June 11, 2012
"Popularity is a crime from the moment it is sought; it is only a virtue where men have it whether they will or no."
Sir George Savile, First Marques of Halifax (1633-1695)
Among the foremost intellectuals of his era, Halifax was the son of minor nobility. He served in the House of Commons, and later, the House of Lords, after being raised to the peerage in recognition of his service to the King. A centrist in an age of extremists, he navigated between Catholic and Protestant interests, eventually siding with William and Mary during the revolution of 1688, and urged them to follow a path of toleration. During their reign he was elected Speaker of the House of Lords and eventually rose to Lord Privy Seal. An early advocate of publicly funded education, Halifax is among the most quotable of English statesmen, having written numerous essays on the moral and ethical place of the state in the everyday lives of men and women.
Good Morning Gloucester 