John Arthur Roebuck (28 December 1802 – 30 November 1879), English politician, was born at Madras, in India. He was raised in Canada, and moved to England in 1824, and became intimate with the leading radical and utilitarian reformers. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Bath from 1832 to 1847, and MP for the Sheffield constituency from 1849. He took up a general attitude of hostility to the government of the day, whatever it was, which he retained throughout his life. He twice came to public prominence: in 1838, when, although at the time without a seat in parliament, he appeared at the bar of the Commons to protest, in the name of the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada, against the suspension of the constitution of Lower Canada; and in 1855, when, having overthrown Lord Aberdeen's ministry by carrying a resolution for the appointment of a committee of inquiry into the mismanagement in the Crimean War, he presided over its proceedings.
Life
John Arthur Roebuck was born at Madras in 1801, was fifth son of Ebenezer Roebuck, a civil servant in India, and a grandson of the inventor John Roebuck. He was taken to England in 1807 following the death of his father. His mother remarried, to
John Simpson, and the family emigrated to Lower Canada, where he was educated. His step-father was active in politics, being a member of the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada and later of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada.
Roebuck returned to England in 1824, and was entered at the Inner Temple, and called to the bar in 1831. In 1834, he married Henrietta Falconer, a daughter of Thomas Falconer. In 1835 he became the agent in England for the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada during the dispute between the executive government and the Legislative Assembly. In 1838, although at the time without a seat in Parliament, he appeared at the bar of the Commons to protest, in the name of the Lower Canada Assembly, against the suspension of the constitution of Lower Canada. In 1843 he was appointed Queen's Counsel, and was elected a bencher of his inn. Roebuck later dropped the motion under pressure from the Government. Roebuck also defended Austrian rule in Italy.
In his latter years his political opinions became greatly modified.