John Wilson Croker facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Right Honourable John Wilson Croker
John Wilson Croker, by William Owen
First Secretary to the Admiralty
In office 12 October 1809 – 2 May 1827
Prime Minister	Spencer Perceval The Earl of Liverpool
Preceded by	William Wellesley Pole
Succeeded by	George Elliot
Member of Parliament
In office 22 June 1807 – 3 December 1832
Constituency	Aldeburgh (1830–1832) Dublin University (1827–1830) Aldeburgh (1826–1827) Bodmin (1820–1826) Yarmouth (1819–1820) Athlone (1812–1818) Downpatrick (1807–1812)
Personal details
Born	20 December 1780 Galway, Ireland
Died	10 August 1857 (aged 76)
Political party	Tory
Alma mater	Trinity College Dublin

John Wilson Croker (born December 20, 1780 – died August 10, 1857) was an important Irish-British statesman and writer. He played a big role in British politics and literature during his lifetime.

Early Life and Family

John Wilson Croker was born in Galway, Ireland. He was the only son of John Croker, who worked for the government in customs. John went to Trinity College Dublin and finished his studies in 1800. After that, he studied law and became a lawyer in Ireland in 1802.

In 1806, he married Rosamond Pennell in Waterford, Ireland. Sadly, none of their own children lived past the age of three. They decided to adopt Rosamond's younger sister, who was also named Rosamond. This adopted daughter was often called "Nony" Croker. A famous painting of Nony by Sir Thomas Lawrence is now in a museum in New York.

Croker was very interested in the French Revolution. He collected many important documents about it. These documents are now kept in the British Museum.

Early Writings

In 1804, Croker published a book of poems without using his name. It was called Familiar Epistles to J. F. Jones, Esquire, on the State of the Irish Stage. This book made fun of how theaters in Dublin were run. It was very popular and sold many copies quickly.

He also wrote another successful book in 1805, also without his name. It was called Intercepted Letter from Canton. This book was a funny story about society in Dublin, pretending to be a report from China. In 1807, he wrote a pamphlet about the state of Ireland. In this writing, he supported Catholic emancipation, which meant giving more rights to Catholics.

Croker was related to Thomas Crofton Croker, another Irish writer. Thomas worked for John at the Admiralty later on.

Political Career

Becoming a Member of Parliament

In 1808, John Croker became a Member of Parliament for Downpatrick. This was a big step in his political career. He became friends with the Duke of Wellington, a very important military leader. This friendship lasted for many years.

Croker became well-known for his speech in 1809. He spoke about a case involving the Duke of York and his misuse of military power. After this speech, Croker was given an important job. He became the first secretary to the Admiralty. He held this position for over twenty years.

Working at the Admiralty

As Secretary to the Admiralty, Croker was very powerful. He exposed a fellow official named George Villiers who had misused a lot of public money. Croker was so influential that some people said he ran the Admiralty, even though he was supposed to be a servant of the Board.

He became good friends with John Barrow, the second secretary to the Admiralty. Barrow's oldest son even married Croker's adopted daughter, Nony.

In 1816, Croker helped reduce the size of the Royal Navy. Over 1,000 ships were taken out of service. In 1824, he helped start the Athenaeum Club in London. This was a private club for writers and scholars.

Later Political Life

Croker served as a Member of Parliament for several different areas. These included Athlone, Yarmouth, Bodmin, and Aldeburgh. In 1827, he became the MP for Dublin University.

In 1828, he became a Privy Councillor. This is a special advisor to the King or Queen. He retired from his job at the Admiralty in 1830.

Croker strongly opposed the Reform Bill. This bill aimed to change how Members of Parliament were elected. He believed the changes were bad for the country. When the bill passed in 1832, he kept his promise not to sit in the new Parliament. He left politics.

Literary Contributions

Writing for the Quarterly Review

For many years, Croker was a main writer for the Quarterly Review. This was a very important magazine that published articles on literature and history. Croker's articles were often very strong in their opinions. This sometimes made political disagreements even worse.

He did not like the new style of poetry that was becoming popular. In 1833, he wrote a very harsh review of poems by Alfred Tennyson. This review, along with the death of Tennyson's friend, made the poet stop publishing for nine years. Croker also wrote a famous article about John Keats's poem Endymion. Some poets, like Shelley and Byron, even blamed this article for Keats's early death.

Editing Boswell's Life of Johnson

Croker's most famous literary work was his edition of Boswell's Life of Johnson (1831). This book is about the life of the famous writer Samuel Johnson. However, Croker's edition received a very negative review from Macaulay in the Edinburgh Review. Macaulay criticized Croker for adding too many notes and for making factual mistakes. He also said Croker changed Boswell's original text too much.

Later, another scholar named George Birkbeck Hill also criticized Croker's work. However, Hill also said that Croker had found many new letters from Johnson. These letters would have been lost if Croker had not found them.

Croker also worked on an edition of Alexander Pope's works. He did not finish it before he died, but others completed it later.

Other Works and Legacy

Many people believe that the character "Rigby" in Benjamin Disraeli's novel Coningsby was based on John Wilson Croker. This is because Croker managed the estates of a wealthy nobleman for many years.

Some of Croker's other important writings include:

• Stories for Children from the History of England (1817): This book was so good that it inspired Scott to write his own children's history book.
• Letters on the Naval War with America
• The Battles of Talavera (1809): A poem about a battle.

He also edited many historical papers and letters from important figures. His own memoirs, diaries, and letters were published after his death in a collection called The Croker Papers.

Legacy

John Wilson Croker's name lives on in a few places:

• Croker Bay was named by Sir William Edward Parry.
• Cape Croker on Ontario's Bruce Peninsula in Canada was also named after him by Henry Wolsey Bayfield.

Images for kids

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  John Wilson Croker, by William Owen