Collet Dobson Collet

Collet Dobson Collet (31 December 1812 – 28 December 1898) was a radical freethinker, Chartist and campaigner against newspaper taxation.

Background & Work

A career in the Law, aborted due to lack of money, Collet became Director of music at South Place Chapel, and was heavily involved in the Chartist movement.

He became Secretary of the People's Charter Union, and of the Newspaper Stamp Abolition Committee in 1849. In 1866 he became editor of The Diplomatic Review. This journal was first known as The Free Press prior to Collet's taking it over and was a mouthpiece for the views of David Urquhart.

Collet invited radical people to contribute to Diplomatic Review and as a result began publishing articles by Karl Marx. As a result the two became great friends and weekly meetings were held at each other's houses at which Shakespeare readings were given by members of the family. These meetings became formalised as 'The Dogberry Club. Marx felt that his strong German accent would not be helpful for authenticity and so he watched the proceedings as his daughter Eleanor Marx and Collet's daughter Clara Collet amongst others became heavily involved in the readings.

From 1851 - 1870 he was Secretary of the Association for the Repeal of the Taxes on Knowledge.

Book

Collet's book, A History of the Taxes on Knowledge, was first published in 1899. It was subsequently re-published in the Thinker's Library series in 1933.

Works by Collet

A History of the Taxes on Knowledge: their origin and repeal. London: T. Fisher Unwin, 1899 (2 vols)

References

• Royle, Edward (1974). Victorian Infidels: the origins of the British Secularist Movement, 1791-1866. Manchester: Manchester University Press. ISBN 0-7190-0557-4 Online version
• McDonald, Deborah. Clara Collet 1860-1948: An Educated Working Woman London 2004

Persondata
Name	Collet, Collet Dobson
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	31 December 1812
Place of birth
Date of death	28 December 1898
Place of death