Vernon Bartlett
Encyclopedia
Charles Vernon Oldfield Bartlett CBE
(30 April 1894, Westbury, Wiltshire
- 18 January 1983) was an English
journalist, politician and author who served as a Member of Parliament
(MP) from 1938 to 1950.
Bartlett was invalided out of the Army in World War I
. As a journalist he worked for the Daily Mail
, and was a foreign correspondent for The Times
. In 1922 he was appointed director of the London office of the League of Nations
. In 1933 he joined the News Chronicle
, and was its diplomatic correspondent for 20 years, including a period in Spain during the Spanish Civil War
.
He was elected to the House of Commons for the Somerset
seat of Bridgwater
as a Popular Front
candidate opposed to appeasement
in a by-election held on 18 November 1938
. He held the seat for 12 years.
In 1942 Vernon Bartlett, Richard Acland
, J. B. Priestley
and others established the socialist Common Wealth Party
. At the 1945 election
, he kept his Bridgwater seat, standing as an Independent
. He joined the Labour Party in 1950 and retired from parliament.
He retired from the News Chronicle in 1954 and moved to Singapore
, where he was both political commentator for the Straits Times and South East Asia correspondent for the Manchester Guardian.
CBE
CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...
(30 April 1894, Westbury, Wiltshire
Westbury, Wiltshire
Westbury is a town and civil parish in the west of the English county of Wiltshire, most famous for the Westbury White Horse.-Name:The most likely origin of the West- in Westbury is simply that the town is near the western edge of the county of Wiltshire, the bounds of which have been much the same...
- 18 January 1983) was an English
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...
journalist, politician and author who served as 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) from 1938 to 1950.
Life
After education at Blundell's SchoolBlundell's School
Blundell's School is a co-educational day and boarding independent school located in the town of Tiverton in the county of Devon, England. The school was founded in 1604 by the will of Peter Blundell, one of the richest men in England at the time, and relocated to its present location on the...
Bartlett was invalided out of the Army in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. As a journalist he worked for the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
, and was a foreign correspondent for The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
. In 1922 he was appointed director of the London office of the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
. In 1933 he joined the News Chronicle
News Chronicle
The News Chronicle was a British daily newspaper. It ceased publication on 17 October 1960, being absorbed into the Daily Mail. Its offices were in Bouverie Street, off Fleet Street, London, EC4Y 8DP, England.-Daily Chronicle:...
, and was its diplomatic correspondent for 20 years, including a period in Spain during the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
.
He was elected to the House of Commons for the Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
seat of Bridgwater
Bridgwater (UK Parliament constituency)
Bridgwater was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, until 2010 when it was replaced by the Bridgwater and West Somerset constituency...
as a Popular Front
Popular front
A popular front is a broad coalition of different political groupings, often made up of leftists and centrists. Being very broad, they can sometimes include centrist and liberal forces as well as socialist and communist groups...
candidate opposed to appeasement
Appeasement
The term appeasement is commonly understood to refer to a diplomatic policy aimed at avoiding war by making concessions to another power. Historian Paul Kennedy defines it as "the policy of settling international quarrels by admitting and satisfying grievances through rational negotiation and...
in a by-election held on 18 November 1938
Bridgwater by-election, 1938
The Bridgwater by-election, 1938 was a parliamentary by-election for the British House of Commons constituency of Bridgwater, Somerset held on 17 November 1938...
. He held the seat for 12 years.
In 1942 Vernon Bartlett, Richard Acland
Richard Acland
Sir Richard Thomas Dyke Acland, 15th Baronet was one of the founding members of the British Common Wealth Party. He had previously been a Liberal Member of Parliament and joined the Labour Party in 1945...
, J. B. Priestley
J. B. Priestley
John Boynton Priestley, OM , known as J. B. Priestley, was an English novelist, playwright and broadcaster. He published 26 novels, notably The Good Companions , as well as numerous dramas such as An Inspector Calls...
and others established the socialist Common Wealth Party
Common Wealth Party
The Common Wealth Party was a socialist political party in the United Kingdom in the Second World War. Thereafter, it continued in being, essentially as a pressure group, until 1993.-The war years:...
. At the 1945 election
United Kingdom general election, 1945
The United Kingdom general election of 1945 was a general election held on 5 July 1945, with polls in some constituencies delayed until 12 July and in Nelson and Colne until 19 July, due to local wakes weeks. The results were counted and declared on 26 July, due in part to the time it took to...
, he kept his Bridgwater seat, standing as an Independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
. He joined the Labour Party in 1950 and retired from parliament.
He retired from the News Chronicle in 1954 and moved to Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, where he was both political commentator for the Straits Times and South East Asia correspondent for the Manchester Guardian.
Publications
- Calf Love, 1929
- Journey's End: a novel (with R. C. SherriffR. C. Sherriff-External links:**...
), 1930 - Nazi Germany Explained, 1933
- This is My Life, 1937
- Tomorrow Always Comes, 1943
- East of the Iron Curtain, 1950
- Struggle for Africa, 1953
- And Now, Tomorrow, 1960
- Tuscan Retreat, 1964
- A Book about Elba, 1965
- Introduction to Italy, 1967
- The Past of Pastimes, 1969
- The Colour of their Skin, 1969
- Tuscan Harvest, 1971
- Central Italy, 1972
- Northern Italy, 1973
- I Know What I Liked, 1974