Person Locke; John (1632 - 1704); philosopher Locke John philosopher 1632 - 1704 British Male Wrington, Somerset, England, Europe 29 August 1632 16320829 Oates, Essex, England, Europe 28 October 1704 17041028 Burial: The churchyard at High Laver, Essex, England, Europe

Exeter House, London, home of the Earl of Shaftesbury (1667-1675) Oates, Essex (from 1691)

Physician; Colonial official Philosophy Natural philosophy Medicine Education: Westminster School (1646-1652); Christ Church, Oxford (BA 1656; MA 1658; MB 1675); incorporated at Cambridge (1663); Gray's Inn (admitted 1656) Career: Christ Church, University of Oxford, Greek Lecturer (1660-1661), Tutor (1661-1666); Lecturer on Rhetoric (1662-1663), Censor of Moral Philosophy (1663-1664), all whilst remaining officially a student without taking religious orders as was usual, and instead carrying out chemical experiments and reading on medicine; after a period as an absentee student he later transfered to medical studentship (1675); secretary to Sir Walter Vane during his embassy to the elector of Brandenburg (1665); physician to Anthony Ashley Cooper, afterwards Earl of Shaftesbury and tutor to the Earl's son and later grandson (1667-1683); pupil of the physician Thomas Sydenham a prioneer in the study of infectious diseases (c.1667-1670); Secretary to the Proprietors of Carolina (1669-1675) in which capacity he helped to draft the constitution of the Carolinas including endorsement of slavery; shareholder in the Royal African Company and Bahama Adventurers Company, the latter founded by his patron Shaftesbury; registrar to the commissioners of the excise (1670-1675); Secretary of presentations (1672) during Shaftesbury's brief tenure as Lord Chancellor; Secretary and Treasurer to the Council of Trade (1673-1675) of which Shaftesbury was President; lived in France (1675-1679), chiefly at Montpellier and laterly inParis wherer he was tutor to the son of Sir John Bank FRS (1677-1679); suspected of complicity in the Shaftesbury Plots (1684); lived in Holland (1685-1689); Commissioner of Appeals (1689-1704); Commissioner of Trade and Plantations (1689-1704); published influential writings on civil government and political liberalism and philosophical theories of the human consciousness and sense of self Parents: John Locke and Agnes Keene Locke was patronised by Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Lord Shaftesbury (FRS 1663), and amongst his acquaintainces at school, Locke could count John Dryden (FRS 1663), Robert Hooke (FRS 1663), and Christopher Wren (FRS 1663). Many of Locke's major works, including 'Two Treatises of Government' (1689), were published after his return to England following the Glorious Revolution of 1688. He had a wide influence on political philosophy, especially modern liberalism. He wrote on the concepts of liberty and the social contract, which would late influence some of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Although in his writings Locke wrote against slavery in general he held several administrative positions in government offices that involved him directly in the running of English colonies. Locke also benfitted financially from the slave trade as a shareholder in The Royal Adventurers into Africa, later Royal African Company (RAC). The RAC was a British trading company established by Royal Charter in 1660 which enslaved and sold African people. The company was chartered by Charles II, the founding royal Patron of the Royal Society, which was also chartered in 1660. The RAC held a monopoly on English trade on the west coast of Africa. The principal interest of the company was originally gold and secondarily other natural resources. The Company's second charter in 1663 mentions trade in enslaved people, who were mainly sold into slavery on British owned estates in the West Indies and America. Royal Society roles: Council 1669-1670, 1672-1673 Fellow 26/11/1668 35 Sir Paul Neile Correspondent to the Society on matters such as natural history, incl. near the Bahamas; Submitted and published papers on anatomical research Sources: Bulloch's Roll; DNB; DSB; Venn; Foster; Hunter; ODNB References: Axtell, J L. 1965. 'Locke's Review of the Principia', in Notes and Records, vol. 20, pp. 152-161 Cook, Sir A. 1997. 'Ladies in the Scientific Revolution', in Notes and Records, vol. 51, pp. 1-12 Dewhurst, K. 1962. 'Locke's Contribution to Boyle's Researches on the Air and on Human Blood', in Notes and Records, vol. 17, pp. 198-206 Dunn, J M. ''Bright Enough For All Our Purposes': John Locke's Conception of a Civilized Society', in Notes and Records, vol. 43, pp. 133-153 Govier, M. 1999. 'The Royal Society, Slavery and the Island of Jamaica: 1660-1700', in Notes and Records, vol. 53, pp. 203-217 Jardine, L. 2004. 'The 2003 Wilkins Lecture: Dr Wilkins's boy wonders', in Notes and Records, vol. 58, pp. 107-129 Meynell, G. 1995. 'Locke, Boyle and Peter Stahl', in Notes and Records, vol. 49, pp. 185-192 Oldroyd, D R. 1980. 'Some 'Philosophical Scribbles' Attributed to Robert Hooke', in Notes and Records, vol. 35, pp. 17-32 Parkin, J. 1997. ''Locke and Modernity', review of Nicholas Wolterstorff, John Locke and the Ethics of Belief', in Notes and Records, vol. 51, pp. 141-142 Quinn, T. 2004. 'In this issue', in Notes and Records, vol. 58, pp. 245-247 Schaffer, S. 1989. 'The Glorious Revolution and Medicine in Britain and the Netherlands', in Notes and Records, vol. 43, pp. 167-190 Thomas, J. 1963. 'Josiah Wedgwood's Portrait Medallions of Fellows of the Royal Society', in Notes and Records, vol. 18, pp. 45-53 Locke P0082.jpg ©The Royal Society International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families - ISAAR(CPF) - Ottawa 1996 ISBN 0-9696035-3-3 National Council on Archives, Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/action/doSearch?ContribRaw=Locke%2C+John RCN: 14950 RCN: 50039 RCN: 50038 https://pictures.royalsociety.org/results?mi_search_type=adv&mi_adv_search=yes&adv_person_id=AUTH5265 https://pictures.royalsociety.org/image-rs-9715 29 Aug 1632 - 28 Oct 1704 The past Fellows entries are under continuous revision. If you have queries or additional information to contribute, please contact Library@royalsociety.org. Content in external sources is not controlled by the Royal Society and historical sources may include content that is now unacceptable. Reviewed on 14/07/2022 as part of the Name Authority Project update. NA8232 21/11/2001 Andyg Pmab 05/06/2025 RS_NET\VirginiaM Yes http://viaf.org/viaf/34459614 2f1b73a8-d5b6-45a6-8887-300b893f2572