First published in 1925. Robert Owen was, in the author¿s words, ¿that rarest of phenomena, an utterly disinterested critic of a system by which he had himself risen to greatness¿, and in studying his life this work reveals with a remarkable clarity the first phases of the Industrial Revolution crowded as it was with events, changes, ideas, and characters. This title will be of great interest to scholars and students of labour history.

A radical thinker and humanitarian employer, Owen made a major contribution to nineteenth-century social movements including co-operatives, trade unions and workers' education. He was a pioneer of enlightened approaches to the education of children and an advocate of birth control.