Jewish Chronicle Obituary, 1933
We have to record (he passing away, in his ninety-first year, of the veteran communal worker and educationist, Sir Philip Magnus, Bart., which occurred on Tuesday at his residence at Tangley Hill, Chilworth, Surrey, Philip Magnus was born on October 7th, 1842, and was the second son of the late Jacob and Caroline Magnus. He was educated at University College School and University College, where Professor Marks, with whom he was destined in after years to be associated as a Minister of the West London Synagogue of British Jews, was teaching Hebrew. He graduated with honours as B.A. in 1868, and B.Sc. in the following year. Being intended for the Ministry of the Reform Congregation, he proceeded to Berlin University to pursue his theological studies. In 1866 he was appointed the colleague of Professor D. W. Marks and Dr. A. Lowy in the Ministry of the West London Synagogue, where he remained for a period of fourteen years, his fine diction making his pulpit addresses specially attractive. During this period, he engaged in private teaching, among his pupils being the brothers Claude and Leonard Montefiore. He became lecturer in Applied Mathematics at University College and at various other institutions. He also occupied himself, with pronounced success, in coaching students for the examinations of the University of London, being associated at one time for this purpose with the late Mr. Israel Davis. At the time of the death of Dr. Carpenter, Mr. Magnus became a candidate for the post of Registrar of the University, but was defeated by Mr. Milman, son of the famous Dean Milman. He also continued his scientific studies, and in 1894 published "Lessons in Elementary Mechanics," a text-book which to this day enjoys a considerable vogue. In 1880, he abandoned-the Ministry to become Organising Secretary and Director of the City and Guilds of London Institute for the Advancement of Technical Education, being succeeded at the West London Synagogue by the late Rev. Isidore Harris. In the following year he was appointed a member of a Royal Commission on Technical Education, and during its existence, covering a period of three years, visited a large number of European centres. In 1886, in recognition of his labours, a Knighthood was conferred on him at the instance of Lord Spencer, then Head of the Education Department. In 1883, Sir Philip was appointed Principal of the Finsbury Technical College, a post he held till 1885 ; and in 1800, he Was elected a member of the London School Board on which he served till the following year.
In 1888, Sir Philip published a work on “Industrial Education," among his other writings being a work on “Hydrostatics and Pneumatics," and a series of essays, " Educational Aims and Efforts 1880-1910.” He edited the "Education Library" and was Joint Editor of the “London Science Class-books”. At the time of his death, Sir Philip was engaged on compiling a history of London University, At various periods of his career he was Trustee of the City Parochial Charities, a member of the Education Committee of the Surrey County Council, President and Fellow of the College of Preceptors, Fellow and a Member of the Senate of London University (of which in his early days he had acted as Examiner), Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, Chairman of the Royal. Society of Arts, and Member of the Mathematical, Physical and Statistical Societies. He was also a Justice of the Peace. In 1906, he acted as Vice-President of the Educational Section of the British Association meeting. In the same year, he was elected Member of Parliament for London University, being the first Jew to sit in the House as a representative of one of the Universities, and retained his seat till his retirement in 1921. He was always listened to with great attention on educational and scientific questions, and he took a large share in the development of the University to the great teaching Institution it has now become. In 1928, he was presented with a silver inkstand by the London University Unionist Association as a mark of appreciation of his Parliamentary services. He resigned his Presidency of the Association in 1928. In 1917, he was created a Baronet. Sir Philip had retired two years previously from the active, direction of the Department of Technology of the City and Guilds of London Institute, and the Association of Technical Institutions entertained him at dinner and presented him with an address and a scarf-ring made at the Arts and Crafts School at Birmingham.
Sir Philip took a prominent part in Jewish communal work. He was at one time an active member of the Council of the West London Synagogue, of which he had been Minister, and for some years acted as Chairman of the Council. He also represented the Synagogue at the Board of Deputies, of which he was Vice-President. He frequently assisted in the reading of the Services at the Synagogue. He was a Vice-President of the Anglo-Jo wish Association and a member for many years of the Joint Foreign Committee. Ho took a great interest in the oral teaching of the deaf and dumb, and was at one time President of the Jews’ Deaf and Dumb Home. He was President of the Union of Jewish Literary Societies in 1905-6.
Though he took an interest in the establishment of a Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Sir Philip was a pronounced anti-Zionist, and his opposition to Jewish National aspiration led him into stormy waters. He was one of the-founders of the League of British Jews, and was credited with having had a hand in the drafting both of the anti-Zionist manifesto of the Conjoint Foreign Committee in 1917 and the notorious letter to the MORNING POST, which stigmatised foreign Jews as Bolshevists. In 1919, he was the centre of an acute controversy which arose out of the action he took in preventing a proposed Mansion House Meeting to protest against Poland's anti-Jewish attitude. This led to a somewhat heated passage at arms with the Chief Rabbi, and to his resignation of his seat on the Deputies which declined to pass him a vote of thanks for his past services. Sir Philip was a Vice-President of Jews' College and was Chairman of the Committee of the Jewish War Memorial, which considered the future of that institution. A large number of witnesses were examined and Sir Philip drafted an elaborate report which rejected the proposal for the removal of the institution to Oxford or Cambridge, The work of the Committee involved a great deal of labour, and the judicial character of Sir Philip's Chairmanship was generally acknowledged. He was also Chairman of the Teachers' Training Committee of the Jewish Religious Education Board. Among the last of his communal activities were his speech at the meeting of seatholders of the West London Synagogue, in October, 1926, when he proposed the appointment of Rabbi Dr. Joel Blau as Chief Minister of that Congregation, and his address in the same year in support of the Centenary Appeal of University College, London.
In a biographical notice of his father, the late Mr. Laurie Magnus wrote: “He owed his successes, it may be suggested, to the quality of character which it is customary now to call Victorian, but a lack of which, in the present age, is seen to lead to the decay of other qualities requisite for the ideal of complete living, for which, as Sir Philip was fond of quoting from Herbert Spencer, education, his consuming study, is the preparation."
Sir Philip married in 1870 Kate, the only daughter of the late Alderman E. Emanuel, J.P., of Southsea. There were three children of the union, Laurie (who predeceased his father by a few months), Leonard (who died in Russia in 1924) and Mrs. Frederic S. Franklin. Lady Magnus, whose work as a historian and poet will long be remembered, died in March, 1924. Sir Philip's grandson, Mr. Philip Montefiore Magnus, who is twenty-seven years of age, succeeds to the Baronetcy. The funeral, which was private, was yesterday at Golders Green Cemetery of the West London (Reform) Synagogue. The Rev. H. F. Reinhart officiated. A Memorial Service was held later at the Synagogue
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