Modern English Biography (volume 1 of 4) A-H. Frederic Boase
1 Oct. 1796; assisted Lafayette in establishing public libraries; founded a choice circulating library; translated many English books into French. (m. 1823 Jean Hilaire Belloc, Director of Royal School of Design, Paris who d. 1866). d. Paris 6 Nov. 1881. S. J. Hale’s Woman’s record, 2 ed. 1855 p. 583, portrait.
BELLOT, Joseph René. b. Paris 18 March 1826: served in French navy 1843–50; went as a volunteer with captain Kennedy in the Prince Albert in search of Sir John Franklin 1851–52; sailed in the Phœnix for the Arctic regions 10 May 1853; left the ship to carry dispatches to Sir Edward Belcher 12 Aug. 1853; author of Journal d’un voyage aux Mers Polaires 1854; fell into a crack in the ice near Cape Bowden and drowned 18 Aug. 1853; an obelisk was erected to his memory by public subscription in front of Greenwich hospital 1857. Memoirs of J. R. Bellot 2 vols. 1855, portrait.
BELLOT, Thomas (elder son of Thomas Bellot of Manchester, surgeon). b. Manchester 16 March 1806; ed. at Manchester gr. sch.; pupil of Joseph Jordan, surgeon; M.R.C.S. 15 Feb. 1828, F.R.C.S. 6 Aug. 1844; assistant surgeon H.M. sloop Harrier 1831; surgeon R.N. 1835; surgeon H.M. flag ship Britannia Nov. 1854; author of translations of the Aphorisms of Hippocrates and of Galen On the hand 1850; Sanskrit derivation of English words 1856; arranged two collections of Chinese coins, one of which he presented to the Natural history society of Manchester; collected many ancient Chinese bronzes and a library of Chinese works. d. 37 Greek st. Stockport 25 June 1857. Manchester school register iii, 118 (1874); Medical directory (1858) 849–50.
BELMORE, George, stage name of George Belmore Garstin. Made his début in London at Marylebone theatre 26 Dec. 1856 as Bokes in The Creole; acted at Princess’s and Drury Lane theatres; played Nat Gosling in Boucicault’s drama Flying Scud at Holborn theatre more than 200 nights from 6 Oct. 1866; acted in the provinces and at Adelphi theatre where he played Newman Noggs in Nicholas Nickleby 20 March 1875 to July 1875; acted in New York Aug. to Oct. 1875. (m. 16 April 1862 Alice Maude dau. of Wm. Cooke proprietor of Astley’s Amphitheatre). d. New York 15 Nov. 1875 aged 47. Entr’acte 27 Nov. 1875, portrait.
BELOE, Charles (2 son of Rev. Wm. Beloe 1756–1817, Prebendary of St. Paul’s). A clerk in the London Twopenny post office; sec. to the Alfred club. d. Reading 23 Oct. 1855 aged 69.
BELPER, Edward Strutt, 1 Baron (only son of Wm. Strutt of St. Helen’s house Derby, manufacturer 1756–1830). b. Derby 26 Oct. 1801; ed. at Trin. coll. Cam.; B.A. 1823, M.A. 1826, L.L.D. 1862; M.P. for Derby 1830–1848 when unseated for bribery; M.P. for Arundel 1851–1852 and for Nottingham 1852–1856; chief comr. of railways 29 Aug. 1846 to March 1848; P.C. 30 Oct. 1846; sheriff of Notts. 1850; chancellor of Duchy of Lancaster 30 Dec. 1852 to 21 June 1854; chairman of Notts. quarter sessions 1855; created Baron Belper of Belper, county Derby 29 Aug. 1856; lord lieutenant of Notts. 6 Dec. 1864; pres. of Univ. coll. London 29 July 1871. d. 75 Eaton square, London 30 June 1880.
BELSHES, John Murray. Captain 59 Foot 4 Sep 1812 to 25 May 1816 when placed on h.p.; L.G. 12 Nov. 1862. d. Inverary 12 Jany. 1863. P.R. Drummond’s Perthshire in bygone days (1879) 81–85.
BELSON, George John. Second lieutenant R.A. 29 Sep. 1804; lieut. col. 23 Nov. 1841 to 7 April 1842 when he retired on full pay; L.G. 27 Feb. 1866. d. Woolwich 22 April 1868 aged 80.
BELT, Thomas (son of Mr. Belt of Newcastle, seedsman). b. Newcastle 1832; member of Natural history society of Northumberland June 1850; went to Australia 1852; a mining engineer in London 1860; travelled all over Asia and America; superintendent of Nova Scotian gold company’s mines in Nova Scotia 1863–65; examined the quartz rocks of North Wales; superintendent of the Chontales Gold mining company in Nicaragua 1868–72; travelled in Russia 1873–76; F.G.S.; author of Mineral veins, an enquiry into their origin 1861; The naturalist in Nicaragua 1874; The glacial period in North America. d. Denver, Colorado 21 Sep. 1878 in 46 year. Natural history transactions of Northumberland vii, 235–40 (1880).
BELZONI, Sarah. Remarkable for her size and strength; married in London about 1804 Giovanni Baptista Belzoni, acrobat, engineer and traveller who was b. Padua 1778 and d. at Gato, Benin, Africa 3 Dec. 1823; performed feats of strength with her husband in the streets, at fairs and at Astley’s Amphitheatre; travelled in Egypt with him 1815–19; granted civil list pension of £100 6 Feb. 1851; author of Account of the women of Egypt, Nubia and Syria. d. Belozanne valley, Jersey 12 Jany. 1870 aged 87.
BENBEY, Sadi Ombark. Came to England with Mungo Park whom he taught Arabic language. d. 11 Feb. 1854 aged more than 80.
BENBOW, John. Solicitor in London; M.P. for Dudley 8 Aug. 1844 to death. d. Hastings 24 Feb. 1855 aged 86.
BENDIGO, cognomen of William Thompson (son of Mr. Thompson of Nottingham, cabinet maker). b. Nottingham 11 Oct. 1811, being one of 3 children at a birth; fought and beat Ben. Caunt 1 July 1835; beat Brassey (John Leechman) 24 May 1836; beat young Langan 24 Jany. 1837; beat Looney 13 June 1837; beaten by Ben. Caunt 3 April 1838; beat Deaf Burke at Heather, Leicestershire 12 Feb. 1839 in presence of 15000 persons; presented with a “Champion’s belt” by James Ward at Queen’s theatre, Liverpool; beat Ben. Caunt near Sutfield Green Oxon, 9 Sep. 1845 when they fought for £200 a side and the championship; fought Tom Paddock for £200 a side at Mildenhall 5 June 1850 when he won again; a preacher and leader of revivalist services at the Cabmen’s Mission hall, King’s Cross, London. d. Beeston, Notts. 23 Aug. 1880. H. D. Miles’s Pugilistica iii, 1–46 (1880), portrait; J. Greenwoods Low life deeps (1876) 86–94, portrait; Rev. C. M. Davies’s Unorthodox London 2 series 156–64.
Note.—His curious name Bendigo was a contraction of Abednego, his first challenge in Bell’s Life in London in 1835 is signed Abednego of Nottingham; the town of Bendigo in Victoria, Australia (since called Sandhurst) was named after him.
BENEDICT, Sir Julius (2 son of M. Benedict of Stuttgart, banker). b. Stuttgart 27 Nov. or 24 Dec. 1804; pupil of Hummel at Weimar and of Weber at Dresden; conductor at the Kärnthnerthor theatre Vienna 1823–25 and at the San Carlo and Fondo theatres Naples 1825–35; went to London 1835; conducted a series of Italian comic operas at Lyceum theatre 1836; conductor of English opera at Drury Lane 1838, where he produced The gipsy’s warning 19 April 1838; The brides of Venice 22 April 1844, and The Crusaders 1846; travelled with Jenny Lind in the United States and Havannah and directed all her 122 concerts 1850–52; formed a choral society called The vocal association; conductor of Italian opera at Drury Lane and Her Majesty’s theatres 1859–60; conducted the Norwich Musical Festivals 1845–78 where he produced Undine 1860, Richard Cœur de Lion 1863 and St. Cecilia 1866; conducted the Monday Popular Concerts; his best known opera The Lily of Killarney was produced at Covent Garden 8 Feb. 1862; conductor of Liverpool Philharmonic society 9 April 1867 to Feb. 1879; wrote for Birmingham musical festivals St. Peter 1870 and Graziella 1873; knighted at Windsor Castle 24 March 1871. d. 2 Manchester sq. London 5 June 1885. I.L.N. lviii, 377 (1871), portrait, lxvi, 494 (1875), portrait; Scribner’s Monthly xiii, 480–84 (1877); Graphic xxix, 184 (1884), portrait.
BENETT, John (2 son of Thomas Benett of Pyt house Tisbury, Wilts. who d. 16 May 1797 aged 68). b. 20 May 1773; sheriff of Wilts. 1798; M.P. for Wilts. 19 July 1819 to 3 Dec. 1832 and for South Wilts. 17 Dec. 1832 to 1 July 1852; author of some essays on agricultural subjects. d. Pyt house 1 Oct. 1852. G.M. xxxviii, 636–37 (1852).
BENHAM, James Erle. Ed. at St. Mary hall Ox.; student Middle Temple 20 Nov. 1875; author of The student’s guide to the preliminary examination for attorneys and solicitors 1868; edited The preliminary examination Journal 1871. d. Abercorn house, Baron’s court, Kensington, London 11 July 1885 aged 34.
BENHAM, William. Author of English ballads for school reading 1862; St. Matthew, authorised version 1862; Epistles for the Christian year, with notes 1864; Companion to the Lectionary 1873. d. 14 Arley hill, Bristol 16 Sep. 1885 aged 69.
BENIOWSKI, Bartholomew. Educ. at Ecole d’etat major of Paris 1832–33;