Henry Solly
Encyclopedia
Henry Solly was an English
social reformer. William Beveridge
said of him: "He was a restless, inventive, constructive spirit, part author of at least three large living movements; charity organisation, working men's clubs, and garden cities".
He was the son of Isaac Solly
and became a Chartist
. He supported many Radical causes, such as universal suffrage, free education, repeal of the Corn Laws
, co-operatives, anti-slavery, and early closing for shops and Sunday opening for museums. In the early 1860s he took a leading part in founding working men's club
s, though as a teetotaller he did not want them to sell alcohol.
In June 1868 Solly's paper, titled ‘How to deal with the Unemployed Poor of London and with its “Roughs” and Criminal Classes’ was read at a meeting of the Society of Arts, chaired by the Bishop of London
, A. C. Tait
. This led to plans for the Charity Organization Society
.
In 1884 Solly founded the Society for the Promotion of Industrial Villages. Although this was a failure, it led to Sir Ebenezer Howard
's Garden City
movement.
Solly died of a brain haemorrhage in 1903. B. T. Hall, the secretary of the Working Men's Club and Institute Union
, wrote a year later: "If the work that the Clubs do, if their influence on personal character and their contribution to the sum total of human happiness be correctly appreciated...then shall the investigator reckon Henry Solly amongst the constructive statesmen of our time".
He spent the first half of his adult life as a Unitarian
minister, and after he left the profession, continued to worship at Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Chapel
. He had four daughters, one of whom married Philip Wicksteed
, and one son, who wrote the biography of Henry Morley
.
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...
social reformer. William Beveridge
William Beveridge
William Henry Beveridge, 1st Baron Beveridge KCB was a British economist and social reformer. He is best known for his 1942 report Social Insurance and Allied Services which served as the basis for the post-World War II welfare state put in place by the Labour government elected in 1945.Lord...
said of him: "He was a restless, inventive, constructive spirit, part author of at least three large living movements; charity organisation, working men's clubs, and garden cities".
He was the son of Isaac Solly
Isaac Solly
Isaac Solly , son of Isaac Solly of London and Walthamstow was a London merchant in the Baltic trade. During the Napoleonic wars Isaac Solly and Sons were principal contractors supplying hemp and timber to government dockyards. His brother Edward Solly, a famous collector of paintings, was...
and became a Chartist
Chartism
Chartism was a movement for political and social reform in the United Kingdom during the mid-19th century, between 1838 and 1859. It takes its name from the People's Charter of 1838. Chartism was possibly the first mass working class labour movement in the world...
. He supported many Radical causes, such as universal suffrage, free education, repeal of the Corn Laws
Corn Laws
The Corn Laws were trade barriers designed to protect cereal producers in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland against competition from less expensive foreign imports between 1815 and 1846. The barriers were introduced by the Importation Act 1815 and repealed by the Importation Act 1846...
, co-operatives, anti-slavery, and early closing for shops and Sunday opening for museums. In the early 1860s he took a leading part in founding working men's club
Working men's club
Working men's clubs are a type of private social club founded in the 19th century in industrial areas of the United Kingdom, particularly the North of England, the Midlands and many parts of the South Wales Valleys, to provide recreation and education for working class men and their families.-...
s, though as a teetotaller he did not want them to sell alcohol.
In June 1868 Solly's paper, titled ‘How to deal with the Unemployed Poor of London and with its “Roughs” and Criminal Classes’ was read at a meeting of the Society of Arts, chaired by the Bishop of London
Bishop of London
The Bishop of London is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers 458 km² of 17 boroughs of Greater London north of the River Thames and a small part of the County of Surrey...
, A. C. Tait
Archibald Campbell Tait
Archibald Campbell Tait was a priest in the Church of England and an Archbishop of Canterbury.-Life:Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, Tait was educated at the Royal High School and at the Edinburgh Academy, where he was twice elected dux. His parents were Presbyterian but he early turned towards the...
. This led to plans for the Charity Organization Society
Charity Organization Society
The Charity Organization Societies also called the Associated Charities was a private charity that existed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as a clearing house for information on the poor. The society was mainly concerned with distinction between the deserving poor and undeserving poor...
.
In 1884 Solly founded the Society for the Promotion of Industrial Villages. Although this was a failure, it led to Sir Ebenezer Howard
Ebenezer Howard
Sir Ebenezer Howard is known for his publication Garden Cities of To-morrow , the description of a utopian city in which people live harmoniously together with nature. The publication resulted in the founding of the garden city movement, that realized several Garden Cities in Great Britain at the...
's Garden City
Garden Cities of To-morrow
Garden Cities of To-morrow is a book by the British urban planner Ebenezer Howard. When it was published in 1898, the book was titled To-morrow: A Peaceful Path to Real Reform. In 1902 it was reprinted as Garden Cities of To-Morrow...
movement.
Solly died of a brain haemorrhage in 1903. B. T. Hall, the secretary of the Working Men's Club and Institute Union
Working Men's Club and Institute Union
The Working Men's Club and Institute Union is a voluntary association of private members' clubs in Great Britain & Northern Ireland, with about 3,000 associate clubs. One club in the Republic of Ireland, the City of Dublin Working Men's Club is also affiliated. Most social clubs are affiliated to...
, wrote a year later: "If the work that the Clubs do, if their influence on personal character and their contribution to the sum total of human happiness be correctly appreciated...then shall the investigator reckon Henry Solly amongst the constructive statesmen of our time".
He spent the first half of his adult life as a Unitarian
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
minister, and after he left the profession, continued to worship at Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Chapel
Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Chapel
The Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Chapel is a Unitarian chapel on Rosslyn Hill in Hampstead, London. It is a member of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches, the umbrella organisation for British Unitarians....
. He had four daughters, one of whom married Philip Wicksteed
Philip Wicksteed
Philip Henry Wicksteed is known primarily as an economist. He was also an English Unitarian theologian , classicist, medievalist, and literary critic....
, and one son, who wrote the biography of Henry Morley
Henry Morley
Henry Forster Morley was a writer on English literature and one of the earliest Professors of English Literature.-Life:...
.
Further reading
- Henry Solly, ‘These Eighty Years’, Or, The Story of an Unfinished Life. In Two Volumes (1893).
- A. Ruston, ‘H. Solly, the omnibus radical: Rev. Henry Solly (1813–1903)’, Transactions of Unitarian Historical Society, 19/2 (1987–90), pp. 78–91.
- T. Williams, ‘Solly, the practical dreamer’, The Inquirer (14 Feb 1987), 4
- K. Woodroofe, ‘The irascible Rev. Henry Solly’, Social Science Review, 40 (March 1975).