Francis Neilson
Encyclopedia
Francis Neilson was an accomplished actor, playwright, stage director, political figure (former Member of the British House of Commons
) avid lecturer, and author of more than 60 books, plays and opera librettos and a leader in the Georgist movement.
, England
, he was the son of a Shropshire
father, Francis Turley Butters and a Scottish
mother from Dundee
, Isabella Neilson Hume. Several accounts explain that because of his large family, Neilson left school at the age of fourteen and moved to the United States
at the age of eighteen. Nevertheless, the British Census of 1881 records the Butters' household as having 12 people, including 8 children and two maids.
During his days in Liverpool, Francis Neilson attended the Liverpool Institute for Boys
. The census also records Francis Butters (Neilson's father) as a restaurant keeper. The same 1881 census records Neilson's paternal grandparents, Richard Butters (born in Market Drayton
, Shropshire) and Sarah Turley (born in Snedshill, Shropshire
), living at Cemetery Road in Wellington, Shropshire
.
, and paying fifteen dollars for a hansom cab
ride from the docks to his guest house, Neilson worked several odd jobs which included a longshoreman, a labourer in Central Park
(years later he lived at the Savoy-Plaza, overlooking that same park), and some clerical work. After meeting an African-American man surnamed Johnson, who because of his color worked as a porter despite of his college degree, Neilson became fascinated with education and at times “…went hungry to buy books”. This fascination led him to Henry George
, of whom he became a devoted follower.
During his stay in the United States, he married Catherine O'Gorman; they had two daughters, Isabel and Marion. Isabel Neilson, an accomplished sculptor, married Prince Hermann Carl Bernhard Ferdinand Friedrich von Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach
in 1932 and became Princess Herman of Saxe-Weimar, and Marion Neilson married Captain Hugh Melville, Sam Browne's Cavalry.
’s teachings, where he became well known and respected for his writing, acting, and directing. The Internet Broadway Database
, records him as a director of The Little Princess in January 1903, first at the Criterion Theatre
and later at the Savoy Theatre; and as the playwright of A Butterfly on The Wheel in January 1912, at the 39th Street Theatre.
In New York, he befriended director Anton Seidl
who took him to Germany and introduced him to Richard Wagner
's family in Bayreuth. This led him out of the United States and back to London
. He came back to London as a stage director for Charles Frohman
at the Duke of York Theater. Later Neilson was invited to direct the national opera at Covent Garden
, which he remodelled completely in 1900. The first opera to be produced there was Puccini's,
Tosca
. Puccini himself was at the theater supervising the production. The encounter of the two men triggered an interest that took Neilson to invite Puccini to see a private performance of the play Madame Butterfly, playing then at the Duke of York Theater. Puccini later requested Neilson to direct the opera at La Scala
in Milan; however, this never came to pass due to Neilson's other commitments.
. He lost to the incumbent, Colonel Kenyon-Slaney, by a margin of 130 votes. He was elected as Member of Parliament
for the constituency of Hyde
in Cheshire
from 1910 to 1916. At his time in parliament, he was well acquainted with both Prime Ministers, Asquith
and Lloyd George
. Interested in radical politics he entered in the progress of the Land Values Movement. His multiple contributions to the liberal agenda made him frequent the Liberal Headquarters at Parliament Street
, and tour the country giving speeches in support of Liberal candidates. He resigned from parliament when his pacifist beliefs conflicted with the First World War. From there he returned to the United States, where he became a citizen in 1921 and began pursuing his writing career.
In the USA, he met Helen Swift, an heiress of the Swift Meat Packing Business and the widow of Edward Morris
, President of Morris & Company, another meat packing company. They were married in 1917. Together, they endowed many charities, and contributed to many institutions, including the University of Chicago
, Ripon College
, Metropolitan Museum of Art
in New York, the Archaeological Institute of America
, the Liverpool Cathedral
, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, etc.
During 1935 and as President of the Chicago Chapter of the Archaeological Institute of America
and in coordination with the University of Liverpool
, he organized and endowed an archaeological expedition to the Near East
, to research lands of biblical time. Archaeologist John Garstang
, at the age of sixty, was enthusiastically in charge of the excavations, with much success at the site of the port of Mersin
in southern Turkey.
A few years before his death, he lost his sight. He was assisted in writing his last book, Ur to Nazareth, by his literary secretary, K. Phyllis Evans. Neilson also wrote a two-volume autobiography,
My Life in Two Worlds.
Neilson was a benefactor of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
, to which he donated several paintings, including A Winter Carnival in a Small Flemish Town, Portrait of a Man, Possibly George Frederick Handel, and The Pelkus Gate near Utrecht. Neilson's late wife, Helen Swift Neilson, had bequeathed Portrait of a Young Woman with a Fan, by Rembrandt, for which she had paid $250,000 in 1930; Rembrandt Harmensz (Dutch, 1606–1669); the Portrait of Mrs. Thomas Pechell, and
1799. The Boston Museum of Fine Arts was given John Singer Sergent's painting A Capriote. The Liverpool Cathedral
also received support from Neilson in the form of a collection of Organ and Choral Works which he sponsored; the organ at the Cathedral also bears his name.
, Long Island
, New York
. He was cremated and his remains taken back to England and interred at the Anglican Liverpool Cathedral.
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
) avid lecturer, and author of more than 60 books, plays and opera librettos and a leader in the Georgist movement.
Early
Born as Francis Butters, the eldest of nine siblings, in the Claugton Road, BirkenheadBirkenhead
Birkenhead is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite the city of Liverpool...
, England
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...
, he was the son of a Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
father, Francis Turley Butters and a Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
mother from Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
, Isabella Neilson Hume. Several accounts explain that because of his large family, Neilson left school at the age of fourteen and moved to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
at the age of eighteen. Nevertheless, the British Census of 1881 records the Butters' household as having 12 people, including 8 children and two maids.
During his days in Liverpool, Francis Neilson attended the Liverpool Institute for Boys
Liverpool Institute for Boys
The Liverpool Institute High School for Boys was an all-boys grammar school in the English port city of Liverpool.The school had its origins in 1825 but occupied different premises while the money was found to build a dedicated building on Mount Street. The Institute was first known as the...
. The census also records Francis Butters (Neilson's father) as a restaurant keeper. The same 1881 census records Neilson's paternal grandparents, Richard Butters (born in Market Drayton
Market Drayton
Market Drayton is a small market town in north Shropshire, England. It is on the River Tern, between Shrewsbury and Stoke-on-Trent, and was formerly known as "Drayton in Hales" and earlier simply as "Drayton" ....
, Shropshire) and Sarah Turley (born in Snedshill, Shropshire
Oakengates
Oakengates is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, and now forms part of the new town of Telford...
), living at Cemetery Road in Wellington, Shropshire
Wellington, Shropshire
Wellington is a town in the unitary authority of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England and now forms part of the new town of Telford. The population of the parish of Wellington was recorded as 20,430 in the 2001 census, making it the third largest town in Shropshire if...
.
Move to the United States
In the United States, after arriving in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and paying fifteen dollars for a hansom cab
Hansom cab
The hansom cab is a kind of horse-drawn cart designed and patented in 1834 by Joseph Hansom, an architect from York. The vehicle was developed and tested by Hansom in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England. Originally called the Hansom safety cab, it was designed to combine speed with safety, with a low...
ride from the docks to his guest house, Neilson worked several odd jobs which included a longshoreman, a labourer in Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
(years later he lived at the Savoy-Plaza, overlooking that same park), and some clerical work. After meeting an African-American man surnamed Johnson, who because of his color worked as a porter despite of his college degree, Neilson became fascinated with education and at times “…went hungry to buy books”. This fascination led him to Henry George
Henry George
Henry George was an American writer, politician and political economist, who was the most influential proponent of the land value tax, also known as the "single tax" on land...
, of whom he became a devoted follower.
During his stay in the United States, he married Catherine O'Gorman; they had two daughters, Isabel and Marion. Isabel Neilson, an accomplished sculptor, married Prince Hermann Carl Bernhard Ferdinand Friedrich von Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach
Prince Hermann of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach
Prince Hermann of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach was a member of the House of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach. After his disinheritance occurred in 1909, Hermann was commonly referred to with the style, Count Ostheim.-Early life:...
in 1932 and became Princess Herman of Saxe-Weimar, and Marion Neilson married Captain Hugh Melville, Sam Browne's Cavalry.
Theatre and Opera
Neilson’s first success came in the following years after his discovery of Henry GeorgeHenry George
Henry George was an American writer, politician and political economist, who was the most influential proponent of the land value tax, also known as the "single tax" on land...
’s teachings, where he became well known and respected for his writing, acting, and directing. The Internet Broadway Database
Internet Broadway Database
The Internet Broadway Database is an online database of Broadway theatre productions and their personnel. It is operated by the Research Department of The Broadway League, a trade association for the North American commercial theatre community....
, records him as a director of The Little Princess in January 1903, first at the Criterion Theatre
Criterion Theatre
The Criterion Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Piccadilly Circus in the City of Westminster, and is a Grade II* listed building. It has an official capacity of 588.-Building the theatre:...
and later at the Savoy Theatre; and as the playwright of A Butterfly on The Wheel in January 1912, at the 39th Street Theatre.
In New York, he befriended director Anton Seidl
Anton Seidl
Anton Seidl was a Hungarian conductor.-Biography:He was born at Pest, Hungary. He began the study of music at a very early age, and when only seven years old could pick out at the piano melodies which he had heard at the theatre...
who took him to Germany and introduced him to Richard Wagner
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
's family in Bayreuth. This led him out of the United States and back to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. He came back to London as a stage director for Charles Frohman
Charles Frohman
Charles Frohman was an American theatrical producer. Frohman was producing plays by 1889 and acquired his first Broadway theatre by 1892. He discovered and promoted many stars of the American theatre....
at the Duke of York Theater. Later Neilson was invited to direct the national opera at Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
, which he remodelled completely in 1900. The first opera to be produced there was Puccini's,
Tosca
Tosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
. Puccini himself was at the theater supervising the production. The encounter of the two men triggered an interest that took Neilson to invite Puccini to see a private performance of the play Madame Butterfly, playing then at the Duke of York Theater. Puccini later requested Neilson to direct the opera at La Scala
La Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
in Milan; however, this never came to pass due to Neilson's other commitments.
20th Century and Politics
In the early nineteen hundreds he began his pursuit of politics. His first bid for a parliamentary seat was an unsuccessful one for the Newport Division of ShropshireShropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
. He lost to the incumbent, Colonel Kenyon-Slaney, by a margin of 130 votes. He was elected as 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,...
for the constituency of Hyde
Hyde (UK Parliament constituency)
Hyde was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 until 1918. It was based around the town of Hyde, Cheshire....
in Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
from 1910 to 1916. At his time in parliament, he was well acquainted with both Prime Ministers, Asquith
Asquith
Asquith refers to:Persons of the Asquith family, descended from or related to H.H. Asquith, a British prime minister, later a peer:*Herbert Henry Asquith , Prime Minister of the United Kingdom...
and Lloyd George
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
. Interested in radical politics he entered in the progress of the Land Values Movement. His multiple contributions to the liberal agenda made him frequent the Liberal Headquarters at Parliament Street
Parliament Street
Parliament Street is the name of several places including:*Parliament Street, Exeter, one of the world's narrowest streets in Exeter, England...
, and tour the country giving speeches in support of Liberal candidates. He resigned from parliament when his pacifist beliefs conflicted with the First World War. From there he returned to the United States, where he became a citizen in 1921 and began pursuing his writing career.
In the USA, he met Helen Swift, an heiress of the Swift Meat Packing Business and the widow of Edward Morris
Edward Morris
Edward Morris was President of Morris & Company, one of the three main meat-packing companies in Chicago. In 1890, he married Helen Swift a member of one of the other big three meat-packing families. Their daughter Muriel became a renowned psychiatrist.As president of Morris and Company, Edward...
, President of Morris & Company, another meat packing company. They were married in 1917. Together, they endowed many charities, and contributed to many institutions, including the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, Ripon College
Ripon College (Wisconsin)
Ripon College is a liberal arts college in Ripon, Wisconsin, USA. It offers small class sizes and intensive mentoring to students. Ripon has a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa--one of the nation's most prestigious honor societies. Alumni have high rates of success in the workforce as well as acceptance...
, Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
in New York, the Archaeological Institute of America
Archaeological Institute of America
The Archaeological Institute of America is a North American nonprofit organization devoted to the promotion of public interest in archaeology, and the preservation of archaeological sites. It has offices on the campus of Boston University and in New York City.The institute was founded in 1879,...
, the Liverpool Cathedral
Liverpool Cathedral
Liverpool Cathedral is the Church of England cathedral of the Diocese of Liverpool, built on St James's Mount in Liverpool and is the seat of the Bishop of Liverpool. Its official name is the Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool but it is dedicated to Christ and the Blessed Virgin...
, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, etc.
Resignation from Parliament and Writing Career
His first book, How Diplomats Make War, was dedicated only six weeks after his resignation from parliament; and went through several printings and translations. He went on to write over sixty books, along with many other forms of writing such as articles, plays, and an opera. Neilson co-founded a journal of opinion and literary criticism, titled The Freeman.During 1935 and as President of the Chicago Chapter of the Archaeological Institute of America
Archaeological Institute of America
The Archaeological Institute of America is a North American nonprofit organization devoted to the promotion of public interest in archaeology, and the preservation of archaeological sites. It has offices on the campus of Boston University and in New York City.The institute was founded in 1879,...
and in coordination with the University of Liverpool
University of Liverpool
The University of Liverpool is a teaching and research university in the city of Liverpool, England. It is a member of the Russell Group of large research-intensive universities and the N8 Group for research collaboration. Founded in 1881 , it is also one of the six original "red brick" civic...
, he organized and endowed an archaeological expedition to the Near East
Near East
The Near East is a geographical term that covers different countries for geographers, archeologists, and historians, on the one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
, to research lands of biblical time. Archaeologist John Garstang
John Garstang
John Garstang was a British archaeologist of the ancient Near East, especially Anatolia and the southern Levant....
, at the age of sixty, was enthusiastically in charge of the excavations, with much success at the site of the port of Mersin
Mersin
-Mersin today:Today, Mersin is a large city spreading out along the coast, with Turkey's second tallest skyscraper , huge hotels, an opera house, expensive real estate near the sea or up in the hills, and many other modern urban...
in southern Turkey.
A few years before his death, he lost his sight. He was assisted in writing his last book, Ur to Nazareth, by his literary secretary, K. Phyllis Evans. Neilson also wrote a two-volume autobiography,
My Life in Two Worlds.
Neilson was a benefactor of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
, to which he donated several paintings, including A Winter Carnival in a Small Flemish Town, Portrait of a Man, Possibly George Frederick Handel, and The Pelkus Gate near Utrecht. Neilson's late wife, Helen Swift Neilson, had bequeathed Portrait of a Young Woman with a Fan, by Rembrandt, for which she had paid $250,000 in 1930; Rembrandt Harmensz (Dutch, 1606–1669); the Portrait of Mrs. Thomas Pechell, and
1799. The Boston Museum of Fine Arts was given John Singer Sergent's painting A Capriote. The Liverpool Cathedral
Liverpool Cathedral
Liverpool Cathedral is the Church of England cathedral of the Diocese of Liverpool, built on St James's Mount in Liverpool and is the seat of the Bishop of Liverpool. Its official name is the Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool but it is dedicated to Christ and the Blessed Virgin...
also received support from Neilson in the form of a collection of Organ and Choral Works which he sponsored; the organ at the Cathedral also bears his name.
Death
Francis Neilson died, aged 94, on 13 April 1961 in Port WashingtonPort Washington
Port Washington is the name of some places in the United States of America:*Port Washington, New York*Port Washington, Ohio*Port Washington, Wisconsin, a city*Port Washington , Wisconsin, a town...
, Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He was cremated and his remains taken back to England and interred at the Anglican Liverpool Cathedral.
Publications
- How Diplomats Make Warhttp://mises.org/books/diplomats.pdf, 1915
- Duty to Civilization, 1921
- The Eleventh Commandment, 1933
- Man at the Crossroads, 1938
- The Tragedy of Europe (5 vols.), 1940-1945
- In Quest of Justice, 1944
- Makers of War, 1950
- My Life in Two Worlds, 1952
- The Churchill Legend, 1954
- From Ur to Nazareth, 1960
- Control from the Top, 1933.
- Sociocratic Escapades, 1934.
Opera librettos and plays
- La Vivandiere (1893; with music by Victor HerbertVictor HerbertVictor August Herbert was an Irish-born, German-raised American composer, cellist and conductor. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and conductor, he is best known for composing many successful operettas that premiered on Broadway from the 1890s to World War I...
) - Prince AnaniasPrince AnaniasPrince Ananias was the first operetta composed by Victor Herbert, to a libretto by Francis Neilson. It was produced by a troupe called "The Bostonians" at The Broadway Theatre in 1894 and remained in their repertoire for three seasons and was given more than 300 performances in all.- References...
(1894, with music by Victor HerbertVictor HerbertVictor August Herbert was an Irish-born, German-raised American composer, cellist and conductor. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and conductor, he is best known for composing many successful operettas that premiered on Broadway from the 1890s to World War I...
) - Manabozo (1899; composed for Anton SeidlAnton SeidlAnton Seidl was a Hungarian conductor.-Biography:He was born at Pest, Hungary. He began the study of music at a very early age, and when only seven years old could pick out at the piano melodies which he had heard at the theatre...
) - The Bath Road (1902) - a romantic comedy in three acts
- The Crucible (1911) - a drama in three acts
- A Butterfly on The Wheel (1911) - a drama in four acts
- The Sin Eaters Halloween'en (1924) - , a fantasy play in one act and two scenes
- A Mixed Foursome (1924) - a comedy in three acts
- The Impossible Philanthropist (1924) - a comedy in four acts
- The Day Before Commencement (1925) - a comedy in four acts
- The Queen Nectaria (1927) - a fantasy in four acts
- Le Braiser De Sang (1929) - a drama in two acts; produced in Paris
Novels
- Madame Bohemia, 1900
- The Wise, 1903
- Ralph Voyce, 1913
- A Strong Man's House, 1916
- The House of the Big Yard, 1936