Jonas Hanway facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jonas Hanway
FRSA
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Portrait of Jonas Hanway by James Northcote, c. 1785
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| Born | 12 August 1712 |
| Died | 5 September 1786 |
| Occupation | Philanthropist, traveller |
Jonas Hanway (born August 12, 1712 – died September 5, 1786) was a British man who loved helping others. He was known as a philanthropist (someone who gives time and money to help people) and a traveller. He was also famous for being the first man in London to regularly carry an umbrella! Interestingly, he was also very much against people drinking tea.
Contents
Jonas Hanway's Life Story
Jonas Hanway was born in Portsmouth, a city on the south coast of England. When he was still a child, his father passed away. His father had been a victualler, which meant he supplied food and drink. After his father died, Jonas and his family moved to London.
Early Career and Travels
In 1729, when Jonas was about 17, he started working as an apprentice for a merchant in Lisbon, Portugal. An apprentice learns a trade or business by working for an experienced person.
Later, in 1743, Jonas became a business partner with a merchant in St Petersburg, Russia. This new partnership led him to travel a lot in Russia and Persia (which is now called Iran).
He left St Petersburg on September 10, 1743. He traveled south through cities like Moscow and Astrakhan. Then, he sailed across the Caspian Sea. He arrived in a place called Astrabad on December 18.
However, his journey was not easy. His goods were taken by a local leader named Mohammed Hassan Beg. Jonas faced many difficulties and hardships. Eventually, he reached the camp of Nadir Shah, a powerful ruler. With Nadir Shah's help, Jonas managed to get most (about 85%) of his property back.
Return to England
His trip back was also full of challenges. He got sick and faced attacks from pirates. He even had to stay in quarantine for six weeks. Finally, he arrived back in St Petersburg on January 1, 1745.
Jonas left Russia again on July 9, 1750. He traveled through Germany and the Netherlands before reaching England on October 28. He spent the rest of his life mostly in London. In 1753, he published a book about his travels. This book made him quite famous. After that, he spent his time helping others and being a good citizen.
Helping Others in London
Jonas Hanway was very active in helping people. Here are some of the things he did:
- In 1756, he started The Marine Society. This group helped make sure there were enough sailors for the British navy.
- In 1758, he became a leader at the Foundling Hospital. This hospital cared for abandoned children. He later became a vice president there in 1772.
- He also helped create the Magdalen Hospital, which supported women in need.
- In 1761, he worked to improve how births were recorded in London.
- In 1762, he was given an important job. He became a commissioner for supplying the navy with food and other necessities. He held this job until 1783.
Jonas Hanway never married. He passed away on September 5, 1786, at the age of 74. He was buried in a church in Hanwell. There is also a monument in his memory at Westminster Abbey, a very famous church in London.
The Umbrella Man
Jonas Hanway is often remembered for being the first man in London to regularly carry an umbrella. Women had been using umbrellas since 1705. At first, the drivers of horse-drawn taxis didn't like umbrellas. They thought umbrellas would make people walk instead of hiring their carriages. They would often shout at Jonas and try to push him. But Jonas kept using his umbrella, and eventually, he won them over!
He also tried to stop "vail-giving," which was like tipping. He also argued against drinking tea, which led to arguments with famous writers like Samuel Johnson and Oliver Goldsmith. Later in his life, he worked to help child chimney-sweeps. These children often worked in very dangerous conditions.
Why Jonas Hanway Opposed Tea
Jonas Hanway was strongly against people drinking tea. In 1756, he wrote a book called An Essay on Tea. In this book, he argued that tea was "harmful to health, stopping hard work and making the nation poor."
He believed that drinking tea caused bad breath, made people look less attractive, and weakened their nerves. Hanway was also worried about Britain losing money from trading tea with China. He thought that Britain's wealth was going to other countries instead of being used to protect the nation. He also felt that too much tea drinking was making the British people weaker.
In 1757, Samuel Johnson, who enjoyed drinking tea, wrote a negative review of Hanway's book. This review was published anonymously in a magazine. This led to a big argument between Hanway and Johnson. Johnson's review also criticized the Foundling Hospital, which was a sensitive topic. The leaders of the hospital even thought about taking legal action against the magazine's publisher. However, the magazine did not apologize or reveal Johnson's name. Instead, they decided it was time for Johnson to stop writing reviews for them.
