John Stoddart
| John Stoddart | |
|---|---|
| Born |
6 February 1773 Salisbury, England |
| Died | 16 February 1856 (aged 83) London, England |
| Education | Christ Church, Oxford |
| Occupation | Author, editor and judge |
| Spouse(s) | Isabella Wellwood-Moncrieff (1774-1846) |
Sir John Stoddart (6 February 1773 – 16 February 1856) was a writer and lawyer, and editor of The Times.
Stoddart, eldest son of John Stoddart, lieutenant in the Royal Navy, was born at Salisbury. His only sister, Sarah, married, on 1 May 1808, William Hazlitt. He was educated at Salisbury grammar school, and matriculated on 25 Oct. 1790 from Christ Church, Oxford, where he was elected a student in 1791, and graduated B.A. in 1794, B.C.L. in 1798, and D.C.L. in 1801. He was admitted a member of the College of Advocates in 1801, and from 1803 to 1807 he was the king's and the admiralty advocate at Malta. During his time in Malta Stoddart was visited for a short time by the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge who eventually was placed in the post of Public Secretary to the government.
After returning to England, Stoddart practiced in Doctors' Commons. In 1810, he started an association with The Times, and served as a leader-writer for the paper beginning in 1812. In April 1814, Stoddart entered into an agreement with John Walter, the owner of The Times, in which he was named editor of the newspaper. A staunch Tory, Stoddart's intemperate articles soon generated much criticism. After Stoddart refused Walter's entreaties to moderate his tone, Walter empowered Thomas Barnes, then a reporter, to edit Stoddart's leading articles. Ultimately, Stoddart's political excesses grew to the point where Walter was forced to dismiss him at the end of 1816. Barnes was named as his successor.
Two months later, Stoddart started a rival daily to The Times, entitled The New Times, which was soon amalgamated with the Day. For a short time it appeared as the Day and New Times, but dropped the first half of the title in 1818, and survived as the New Times until about 1828. During the period of his editorship he was scurrilously known as "Dr. Slop", and was the subject of several satires, of which A Slap at Slop (1820) ran through four editions.
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