Sir James Cockle | |
|---|---|
 Sir James Cockle, first Chief Justice of Queensland, 1876 | |
| 1st Chief Justice of Queensland | |
| In office 21 February 1863 – 24 June 1879 | |
| Succeeded by | Charles Lilley |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1819-01-14)14 January 1819 |
| Died | 27 January 1895(1895-01-27) (aged 76) London |
| Known for | Method of differential resolvents Split-quaternion Tessarines |
Sir James CockleFRSFRASFCPS[1] (14 January 1819 – 27 January 1895) was an English lawyer and mathematician.
Cockle was born on 14 January 1819. He was the second son ofJames Cockle, asurgeon, ofGreat Oakley, Essex. Educated atCharterhouse andTrinity College,Cambridge,[2] he entered theMiddle Temple in 1838, practising as a special pleader in 1845 and being called in 1846. Joining themidland circuit, he acquired a good practice, and on the recommendation ofChief Justice SirWilliam Erle he was appointed as the firstChief Justice of theSupreme Court of Queensland inQueensland, Australia on 21 February 1863; he served until his retirement on 24 June 1879.[3] Cockle was made a Fellow of theRoyal Society (FRS) on 1 June 1865. He received the honour ofknighthood on 29 July 1869. He returned to England in 1878.[1][4]
Sir James married Adelaide, who became Lady Cockle when he was knighted in 1869.
His residenceOakwal inWindsor, Queensland,Brisbane is listed on theQueensland Heritage Register. It is believed they derived the nameOakwal from Cockle's birthplace atGreat Oakley in Essex and his wife's birthplace ofWalton in Suffolk.[5]
Cockle is also remembered for his mathematical and scientific investigations. For instance he invented the number systems oftessarines andcoquaternions, and worked withArthur Cayley (1821–1895) on the theory oflinear algebra. Like many young mathematicians he attacked the problem of solving thequintic equation, notwithstandingAbel–Ruffini theorem that a solution byradicals was impossible. In this field Cockle achieved some notable results, amongst which is his reproduction of SirWilliam R. Hamilton's modification of Abel's theorem. Algebraic forms were a favourite object of his studies. He also made contributions to the theory ofdifferential equations,[3] in particular the development of the theory ofdifferential invariants orcriticoids.[6]
He displayed a keen interest in scientific societies. From 1863 to 1879 he was president of theQueensland Philosophical Society (now incorporated in theRoyal Society of Queensland); on his return to England he became associated with theLondon Mathematical Society, of which he was president from 1886 to 1888, and theRoyal Astronomical Society, serving as a member of the council from 1888 to 1892.[3] He died in London on 27 January 1895.[6]
Anobituary notice by the Revd.Robert Harley was published in 1895 inProc. Roy. Soc. vol. 59. A volume containing his scientific and mathematical researches made during the years 1864–1877 was presented to theBritish Museum in 1897 by his widow.[3] Like his father, Cockle became wealthy during his lifetime, leaving an estate of £32,169, which is approximately £2.7 million if adjusted for inflation as of 2008.[7]
Biodiversity Heritage Library has London-Dublin-EdinburghPhilosophical Magazine, series 3 and 4, where articles by James Cockle were published:
Cockle also wrote a series "Method of Vanishing Groups" for theCambridge and Dublin Mathematical Journal, volumes and pages 2: 267 to 73, 3: 179 to 81, and 4: 174 to 78.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Carlyle, Edward Irving (1901). "Cockle, James". InLee, Sidney (ed.).Dictionary of National Biography (1st supplement). London: Smith, Elder & Co. This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Cockle, Sir James".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 6 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 627.| Legal offices | ||
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| New office | Chief Justice of Queensland 1863 – 1879 | Succeeded by |
