Thomas Denman, 1st Baron Denman, (23 July 177926 September 1854) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

lawyer, judge and politician. He served as

Lord Chief Justice Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

between 1832 and 1850.

Background and education

Denman was born in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, the son of Dr Thomas Denman. In his fourth year, he attended

Palgrave Academy Palgrave Academy was an early dissenting academy, that is, a school or college set up by English Dissenters. It was run from 1774 to 1785 in Palgrave, Suffolk, by the married couple Anna Laetitia Barbauld and her husband Rochemont Barbauld, a min ...

in Suffolk, where his education was supervised by

Anna Laetitia Barbauld Anna Laetitia Barbauld (, by herself possibly , as in French, Aikin; 20 June 1743 – 9 March 1825) was a prominent English poet, essayist, literary critic, editor, and author of children's literature. A " woman of letters" who published in mu ...

and her husband. He continued to Eton and St John's College, Cambridge, where he graduated in 1800. In 1806 he was called to the bar at Lincoln's Inn, and at once entered upon practice.

Legal and judicial career

Thomas Denman, 1st Baron Denman by Sir Martin Archer Shee

His success was rapid, and in a few years he attained a position at the bar second only to that of Henry Brougham and James Scarlett. He distinguished himself by his defence of the

Luddites The Luddites were a secret oath-based organisation of English textile workers in the 19th century who formed a radical faction which destroyed textile machinery. The group is believed to have taken its name from Ned Ludd, a legendary weaver ...

; but his most brilliant appearance was as one of the counsel for Queen Caroline. His speech before the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...

was very powerful, and some competent judges even considered it not inferior to Brougham's. It contained one or two daring passages, which made the

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his bitter enemy, and retarded his legal promotion. 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 for Wareham, and at once took his seat with the Whig opposition. In the following year, he was returned for

Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...

, 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 appointed

Common Serjeant of London The Common Serjeant of London (full title The Serjeant-at-Law in the Common Hall) is an ancient British legal office, first recorded in 1291, and is the second most senior permanent judge of the Central Criminal Court after the Recorder of Lon ...

by the corporation of

. In 1830 he was made Attorney General under Lord Grey's administration and was knighted on 24 November that year. Two years later he was made

Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

and was sworn of the Privy Council two days later. In 1834, he was raised to the peerage as Baron Denman, ''of Dovedale, in the County of Derby''. As a judge he is best remembered for his decision in the important privilege case of '' Stockdale v. Hansard'' (9 Ad. & El. I.; II Ad. & El. 253). In 1841 he presided, as

Lord High Steward The Lord High Steward is the first of the Great Officers of State in England, nominally ranking above the Lord Chancellor. The office has generally remained vacant since 1421, and is now an ''ad hoc'' office that is primarily ceremonial and ...

, over the trial in the House of Lords of the

Earl of Cardigan Earl of Cardigan is a title in the Peerage of England, currently held by the Marquesses of Ailesbury, and used as a courtesy title by the heir apparent to that Marquessate, currently David Brudenell-Bruce, Earl of Cardigan, son of the 8th Mar ...

for attempted murder. In ''O'Connell v the Queen'', in 1844, he led the majority of the Lords in quashing the conviction for sedition of

Daniel O'Connell Daniel O'Connell (I) ( ga, Dónall Ó Conaill; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilizat ...

. 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 the

Charter House A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...

, and a Vice-President of the Corporation 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 the

slave trade Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

Family

Lord Denman married Theodosia Anne, daughter of Reverend Richard Vevers, in 1804. His Derbyshire seat was

Middleton Hall, Stoney Middleton Middleton Hall is a restored 17th-century country house at Stoney Middleton, Derbyshire. It is a Grade II listed building. The house was built in the mid-17th century for Robert Ashton (who was High Sheriff of Derbyshire in 1665) whose son sold it ...

. He died at Stoke Albany, Northamptonshire aged 75, and was succeeded in the barony by his oldest son

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

. Another son,

Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

, was a

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officer, while another,

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, was an MP and High Court judge.

Cases

*'' Williams v. Carwardine'' (1833) 4 B. & Ad. 621 *'' Stockdale v. Hansard'' 9 Ad. & El. I.; II Ad. & El. 253 *'' Lynch v. Nurdin'' 1 QB 29, (1841) Arn and H 158, (1841) 113 ER 1041 *''O'Connell v The Queen'' 84411 Cl. & Fin. 155

References

Sources

*Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990. *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Denman, Thomas Chancellors of the Exchequer of the United Kingdom Lord chief justices of England and Wales Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Lord High Stewards Whig (British political party) MPs Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom 1779 births 1854 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Attorneys General for England and Wales Common Serjeants of London Fellows of the Royal Society UK MPs 1818–1820 UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1831–1832 UK MPs who were granted peerages Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom

Peers of the United Kingdom created by William IV Knights Bachelor Committee members of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge