Smith was one of five sons and five daughters of William Smith, the famous MP and abolitionist.[3] Of his sisters, Frances (Fanny) Smith, married into the Nightingale family and produced a daughter, Florence Nightingale, a nurse and statistician; another married into the Bonham Carter family. William Smith wanted his son Benjamin to marry Mary Shore, the sister of William Nightingale, now a relative by marriage (she later married Benjamin's brother Samuel).
His home was in Marylebone, London, but in 1816 he inherited and purchased property near Hastings: Brown's Farm near Robertsbridge, with a house built around 1700 (extant), and Crowham Manor, Westfield, which included 200 acres (0.81 km2). Although a member of the landed gentry, Smith held radical views. He was a Dissenter, a Unitarian, a supporter of free trade, and a benefactor to the poor. In 1826, he bore the cost of building a school for the inner-city poor at Vincent Square, Westminster, and paid a penny a week towards the fees for each child, the same amount as paid by their parents.[4]
On a visit to a sister in Derbyshire in 1826, Benjamin met Anne Longden. She became pregnant by him and he took her to a rented lodge at Whatlington, a small village near Battle, East Sussex. There she lived as "Mrs Leigh", the surname of his relations on the nearby Isle of Wight. The birth of their first child, Barbara (the future founder of Girton College as Barbara Bodichon), created a scandal because the couple did not marry; illegitimacy carried a heavy social stigma at the time. He rode from Brown's Farm to visit them daily, and within eight weeks Anne was pregnant again. When their son Benjamin was born, the four of them went to America for two years, during which time another child was conceived.
After their return to Sussex, they lived openly together at Brown's Farm and had two more children. After their last child was born in 1833, Anne became ill with tuberculosis and Smith leased 9 Pelham Crescent, which faced the sea at Hastings; the healthy properties of sea air were highly regarded at the time. A local woman, Hannah Walker, was employed to look after the children. Anne did not recover, so Smith took her to Ryde, Isle of Wight, where she died in 1834.
He died on 12 April, 1860, at 5 Blandford Square in Marylebone.[5]
Referencesedit
^Credland, Arthur G. (1980). "Benjamin Leigh Smith: a forgotten pioneer". Polar Record. 20 (125). Cambridge University Press: 127–145. doi:10.1017/S0032247400003132. S2CID 131318729.
^"Deaths". Morning Advertiser, Monday 16 April 1860, p.8 - via British Newspaper Archive. Retrieved 09 April 2021.
benjamin, smith, whig, politician, benjamin, leigh, smith, 1783, april, 1860, british, whig, politician, represented, constituencies, sudbury, norwich, smith, five, sons, five, daughters, william, smith, famous, abolitionist, sisters, frances, fanny, smith, ma. Benjamin Leigh Smith 1783 12 April 1860 1 2 was a British Whig politician who represented the constituencies of Sudbury and Norwich Smith was one of five sons and five daughters of William Smith the famous MP and abolitionist 3 Of his sisters Frances Fanny Smith married into the Nightingale family and produced a daughter Florence Nightingale a nurse and statistician another married into the Bonham Carter family William Smith wanted his son Benjamin to marry Mary Shore the sister of William Nightingale now a relative by marriage she later married Benjamin s brother Samuel His home was in Marylebone London but in 1816 he inherited and purchased property near Hastings Brown s Farm near Robertsbridge with a house built around 1700 extant and Crowham Manor Westfield which included 200 acres 0 81 km2 Although a member of the landed gentry Smith held radical views He was a Dissenter a Unitarian a supporter of free trade and a benefactor to the poor In 1826 he bore the cost of building a school for the inner city poor at Vincent Square Westminster and paid a penny a week towards the fees for each child the same amount as paid by their parents 4 On a visit to a sister in Derbyshire in 1826 Benjamin met Anne Longden She became pregnant by him and he took her to a rented lodge at Whatlington a small village near Battle East Sussex There she lived as Mrs Leigh the surname of his relations on the nearby Isle of Wight The birth of their first child Barbara the future founder of Girton College as Barbara Bodichon created a scandal because the couple did not marry illegitimacy carried a heavy social stigma at the time He rode from Brown s Farm to visit them daily and within eight weeks Anne was pregnant again When their son Benjamin was born the four of them went to America for two years during which time another child was conceived After their return to Sussex they lived openly together at Brown s Farm and had two more children After their last child was born in 1833 Anne became ill with tuberculosis and Smith leased 9 Pelham Crescent which faced the sea at Hastings the healthy properties of sea air were highly regarded at the time A local woman Hannah Walker was employed to look after the children Anne did not recover so Smith took her to Ryde Isle of Wight where she died in 1834 He died on 12 April 1860 at 5 Blandford Square in Marylebone 5 References edit Credland Arthur G 1980 Benjamin Leigh Smith a forgotten pioneer Polar Record 20 125 Cambridge University Press 127 145 doi 10 1017 S0032247400003132 S2CID 131318729 Deaths Morning Advertiser Monday 16 April 1860 p 8 via British Newspaper Archive Retrieved 09 April 2021 Dictionary of National Biography 1885 1900 The Hastings Connections Archived from the original on 9 May 2006 Deaths London Daily News Saturday 14 April 1860 p 8 via British Newspaper Archive Retrieved 09 April 2021 External links editHansard 1803 2005 contributions in Parliament by Benjamin Smith Parliament of the United Kingdom Preceded bySir John WalshSir Edward Barnes Member of Parliament for Sudbury1835 1837 With John Bagshaw Succeeded bySir James HamiltonSir Edward Barnes Preceded byHon Robert ScarlettMarquess of Douro Member of Parliament for Norwich1838 1847 With Marquess of Douro Succeeded byMarquess of DouroMorton Peto Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Benjamin Smith Whig politician amp oldid 1192345394, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
