Albert Broadbent FSS FRHS (17 February 1867 – 21 January 1912) was an English activist, writer, editor, publisher, lecturer, and restaurateur. Broadbent was a prominent advocate of vegetarianism. He served as Secretary of the Vegetarian Society and edited The Vegetarian Messenger and Health Review, playing a significant role in promoting vegetarianism on an international level. His work included extensive lecturing, producing publications advocating for a vegetarian diet, and the establishment of vegetarian restaurants aimed at improving women's social standing and providing affordable meals to poor people.
Albert Broadbent | |
|---|---|
 Broadbent, c. 1902 | |
| Born | 17 February 1867 Hollingworth, England |
| Died | 21 January 1912 (aged 44) Longsight, Manchester, England |
| Resting place | Southern Cemetery, Manchester |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1895–1912 |
| Spouse |
Christina Harrison (m. 1892) |
| Children | 1 |
| Relatives | William Harrison (father-in-law) |
| Signature | |
 | |
Broadbent died in 1912 after experiencing significant financial losses due to the failure of his restaurants. The financial strain contributed to a nervous breakdown, which preceded his death.
Biography
editEarly life
editAlbert Broadbent was born in Hollingworth, on 17 February 1867.[note 1] He became a vegetarian at the age of 26, after hearing a speech by Richard Coad.[3]
Vegetarianism activism
edit
Broadbent originally intended to pursue a commercial career, before joining the staff of the Vegetarian Society in 1894 and becoming Secretary the following year.[3] He was also the editor of the society's journal The Vegetarian Messenger and Health Review.[1]
Broadbent represented the society at International Congresses at Paris, Dresden, St. Louis, and London.[1] He was an active member of the Vegetarian Federal Union and attended all their meetings from 1893.[4]
Broadbent lectured extensively on vegetarianism and dietetics.[1] He was also a reviser of vegetarian literature.[3] In 1907, he published an abridged edition of Howard Williams' book The Ethics of Diet.[5]
Broadbent's 1902 book, Science in the Daily Meal, argued that a vegetarian diet is capable of providing the body its highest state of physical development; Broadbent listed one hundred recipes free of uric acid.[6] The book promoted the consumption of plasmon, but this food was controversial as not all vegetarians advocated its use. In 1903, J. P. Sandlands wrote a rebuttal to Broadbent's book entitled Science in the Daily Meal Criticised, or Plasmon Confounded.[7]
Broadbent started vegetarian restaurants in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Leicester, with the intention of bettering the social position of women, by providing them the opportunity to earn a living wage. The meals were also provided at a low price, so that poorer people would be able to access vegetarian meals; this enterprise ended in failure and, as result, Broadbent suffered a significant financial loss.[8]
Other activities
editBroadbent later became a Bible Christian deacon and a lay preacher, serving in Congregational, Unitarian, and Labour Churches.[3]
Broadbent was a Fellow of the Statistical Society and the Royal Horticultural Society.[1]
Broadbent published and edited a collection of poetry, titled the Broadbent Treasuries of Poets, made up of 14 books. He also edited and published six literary miniatures.[1]
Personal life and death
edit
Broadbent married Christina, the daughter of William Harrison of Manchester,[1] in 1892;[9] they had one daughter.[10]
After experiencing a complete nervous breakdown,[8] Broadbent died on 21 January 1912 at his home in Longsight, Manchester; he was buried in the Southern Cemetery on 25 January.[11]
Selected publications
editAs author or editor
edit- Forty Vegetarian Dinners (1900)
- Andrew Glendinning's Apple Tree Cookery Book and Guide to Rational Diet (Edited by Albert Broadbent, 1902)
- "Diet in Relation To the Problem of Poverty" (Journal of the Sanitary Institute, 1902)
- "Shall We Slay to Eat?" (Good Health, November 1902), pp. 537–538
- Science in the Daily Meal (1902)
- The Vegetarian Textbook (Edited by Albert Broadbent, 1903)[12]
- The Building of the Body (1903)
- How to Keep Warm (1904)
- Fruits, Nuts and Vegetables: Their Use as Food and Medicine (1908)
- Salads: Their Uses as Food & Medicine (1909)
- "Fifty Valuable Meatless Recipes" (Physical Culture, 1910)
- 160 Meatless Recipes (1925)
Broadbent Treasuries of Poets
edit- A Festus Treasury
- A Treasury of Consolation
- A Mackenzie Bell Treasury
- A Treasury of Translations
- An Emerson Treasury
- A Treasury of Devotional Poems
- A Brotherhood Treasury
- A Whittier Treasury
- A Treasury of Love
- A Russell Lowell Treasury
- A Norman Gale Treasury
- A Wordsworth Treasury
- A Longfellow Treasury
- A Nature Treasury
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f g "Broadbent, Albert". Who Was Who: A Companion to "Who's Who" Containing the Biographies of Those Who Died During the Period 1897-1916. London: A & C Black. 1920. p. 89. Retrieved 13 January 2024 – via HathiTrust.
- ^ England & Wales Christening Records, 1530-1906
- ^ a b c d Gregory, James Richard Thomas Elliott (2002). "Biographical Index of British Vegetarians and Food reformers of the Victorian Era". The Vegetarian Movement in Britain c.1840–1901: A Study of Its Development, Personnel and Wider Connections (PDF). Vol. 2. University of Southampton. p. 27. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
- ^ "Albert Broadbent". International Vegetarian Union. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ "The Ethics of Diet by Howard Williams". London Quarterly Review. 6 (108): 18. 1907.
- ^ "Science in the Daily Meal by Albert Broadbent". Pharmaceutical Journal. 68: 483. 1902.
- ^ Addyman, Mary; Wood, Laura; Yiannitsaros, Christopher. (2017). Food, Drink, and the Written Word in Britain, 1820–1945. Routledge. p. 157. ISBN 978-1-8489-3610-2
- ^ a b Scott, WM. M. (1 May 1912). "Mr. Albert Broadbent—An Appreciation" (PDF). Good Health. 10 (5): 148.
- ^ "Marriages Mar 1892". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
- ^ Census Returns of England and Wales, 1901. Kew, Surrey, England: The National Archives, 1901.
- ^ "Deaths". Manchester Evening News. 22 January 1912. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com (subscription required).
- ^ McLaughlin, Terence (1979). If You Like It, Don't Eat it: Dietary Fads and Fancies. New York: Universe Books. p. 169. ISBN 0-87663-332-7. OCLC 5499827.
Further reading
edit- Arthur, Andy (10 October 2022). "The thread about early vegetarianism in Edinburgh; the pioneering café that was a haven for suffragettes and the tragic demise of its idealistic founder". Threadinburgh.
External links
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