Thomas Perronet Thompson

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Thomas Perronet Thompson (1783 - 1869) was a British Parliamentarian, a Governor of Sierra Leone and a radical reformer.

Thompson was born in Kingston upon Hull in 1783 and was educated at the city's Grammar School. He graduated from Queen's College, Cambridge in 1802. From 1803, Thompson served as a midshipman in the Royal Navy, switching to the British Army (as a lieutenant) in 1806. Thompson became Governor of Sierra Leone between August 1808 and June 1810, due in part to his acquaintance with William Wilberforce. He was recalled from the job due to his hostility to the slave trade, and his unfair treatment of the African American settlers.

In 1812, Thompson returned to his military duties, and, after serving in the south of France, was in 1815 attached as Arabic interpreter to an expedition against the Wahabees of the Persian Gulf, with whom he negotiated a treaty (dated January 1820) in which the slave trade was for the first time declared piracy. Whilst in the Army, Thompson was promoted to Major in 1825, Lieutenant Colonel in 1829 and in later years was made a Major General.

As a radical reformer, Thompson wrote the True Theory of Rent and A Catechism on the Corn Laws. He also joint-owned the Westminster Review for a time. He wrote several articles in the journal supporting universal suffrage. Thompson represented Kingston upon Hull in the House of Commons from 1835 to 1837 and was elected to represent Bradford in 1847.

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Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
David Carruthers and
William Hutt		 Member of Parliament for Kingston upon Hull
(with William Hutt)
1835–1837		 Succeeded by
Sir Walter Charles James and
William Wilberforce
Preceded by
John Hardy and
William Busfield		 Member of Parliament for Bradford
(with William Busfield, to 1851;
Robert Milligan, from 1851)
1846–1852		 Succeeded by
Henry Wickham Wickham and
Robert Milligan