Ralph Bernal

Ralph Bernal (2 October 1783[1] or 2 October 1784[2] – 26 August 1854) was a British Whig[3] politician and art collector.

His parents, Jacob Israel Bernal and wife Leah da Silva,[4] were Sephardi Jews of Spanish and Portuguese origin, but he was baptised at St Olave Hart Street in London.[1][5] His father was a merchant.

During his youth he became an actor and he performed to acclaim in several works by William Shakespeare, during which time he gained a reputation for oratory. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Lincoln 1818–20[6] and MP for Rochester from 1820–41 and again from 1847–52.[2] From 1842–47 he was MP for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis.[7]

According to the Legacies of British Slave-Ownership at the University College London, Bernal was awarded a payment as a slave trader in the aftermath of the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 with the Slave Compensation Act 1837. The British Government took out a £15 million loan (worth £1.43 billion in 2021[8]) with interest from Nathan Mayer Rothschild and Moses Montefiore which was subsequently paid off by the British taxpayers (ending in 2015). Bernal was associated with three different claims, he owned 564 slaves in Jamaica and received a £11,458 payment at the time (worth £1.1 million in 2021[8]).[9]

Bernal was president of the British Archaeological Association in 1853.[10] He built up a substantial collection of glass, ceramics and other art objects, which were auctioned after his death, with the 4,000 lots selling for £70,000.[1]

He married Ann Elizabeth White in April 1806.[11] His eldest son was Ralph Bernal Osborne (1808–1882), a politician, who took on the surname Osborne on marrying the daughter of Sir Thomas Osborne, 9th Baronet.[12]

References

  1. Davies, Helen (2004). "Bernal, Ralph (1783–1854)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 15 November 2010. available online to subscribers, and also in print
  2. Rayment, Leigh. "Rochester (Kent)". House of Commons. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
  3. Stooks Smith, Henry (1973) [1844-1850]. Craig, F. W. S. (ed.). The Parliaments of England (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. pp. 97, 203, 170–71. ISBN 0-900178-13-2.
  4. "CRAWLEY m. BERNAL 1792". Curiousfox.com. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  5. Members Constituencies Parliaments Surveys. "BERNAL, Ralph (1783-1854), of 11 Park Crescent, Mdx". History of Parliament Online. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  6. Rayment, Leigh. "Lincoln (Lincolnshire)". House of Commons. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
  7. Rayment, Leigh. "Weymouth &Melcombe Regis (Dorset)". House of Commons. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
  8. UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  9. "Ralph Bernal". University College London. Retrieved on 20 March 2019.
  10. "Past Presidents". British Archaeological Association. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  11. "Joy-Lumsden-Kingston-6 - User Trees". genealogy.com. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  12. Beales, Derek (2004). "Osborne, Ralph Bernal (1808?–1882)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 15 November 2010. Available online to subscribers, and also in print
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
John Nicholas Fazakerley
Coningsby Waldo-Sibthorpe
Member of Parliament for Lincoln
18181820
With: Coningsby Waldo-Sibthorpe
Succeeded by
Coningsby Waldo-Sibthorpe
Robert Percy Smith
Preceded by
Lord Binning
James Barnett
Member of Parliament for Rochester
18201841
With: Lord Binning 1820–1826
Henry Dundas 1826–1830
Viscount Villiers 1830–1831
John Mills 1831–1835
Thomas Twisden Hodges 1835–1837
Thomas Hobhouse 1837–1841
Succeeded by
James Douglas
William Bodkin
Preceded by
Viscount Villiers
George William Hope
Member of Parliament for Weymouth & Melcombe Regis
1842 – 1847
With: William Dougal Christie
Succeeded by
William Dougal Christie
William Lockyer Freestun
Preceded by
James Douglas Stoddart Douglas
William Bodkin
Member of Parliament for Rochester
18471852
With: Thomas Twisden Hodges
Succeeded by
Hon. Francis Child Villiers
Sir Thomas Maddock


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