John Fuller (February 20, 1757 - April 11, 1834), better known as "Mad Jack" Fuller (although he himself preferred to be called "Honest John" Fuller) was Squire of the hamlet of Brightling, in Sussex (now East Sussex), and is well known as a builder of follies, and as a philanthropist, patron of the arts and sciences. He purchased and commissioned many paintings from J.M.W. Turner. He was sponsor and mentor to Michael Faraday. is the 51st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1757 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 101st day of the year (102nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1834 (MDCCCXXXIV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Brightling is a village and civil parish in the Rother District of East Sussex, England. ... Sussex is a historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. ... East Sussex is a county in South East England. ... For other uses, see Folly (disambiguation). ... A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, or reputation to a charitable cause. ... This article is about the philosophical concept of Art. ... Part of a scientific laboratory at the University of Cologne. ... J. M. W. Turner, English landscape painter The fighting Temeraire tugged to her last berth to be broken up, painted 1839. ... Michael Faraday, FRS (September 22, 1791 – August 25, 1867) was an English chemist and physicist (or natural philosopher, in the terminology of that time) who contributed significantly to the fields of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. ...

Early life

Fuller was born on February 20, 1757 in North Stoneham, Hampshire. He was christened in the village of Waldron, near Heathfield in Sussex (now East Sussex), in the south of England. His parents were the Reverend Henry Fuller (January 15, 1713 - July 23, 1761) and his wife Frances, née Fuller (1725 - February 14, 1778)[1]. is the 51st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1757 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Waldron is either: Waldron, Arkansas, United States Waldron, Kansas, United States Waldron, Michigan, United States This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... The Parish of Heathfield and Waldron is in East Sussex, some 16 miles from the coastal town of Eastbourne and 17 miles from the historic spa town of Royal Tunbridge Wells in Kent. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Henry Fuller may refer to: Henry Mills Fuller (1820-1860), American Whig politician who represented Pennsylvanias 11th congressional district (1851-53, 1855-57) Henry Blake Fuller (1857-1929), American novelist, short story writer and playwright, associated with Chicago Category: ... is the 15th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1713 (MDCCXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ... is the 204th day of the year (205th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1761 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... is the 45th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1778 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

He lost his father in 1761, when he was four. At the age of ten, in 1767, he began his education at Eton College, a public school in Berkshire. The Kings College of Our Lady of Eton beside Windsor, commonly known as Eton College or just Eton, is a public school (privately funded and independent) for boys, founded in 1440 by King Henry VI. It is located in Eton, near Windsor in England, north of Windsor Castle, and... A public school, in current English, Welsh and Northern Ireland usage, is a (usually) prestigious independent school, for children usually between the ages of 11 or 13 and 18, which charges fees and is not financed by the state. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

On May 7, 1777, Jack Fuller’s uncle Rose Fuller, MP died[2], leaving Jack his Sussex estates and Jamaican plantations. Jack Fuller thus took possession of the Rose Hill estate (now Brightling Park) at Brightling at the age of 20. is the 127th day of the year (128th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1777 (MDCCLXXVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ...

Political career

In 1780, at the age of 22, Jack Fuller was elected to Parliament. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Southampton from 1780 to 1784, and for Sussex from 1801 to 1812. The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative institution in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories (it alone has parliamentary sovereignty). ... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a parliament. ... For other uses, see Southampton (disambiguation). ...

On July 17, 1781, Fuller’s sister Elizabeth married Sir John Palmer Acland, a grandson of Sir Hugh Acland, 6th Bt MP, in St. Marylebone in London. is the 198th day of the year (199th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1781 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Marylebone (sometimes written St. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...

In 1790, at the age of 33, he proposed marriage to Susannah Arabella Thrale,(daughter of Henry Thrale and Hester Thrale) but was rebuffed. In fact, he never married, and is not known to have had any children. Henry Thrale by Sir Joshua Reynolds Henry Thrale (born 1724-30, at the Alehouse in Harrow Corner, Southwark, died 4 April 1781, London) was an 18th century English MP and a close friend of Samuel Johnson. ... Hester Lynch Thrale by Sir Joshua Reynolds Hester Lynch Thrale (born Hester Lynch Salusbury and after her second marriage, Hester Lynch Piozzi ) (16 January 1741 (she mistakenly celebrated her own birthday on 27 January) - May 2, 1821) was a British diarist, author, and a friend and confidante of Samuel Johnson. ...

In 1729, John “Mad Jack” Fuller, at the age of 22, was captain of a light infantry company in the Sussex Militia. In 1796, Fuller was appointed High Sheriff of Sussex, for a period of one year, and in 1798, he became a captain in the Sussex Gentlemen and Yeomanry Cavalry. In the General Election of 1807, he was re-elected as MP for Sussex. However, on February 27, 1810, an incident with the Speaker in Parliament led to him being seized by the Serjeant-at-Arms and to public disgrace. At that time he was serving on a committee that was enquiring into the reasons behind the disastrous Walcheren Expedition the previous year. The High Sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement position in Anglosphere countries. ... Captain is a rank or title with various meanings. ... A general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are up for election. ... is the 58th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1810 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... In the United Kingdom, the Speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the House of Commons, and is seen historically as the First Commoner of the Land. ... A Serjeant at Arms (also spelt Sergeant at Arms, and sometimes Serjeant-at-Arms) is an officer appointed by a deliberative body, usually a legislature, to keep order during its meetings. ... The Walcheren expedition (July 30 - December 10, 1809), a British military operation during the Napoleonic Wars, formed the last in a series of operations in Flanders (present-day Belgium) in 1809. ...

In 1811, a pyramid-shaped building, often referred to as "the Pyramid", was erected in the churchyard of Church of St. Thomas à Becket, Brightling ([3])(known variously as St. Thomas of Canterbury) as a future mausoleum for Jack Fuller. For other meanings, see pyramid (disambiguation). ... Graves at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York A cemetery (also called a graveyard, churchyard or kirkyard) is a place (usually an enclosed area of land) in which dead bodies are buried. ... St. ...

Fuller retired from politics in 1812, not standing for re-election in the General Election of that year.

Later life

Fuller was a supporter and sponsor of the Royal Institution in London. He acted as mentor and supporter of the young Michael Faraday. In 1818 he loaned the Institution £1000 (about £100,000 in today's value) and later wrote off this debt. In 1828 he established the Fuller medal of the Royal Institution and in early 1833 he founded the Fullerian Professorship of Chemistry to which Michael Faraday was appointed as the first professor. Later he also endowed the institution with the Fullerian Professorship of Physiology. ^[1] The Royal Institution of Great Britain was set up in 1799 by the leading British scientists of the age, including Henry Cavendish and its first president George Finch, the 9th Earl of Winchilsea, for diffusing the knowledge, and facilitating the general introduction, of useful mechanical inventions and improvements; and for...

In 1818, Fuller built the Observatory at Brightling which had been designed by Robert Smirke, and in 1822, he endowed Eastbourne in Sussex with its first lifeboat. In 1828, he financed the building of the Belle Tout lighthouse, on the cliff at Beachy Head, near Eastbourne, and it was built in 1832(?), replacing the wooden structure that was there previously[4]. On Thursday, September 18, 1828, Jack Fuller bought Bodiam Castle for 3000 guineas at auction to save it from destruction. MolÄ—tai Astronomical Observatory An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial and/or celestial events. ... Sir Robert Smirke (1781-18 April 1867) was a leading 19th century British architect. ... For other places called Eastbourne, see Eastbourne (disambiguation). ... Severn class lifeboat in Poole Harbour, Dorset, England. ... The Belle Tout lighthouse is a decommissioned lighthouse and famous British landmark located at Beachy Head, East Sussex. ... How the Beachy Head Lighthouse was built. ... is the 261st day of the year (262nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1828 (MDCCCXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a leap year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Bodiam Castle from the South Bodiam Castle from the North Bodiam Castle interior from the South Tower Bodiam Castle is a quadrangular castle located in East Sussex, England (grid reference TQ785256). ...

On the afternoon of Friday, April 11, 1834, Fuller died at his home, 36 Devonshire Place, London. He was buried under the Pyramid in Brightling churchyard. The main beneficiary of his will was his nephew, Peregrine Palmer Fuller Palmer Acland (1789-1871). is the 101st day of the year (102nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1834 (MDCCCXXXIV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ...

References

1. ^ John Fuller: Patron of the Royal Institution Retrieved January 2007

2. Hutchinson, Geoff (1997). Fuller of Sussex: A Georgian Squire. Hastings, England: M & W Morgan. ISBN 0951993666. 

External links

• "John Mad Jack Fuller: Squire of Brightling" - The Life and Times of John "Mad Jack" Fuller
• Mad Jack's Morris - Hastings based Morris team founded in 1976 and named after John Mad Jack Fuller. The site includes a photo of his pyramid grave
• A biography and information on follies constructed by John Fuller
• BBC News story