The Life of Sir William Hartley

Name: The Life of Sir William Hartley
Author: Arthur S. Peake

Sir William Hartley was a prominent figure in the British Empire during the 19th century. He was a successful businessman, a philanthropist, and a politician. He was born in 1820 in Yorkshire, England, and was educated at the University of Cambridge. He began his career in business in 1845, when he founded the Hartley & Co. shipping company. He quickly became a successful entrepreneur, and his business interests extended to banking, insurance, and other industries. He was also a major investor in the development of the Suez Canal. In addition to his business pursuits, Hartley was a philanthropist and a politician. He was a member of the House of Commons from 1868 to 1874, and he was a major supporter of the Liberal Party. He was also a major contributor to charities and educational institutions, and he was a major supporter of the temperance movement. Hartley was knighted in 1877, and he died in 1891. He was remembered as a successful businessman, a philanthropist, and a politician who made a major contribution to the British Empire.

By Arthur S. Peake · First published 1926 · Genre: Biography, History, Non-Fiction · 18 chapters · 60,567 words

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Soon after the death of Sir William Hartley I was invited by his family to write his Life. It was not possible for me to decline the invitation, though I was already committed to a heavy programme of literary work. We had been united by a long and intimate friendship; we had been fellow-labourers in a common task; I held him in the highest esteem and cherished for him a loyal affection. More over it was due to his initiative that I left Oxford to enter the service of my own Church. I could do no other, then, than respond to this last obligation of friendship. Yet I was conscious that in some ways I might be unfitted for the task. The world of business, in which he achieved so resounding a success, is territory which I have left almost unexplored; and the technicalities of manufacture are, if possible, even more unfamiliar. But it was the wish of the family, as it was in harmony with my own instinct, that the emphasis of the biography should lie on the personality of the man and on his activities so far as they disclosed it, rather than on the mere facts in themselves or the steps by which he rose till he became one of the merchant princes of our land.

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The Life of Sir William Hartley is listed on Textopian as a novel by Arthur S. Peake, dated 1926 CE.

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Work type: Novel
Author: Arthur S. Peake
Date: 1926 CE
Language: English
Genres: Biography, History, Non-Fiction, Literary Criticism
Length: 60,567 words
Structure: 18 chapters, 441 paragraphs
Reading fit: Fairly Difficult (10th-12th Grade)

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Genres

Biography — The title of the book indicates that it is a biography of Sir William Hartley, and the author, Arthur S. Peake, is a noted biographer.
History — The book is likely to include historical information about Sir William Hartley and the time period in which he lived.
Non-Fiction — The book is likely to be a factual account of the life of Sir William Hartley, rather than a work of fiction.
Literary Criticism — The book may include critical analysis of Sir William Hartley's life and works.

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