Shaftesbury estates.
By his Mines Act of 1842, Ashley excluded all women and girls and all boys under the age of 10 from underground coal mine employment, in which he had found boys aged 4 or 5 years. While serving as a member of the short-lived General Board of Health (1848â54) and afterward, Shaftesbury (who succeeded to the earldom in 1851) insisted that the government sponsor new low-cost housing projects for urban workers and carefully inspect housing that already existed. During his 39 years as president of the Ragged Schools Union, that organization enabled about 300,000 destitute children to be educated free at what were called ragged schools or industrial feeding schools. He also served as president of the British and Foreign Bible Society, founded numerous Young Menâs Christian associations and Workingmenâs institutes, and financially supported missionary societies for Nonconformist faiths as well as for the Church of England.
As a staunch evangelical, he viewed with alarm the growing ritualism in the Church of England and materially aided Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli in the passage of the Public Worship Act (1874), which checked the extension of Anglo-Catholic practices.