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Auguste Comte (1798-1857)
Auguste Comte was a French writer, philosopher, and social scientist, whose theory of positivism was a significant influence on the […]
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Barbara Smoker (1923-2020)
To say that “God moves in mysterious ways” is to put up a smokescreen of mystery behind which fantasy may […]
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Charles Watts (1836–1906)
Avoiding alike mysticism and shallow denial, he was a true Agnostic, anxious not merely to beat down error, but to […]
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Church of Humanity
No creative thinker has so governed… my mind as the French genius who framed the maxim – “Love for principle, […]
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Conway Hall
Conway Hall has effected a transformation. From the day of its opening the life of the Society has been full […]
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Edward Truelove (1809-1899)
The radical publisher Edward Truelove found himself in court more than once defending freedom of belief and expression. He believed, […]
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Ford Madox Brown (1821-1893)
A cheerful and reverent Agnostic, whose whole life was one of unselfishness and devotion to lofty aims, who was tolerant […]
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From the archives: A Burial Service
The reward of a useful and virtuous life is the conviction that our memory will be cherished by those who […]
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From the archives: Naming of Mazzini Truelove
On 11 November 1849, at the Literary and Scientific Institution, 23 John Street (now Whitfield Street), London, George Jacob Holyoake […]
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From the archives: The Great Human Detective Story
Humanism is a philosophy of life based on a concern for humanity rather than a belief in god. Humanists believe […]
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George Broadhead (1933–2021)
George Broadhead was a humanist activist and gay rights campaigner, motivated by a twin commitment to humanism and human rights. […]
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Glasnevin Cemetery
Glasnevin Cemetery is a nondenominational cemetery in Ireland, first opened in 1832. The brainchild of Catholic rights leader Daniel O’Connell, […]
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Helen Mary Dexter (1880–1948)
For many years a member of the Rationalist Press Association, and no longer associated with any church, she had devoted […]
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Highgate Cemetery
I was not, and was conceived. I loved and did a little work. I am not and grieve not. Epitaph […]
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Humanist Ceremonies
People have always looked for ways to mark significant events in their lives, and though many ceremonies have often been […]
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Humanists UK Campaigns
While much of the Humanist Heritage website looks back to the earlier years of the organised humanist movement, recent decades […]
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Hypatia Bradlaugh Bonner (1858-1935)
When we are asked to believe that nothing but a supernatural ideal can inspire and sustain a life-time of complete […]
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John Curry (1949–1994)
John Curry was an English figure skater celebrated for revolutionising the sport by combining athleticism with balletic artistry. Openly gay […]
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Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green, opened in 1833, was London’s first commercial cemetery, and the originator of the city’s ‘Magnificent Seven’. These suburban […]
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LGBT Humanists
Formed in the wake of the Gay News blasphemy trial, GALHA (now LGBT Humanists) came into being in 1979 as […]
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Mother Clap (died c.1726)
As for Mother Clap, she was present all the Time, except when she went out to fetch Liquors… The Company […]
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Owenism
Socialism emerged, in the early decades of the nineteenth century, as a humanist ideal of universal emancipation – the ideal […]
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Positivism
Positivism is a philosophical system based on the writings of French thinker Auguste Comte, which flourished from the 1830s onwards. […]
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Richard Congreve (1818-1899)
Richard Congreve was a devoted follower of Auguste Comte, whose positivist philosophies and ‘Religion of Humanity’ inspired Congreve to open […]
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Rodger Alder (1947–1997)
The obituary reproduced below was written by George Broadhead, and originally appeared in a 1997 issue of The Gay Humanist […]
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South Place Ethical Society
Under its successive names, adopted or given… is traceable a constant endeavour to study carefully, and keep abreast of, the […]
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Stanton Coit (1857-1944)
Stanton Coit was a pioneer of the Ethical movement in England and the founder of the West London Ethical Society, […]
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The Ethical Church
The old teaching was that we must worship not truth, beauty and goodness, but their source, and that their source […]
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The Ethical Movement
Not by the Creed but by the Deed. Motto of the Society for Ethical Culture of New York, founded in […]
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The first humanist public funeral
He was the people’s First Minister, and this is a people’s ceremony. He wouldn’t want heavy mourning. This is a […]
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The Union of Ethical Societies
The Union of Ethical Societies (now Humanists UK) was formed in 1896, joining together existing ethical societies for fellowship and […]