"Let me endeavour, very briefly to sketch, in the rudest outline what the Turkish race was and what it is. It is not a question of Mohammedanism simply, but of Mohammedanism compounded with the peculiar character of a race. They are not the mild Mohammedans of India, nor the chivalrous Saladins of Syria, nor the cultured Moors of Spain. They were, upon the whole, from the black day when they first entered Europe, the one great anti-human specimen of humanity."

Was this "racist" anti-Islamic tirade delivered by Geert Wilders or Nick Griffin, a warning of the "danger" of Turkish entry to the European Union, perhaps?
Wrong context, wrong speakers, wrong century. Undeniably, however, it’s an understatement to say it is politically incorrect – in today’s terms.

The speaker – or orator would be more apt in this case – was one of Britain’s most venerated statesmen, William Ewart Gladstone (1809-1898), on the occasion of the violent repression by the Ottomans of the April uprising in Bulgaria in 1876.

Gladstone, who was prime minister four times and was still in Downing Street when he was 84, a feat no British prime minister has equalled, was one of two titanic figures – the other being Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881) – who presided over Victorian politics.

The crushing of the rebellion against the Ottomans in 1876 led to the slaughter of about 30 000 Bulgarians, the worst atrocities being committed at Panagyurishte, Peroushtitsa, Bratzigovo and Batak. News of the massacres, famously reported by American scholar Eugene Schuyler, soon reached London, provoking questions in parliament about Disraeli’s support for Turkey. It soon became the subject of a fierce disagreement between the two statesmen.

Gladstone and Disraeli disliked each other intensely. And that, I venture to suggest in an interview with Gladstone’s great-great-grandson, Christopher Parrish, is one of the motivations behind Gladstone’s speech, delivered when Disraeli was prime minister (Queen Victoria, incidentally, adored her darling "Izzy") and when Disraeli’s Tory government was supporting Turkey at a time of intense international rivalry with Russia.

Parrish is a robust 72-year-old with red cheeks and eyebrows to rival British politician Denis Healey’s. His voice has a clarity of diction and melody which might just – if one closed one’s eyes – give one an insight into the powerful oratory of his illustrious ancestor more than a century ago. Parrish was in Bulgaria, his first visit here, to attend a conference at the New Bulgarian University marking the 200th anniversary of Gladstone’s birth.

Progressive
Gladstone, unlike most politicians who started out on the left and veer to the right, moved the other way. He began as a Tory but by the end of his rule he was considered a progressive. He even – sharp intake of breath – supported extending the vote to women, a revolutionary idea at the end of the 19th century.

"The old party system broke up in the middle of the 19th century and there was a major realignment based on free trade. He developed liberal ideas, particularly on education – meaning progressive, not reactionary views," says Parrish.

"Gladstone always pursued a rather independent line. He had an almost God-like sense of mission, something he believed gave him an edge over those seeking fairy temporary advantage."

In 1876 Gladstone was languishing in opposition, four years before his return to power. According to Parrish, Disraeli’s foreign policy was guided by realpolitik and, in this case, that meant picking the right side in the rivalry between Turkey and Russia: "Specifically, the government didn’t want Russia to obtain an outlet to the Mediterranean and that meant keeping the Turks in power. If you took the side of the Bulgarians, you were going against Turkey and inviting the Russians in. So (Gladstone’s view) was regarded as a very dangerous policy – and it probably was – but it was presented with such flair and fire that the government was outdone."

Gladstone’s speech was written down in a pamphlet that sold about 300 000 copies. His attack on Turkey went down well in Bulgaria, where he is still a venerated figure with a school and street in Sofia named in his honour. "I met a splendid man at the conference, Professor Angel Stankov, a renowned musician. He was very proud of living in Gladstone Street. I said at the beginning of my speech it was wonderful to come to a country where Gladstone was almost universally admired," Parrish says.