The Lord Denman | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Painting of Denmanc. 1832 | |
| Lord Chief Justice of England Lord High Steward for the trial of: | |
| In office 1832–1850 | |
| Monarchs | |
| Preceded by | The Lord Tenterden |
| Succeeded by | The Lord Campbell |
| Chancellor of the Exchequer Acting | |
| In office 14 November 1834 – 15 December 1834 | |
| Monarch | William IV |
| Prime Minister | The Duke of Wellington (interim) |
| Preceded by | Viscount Althorp |
| Succeeded by | Sir Robert Peel, Bt |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 23 July 1779 |
| Died | 26 September 1854 (1854-09-27) (aged 75) |
| Political party | Whig |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Thomas,Joseph, andGeorge |
| Parent | Thomas Denman |
| Alma mater | St John's College, Cambridge |
Thomas Denman, 1st Baron Denman,PC (23 July 1779 – 26 September 1854) was anEnglish lawyer, judge and politician. He served asLord Chief Justice between 1832 and 1850.
Denman was born inLondon, the son ofDr Thomas Denman. In his fourth year, he attendedPalgrave Academy in Suffolk, where his education was supervised byAnna Laetitia Barbauld and her husband.[1] He continued toEton andSt John's College, Cambridge, where he graduated in 1800.[2] In 1806 he was called to the bar atLincoln's Inn, and at once entered upon practice.[3]
His success was rapid, and in a few years he attained a position at the bar second only to that ofHenry Brougham andJames Scarlett. He distinguished himself by his defence of theLuddites; but his most brilliant appearance was as one of the counsel forQueen Caroline. His speech before theHouse of Lords was very powerful, and some competent judges even considered it not inferior to Brougham's. It contained one or two daring passages, which made theKing his bitter enemy, and retarded his legal promotion.[3] Unfortunately he made a notable gaffe when he compared the Queen to the Biblical woman taken in adultery, who was told to "go away and sin no more". This suggested that her counsel had no belief in the Queen's innocence, and produced the mocking satire:
"Most Gracious Queen, we thee implore
To go away and sin no more
Or if that effort be too great
To go away at any rate".
At the general election of 1818 he was returned Member of Parliament forWareham, and at once took his seat with theWhig opposition. In the following year, he was returned forNottingham, which seat he represented until 1826 and again from 1830 until his elevation to the bench in 1832. His liberal principles had caused his exclusion from office till in 1822 he was appointedCommon Serjeant of London by the corporation ofLondon. In 1830 he was madeAttorney General underLord Grey's administration[3] and wasknighted on 24 November that year.[4]
Two years later he was madeLord Chief Justice of the King's Bench and was sworn of thePrivy Council two days later.[5] In 1834, he was raised to the peerage asBaron Denman,of Dovedale, in the County of Derby.[6] As a judge he is best remembered for his decision in the importantprivilege case ofStockdale v. Hansard (9 Ad. & El. I.; II Ad. & El. 253).[3] In 1841 he presided, asLord High Steward, over the trial in the House of Lords of theEarl of Cardigan for attempted murder. InO'Connell v the Queen, in 1844, he led the majority of the Lords in quashing the conviction forsedition ofDaniel O'Connell. This is a tribute to his integrity since O'Connell was regarded with aversion by the British ruling class; but Denman, as he made clear, could not accept that he had received a fair trial. In 1850 he resigned from his chief justiceship and retired into private life. He was a Governor of theCharter House, and a Vice-President of theCorporation of the Sons of the Clergy. He also strove with great energy, both as a writer and as a judge, to effect the abolition of theslave trade.[7]
Trial by jury, instead of being a security to persons who are accused, shall be a delusion, a mockery, and a snare.
Lord Denman,
O'Connell v The Queen
Lord Denman married Theodosia Anne, daughter of Reverend Richard Vevers, in 1804. His Derbyshire seat wasMiddleton Hall, Stoney Middleton. He died at Stoke Albany, Northamptonshire aged 75, and was succeeded in the barony by his oldest sonThomas. Another son,Joseph, was aRoyal Navy officer, while another,George, was an MP and High Court judge.
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One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Denman, Thomas".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 8 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 23.
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forWareham 1818–1820 With:John Calcraft | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forNottingham 1820–1826 With:Joseph Birch | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forNottingham 1830–1832 With:Sir Ronald Crauford Ferguson | Succeeded by |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by | Attorney General for England and Wales 1830–1832 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Lord Chief Justice of the Queen's Bench 1832–1850 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Chancellor of the Exchequer pro tempore 1834 | Succeeded by |
| Peerage of the United Kingdom | ||
| New creation | Baron Denman 1834–1854 | Succeeded by |
