ABSTRACT
“Introduction”, gives a sense of who Horatio Bottomley was: a journalist, politician and businessman, the proprietor of John Bull, the best-selling news magazine of its day. Running alongside his political career, Bottomley was also a businessman and speculator and, as such, vast sums passed through his hands. Hundreds of millions of pounds were invested in his companies – including a series of funds to invest in Australian gold mines. This chapter introduces the central themes of the book: its emphasis on political movement, and its fascination with the way that Bottomley inched over the course of his long political career from the far left of Victorian politics to the 1914–18 right and far right. It argues that Bottomley’s family and early influence cannot be reduced to the simple idea that he was born into poverty (although he was); he was surrounded at an early age by some of the most impressive individuals in mid-Victorian society and was able to build a career in part through them.
