Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury

Anthony Ashley -Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, called Lord Shaftesbury, ( born April 28, 1801 in London, † October 1, 1885 in Folkestone, Kent) was from 1811 to 1851 the courtesy title of Lord Ashley and was one of the most famous British politician and philanthropists of the Victorian period.

He was educated at Harrow School in London and the Christ Church College, Oxford. He was elected in 1826 for the Tories to the House, where he was immediately to the leader of the movement for factory reform. He drew a significant portion responsible for the Factory Acts of 1847 and 1853 and for the Coal Mines Act of 1842, as well as for the Lunacy Act of 1845 One of his main interests was the welfare of the child. ; he was chairman of the Ragged Schools Union and strong supporter of Florence Nightingale, also he supported Thomas John Barnardo in its charitable work. He is regarded as the driving force of the English Evangelicalism in the middle of the 19th century.

" Before anything else, I am a evangelical and belong to this movement. I have ever worked with them, and it satisfies me very much that the most philanthropic movements of the century are expected of them. "

The Shaftesbury Memorial at London's Piccadilly Circus was erected in 1893 to commemorate his philanthropic deeds. The monument is crowned by Alfred Gilbert's aluminum figure of a naked winged archer. This is officially the Angel of Christian Charity called, but has become popular as Eros. The representation of a nude figure on a public monument was controversial at the time; now the statue is, however, become a London icon and has its place on the front row of the Evening Standard.

Lord Shaftesbury married Lady Emily Caroline Catherine Frances Cowper († October 15, 1872 ), the daughter of Peter Cowper, 5th Earl Cowper, on June 10, 1830 They had three children.:

• Lady Victoria Ashley († February 15, 1927 ), ∞ Harry Chichester, 2nd Baron Templemore
• Anthony Ashley -Cooper, 8th Earl of Shaftesbury (June 27, 1831 to April 13, 1886 )
• Rt Hon Evelyn Ashley ( July 24, 1836 to November 15, 1907), ∞ Sybella Charlotte Farquhar