Motto: ‘That alone is sound policy which secures the greatest happiness of the greatest number’.

The London Free Press was founded in February 1827 by William Spencer Northhouse, who was also the editor of the Glasgow Free Press (1821-1868). As its title suggests, one of the key focusses of the paper was on the issue of the freedom on the press. A quote from Junius, which appeared above its editorial section each week read ‘Let it be impressed upon your minds, let it be instilled into your children, that the Liberty of the Press is the Palladium of all your Civil, Political, and Religious Rights’. There were also features on Catholic Emancipation, the Greek War of Independence, The Canning Coalition, and as the motto would suggest, it also advocated a Benthamite philosophy.

Despite early backing from key figures such as Francis Place and Joseph Hume the paper struggled to establish itself, and in July 1827 the title merged into the Trades Newspaper, which was also experiencing financial worries, to become the Trades Free Press.

Beth Gaskell, The British Library