Robert Owen

Robert Owen (/ˈoʊᵻn/; 14 May 1771 – 17 November 1858) was a Welsh social reformer and one of the founders of utopian socialism and the cooperative movement. In 1824, Owen travelled to America to invest the bulk of his fortune in an experimental 1,000-member colony on the banks of Indiana's Wabash River, called New Harmony. New Harmony was intended to be a Utopian society. Before travelling to America, he was an industrialist in Scotland.

Biography

Early life

Robert Owen was born in Newtown a small market town in Montgomeryshire, Mid Wales, in 1771. He was the sixth of seven children. His father, also named Robert Owen, had a small business as a saddler and ironmonger. Owen's mother came from a prosperous farming family called Williams. There Owen received almost all his school education, which ended at the age of ten. In 1787, after serving in a draper's shop for some years, he settled in London. He travelled to Manchester, and was employed at Satterfield's Drapery in St Ann's Square (a plaque currently marks the site). By the time he was 21, he was a manager in Manchester at the Chorlton Twist Mills. His entrepreneurial spirit, management skill and progressive moral views were emerging by the early 1790s. In 1793, he was elected as a member of the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, where the ideas of reformers and philosophers of the Enlightenment were discussed. He also became a committee member of the Manchester Board of Health which was instigated, principally by Thomas Percival, to promote improvements in the health and working conditions of factory workers.

Robert Owen (theologian)

Robert Owen (13 May 1820 – 6 April 1902) was a Welsh theologian and antiquarian.

Life

Owen was born in Dolgellau, Merionethshire, on 13 May 1820. After being educated at Ruthin School, Owen attended Jesus College, Oxford, matriculating in 1838. He obtained a third-class Bachelor of Arts degree in Literae Humaniores in 1842, with further degrees of Master of Arts (1845) and Bachelor of Divinity (1852). He was a Fellow of Jesus College from 1845 until 1864, when an allegation of immorality forced his resignation.

In 1843, Owen was ordained by Christopher Bethell, Bishop of Bangor. However, he held no position after serving as curate until 1845 at Tremeirchion. He was influenced by the Oxford Movement and corresponded with John Henry Newman, before and after Newman converted to Catholicism. Owen was a supporter of disestablishment of the Welsh Church, believing that this would help promote its catholic character. After his resignation, he retired to his estate at Vron-y-graig, Barmouth, and carried on his writings. He died, unmarried, on 6 April 1902 and was buried at Llanaber.

Robert Owen (judge)

Sir Robert Michael Owen FRSA (born 19 September 1944) is a former British judge of the High Court of England and Wales.

Legal career

Owen was called to the bar at Inner Temple in 1968 and elected an Inner Temple bencher in 1995. He was appointed a Recorder in 1987, being qualified as a deputy High Court judge from 1994, and made a Queen's Counsel in 1988. From 1991 to 1993, he served as Vice-Chairman of the London Common Law and Commercial Bar Association, and as its Chairman 1993 to 1995. In 1997, Owen served as Chairman of the General Council of the Bar, having served as Vice-Chairman the previous year. He was named an associate fellow of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 1998. He served as a governor of the College of Law from 1998 to 2004.

He was appointed a Justice of the High Court on 15 January 2001, receiving the customary knighthood, and assigned to the Queen's Bench Division. From 2005 to 2008, he served as a presiding judge for the Western Circuit, and he has been a member of the Judicial College board since 2011.

Robert Owen (disambiguation)

Robert Owen (1771–1858) was a Welsh social philosopher and reformer; one of the founders of socialism and the cooperative movement.

Robert Owen or Rob Owen may also refer to:

Fictional

See also

Robert Owen (canoeist)

Robert Owen is a former British slalom canoeist who competed in the 1980s.

He won two medals in the C-2 team event at the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships with a gold in 1981 and a bronze in 1983.

References

Robert Owen (Australian politician)

Robert Owen (8 August 1799 – 25 November 1878) was a politician in colonial New South Wales; a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, and later, the New South Wales Legislative Council.

Early life

Owen was born in Tynemouth, England, and was articled to a solicitor in 1813. On 20 April 1820 he was admitted as a solicitor in England. Owen purchased a small schooner and sailed to Australia. Owen was a member of the New South Wales solicitors firm Carr, Rogers, and Owen.

Politics

Owen was elected to the seat of East Camden in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly on 22 January 1858, he held this position until 3 March 1859. Owen was a District Court Judge. On 8 December 1868, Owen was appointed to the New South Wales Legislative Council, a position he held until his death on 25 November 1878. Owen represented the John Robertson and Charles Cowper Governments in the Upper House.

References