Mr. Pablo

By: Paul Gardner

Or ….was it a quasi-masonic association along with other ‘box’ (mutual collecting) and friendly societies of which some better known developed:

But lesser known being, the Order of Free Gardeners and in Pablo’s case the Shepherds Friendly Society, the latter being one of the oldest in the World.

Friendly societies in countries such as the United Kingdom were subject to prudential regulation to safeguard the financial interests of their members and secure the benefits promised to them, but the legislation, the Friendly Societies Act 1875 was separate from that applicable to insurance companies.

In other countries friendly societies have no specific legal status, which means that they have to comply to the same rules and regulations as for-profit insurance companies.

Members typically paid a regular membership fee and went to lodge meetings to take part in ceremonies. If members became sick, they would receive an allowance to help them meet their financial obligations.

The society might have a doctor whom the member could consult for free. Members of the lodge would visit to provide emotional and other support. When a member died, the funeral would be paid for and the members of the lodge might attend in ceremonial dress.

Often, there was some money left over for the next of kin.

Friendly societies might also organize social functions such as dances, and some had sports teams for members. They occasionally became involved in political issues that were of interest to their members.

PABLO FANQUE – CIRCUS OWNER & EQUESTRIAN 1810 – 1871

The early life of William Darby is unclear but that he was born in 1810 in the workhouse at St Augustine’s, Norwich, son of an Indian-born servant, who had been brought to the city.

When William got married, he described his father as a butler. However it has been suggested that his father was of African descent and was in service in Norwich.

Nonetheless by 1820, William was apprenticed to William Batty, a circus proprietor.

William then changed his name to Pablo Fanque and gained a reputation as a high-performing gymnast within the circus. In the spring of 1840, the circus visited Norwich and Pablo was described as;

“performing extraordinary leaps and other gymnastic feats”.

Only a year later, he decided to set up his own circus, starting with just two horses and a miss-mash of acts provided by one family. The circus performed mainly in Yorkshire at this time but did return to Norwich.

Pablo married twice, first to Susannah Marlow and had two sons. In 1837, his five-year old son appeared with him and a year later received praise for;

“being the youngest performer in the world, whose talents have obtained for him the appellation of the Gem of Africa, the wonder of the world; he will go through some pleasing feats on the tightrope.”

In 1848 an accident at King Charles Croft in Leeds occurred when part of the building collapsed. Pablo junior was performing a tightrope act at the time and several people were injured; Susannah, his mother, lost her life.

Later that year Pablo married Elizabeth Corker, a circus rider, and they had two more sons and a daughter. As this poster shows, Pablo’s circus was now called The Circus Royal and it advertises an event held at the Victoria Gardens, Norwich, in December 1848.

By 1850, Pablo decided to expand the circus, and, after investment, was able to continue his tour to Ireland and Scotland. He and his circus were also presented to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert at Astley’s Amphitheatre.

However, American circuses had started to invade the market by performing in marquees, meaning they were able to visit more rural towns and communities throughout the year, as opposed to being tied down to annual fairs in the larger towns.

In 1854, Pablo faced severe difficulties and in 1859 was declared bankrupt. A year later, however, he established The Phoenix Circus and for the next decade performed in marquees and toured the smaller industrial towns of Lancashire.

He died on 5th May 1871 in Stockport and received a spectacular funeral with a vast crowd lining the route to the Woodhouse Lane Cemetery in Leeds, where his first wife was buried. Pablo’s favourite horse followed a band that played the ‘Dead March’.

He is remembered more recently by The Beatles’ song, ‘Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite’, with the lyrics. Since the 1960s, Pablo Fanque has been best known for being mentioned in the Beatles song “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!” on their 1967 album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

Beatles; Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

IMAGE LINKED:  wikimedia Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

For the benefit of Mr Kite
There will be a show tonight on trampoline
The Hendersons will all be there
Late of Pablo Fanque’s Fair, what a scene
Over men and horses, hoops and garters
Lastly through a hogshead of real fire
In this way Mr K will challenge the world.

The “Benefit for Mr. Kite” was one of many benefits that Pablo Fanque held for performers in his circus, for others in the profession who had no regular retirement or health benefits, and for community organizations.

Fanque was a member of the Order of Ancient Shepherds, a fraternal organization modelled on the Freemasons. It assisted families in times of illness or death with burial costs and other expenses.

IMAGE LINKED:  wikimedia Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Fanque was active holding at least two benefits among other performances. In 1857, in Bradford, he held a benefit for the family of the late Tom Barry, a clown. Brenda Assael, in The Circus and Victorian Society, writes that in March 1857, “Pablo Fanque extended the hand of friendship to Barry’s widow and held a benefit in her husband’s name at his Allied Circus in Bradford. The press reported “Pablo Fanque’s Cirrque Nationale’ offered ‘A Masonic Benefit.'”

IMAGE LINKED:  wikimedia Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Shepherds Friendly Society is a UK friendly society and one of the oldest mutual insurers in the world. It is an incorporated society in the United Kingdom within the meaning of the Friendly Societies Act 1992. It has over 100,000 members.

Shepherds Friendly started life as a sickness and benefits society, Ashton Unity, which was formed in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire on Christmas Day in 1826.

It was later renamed as the Loyal Order of Ancient Shepherds, “loyal” referring to the Crown and “shepherds” to the Nativity of Jesus. Its objects were “to relieve the sick, bury the dead, and assist each other in all cases of unavoidable distress, so far as in our power lies, and for the promotion of peace and goodwill towards the human race”.

It later spread across the country, organised into local branches; like other friendly societies such as the Oddfellows, these were known as ‘lodges’, and officers wore regalia somewhat similar to those of masons. By 1914 the membership had grown to 143,000.

In the 1720s, Scotland had a profusion of societies, fraternities, and clubs. Freemasonry and the Order of Free Gardeners are merely those that spread the furthest and lasted the longest.

Those two orders present important similarities concerning their organisation and development. Both were born in Scotland in the middle of the 17th century among groups of professional workers who very quickly accepted members from other professions.

In both cases, members of the original profession became minorities from the beginning of the 18th century. In both orders also, certain lodges opened very rapidly to ‘accepted’ members and in particular to the local nobility, whereas others, like that of Haddington for the Free Gardeners and that of Edinburgh for the Freemasons, were more reticent.

Almost all known members who belonged to the two orders were Free Gardeners before becoming Freemasons. Freemasonry expanded rapidly in England and, after creation of the Grand Lodge in London in 1717, across the entire world.

On the other hand, the Order of Free Gardeners remained principally Scottish. In both cases, the Scottish lodges seemed to have difficulties grouping together into larger structures called Grand Lodges.

In the case of the Order of Free Gardeners, the first Grand Lodge only formed in 1849, and 15 lodges remained independent until the disappearance of the order.

In both cases, it is in particular the lodges founded before their Grand Lodge that remain the most reluctant to renounce their independence.

Various similar mutual associations have since amalgamated with it, including the Royal Shepherds Sanctuary Benefit Society which was established in Yorkshire in the early 19th century, and the Ancient Order of Shepherds.

The Society remains in existence but has changed from a traditional insurance provider to a modern diversified financial services organisation. It offers a range of savings, protection and insurance plans for its members.

Similarly the Order of Free Gardeners is a fraternal society that was founded in Scotland in the middle of the 17th century and later spread to England and Ireland.

Like numerous other friendly societies of the time, its principal aim was the sharing of secret knowledge linked to the profession and mutual aid.

In the 19th century, its activities of mutual insurance became predominant. By the end of the 20th century, it had become almost entirely extinct, but that can be revised due to some growth in the early 21st century.

Although the Free Gardeners have always remained independent of Freemasonry, the history and organisation of the two orders show numerous similarities. Some commentators have pointed to possible mutual influences in the ancient history of the two organisations.

At the peak of the movement there were more than 10,000 Free Gardeners for the Lothians alone, belonging to more than 50 lodges? Competing horticultural societies appeared during the 19th century.

Unlike the Free Gardeners, they did not have a charitable role, mutual help, or rituals, and they would accept anybody, male or female, who paid their dues.

In the 20th century, the two World Wars called up most of the members. The economic crisis of 1929 weakened their charitable capacities.

The social protection laws weakened the attraction of mutual aid, before the National Insurance Act 1946 removed their entire purpose. Even before the Second World War, the number of deaths exceeded the number of admissions to the lodges.

IMAGE LINKED:  wikimedia Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Mr. Pablo, not a Freemason, but at heart sharing the same charitable acts and loyal tenets. A man and a brother.

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