Sir Alexander Campbell Onslow (17 July 1842 – 20 October 1908) was the third Chief Justice of the

Supreme Court of Western Australia The Supreme Court of Western Australia is the highest state court in the Australian State of Western Australia. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil matters (although it usually only hears matters involving sums of or more ...

, which is the highest ranking court in the

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

State State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

. Onslow is a forebear of the notable Australian Macarthur- Onslow families.

Biography

Onslow was the fourth son of Arthur Pooley Onslow, of Send Grove, Ripley, Surrey, by his wife, Rosa Roberta, daughter of

Alexander Macleay Alexander Macleay (also spelt McLeay) MLC FLS FRS (24 June 1767 – 18 July 1848) was a Scottish-Australian leading member of the Linnean Society, a fellow of the Royal Society and member of the New South Wales Legislative Council. Life Mac ...

, F.R.S., Speaker of the first

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. Along with the New South Wales Legislative As ...

. Onslow was educated at Westminster and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated B.A. in 1864. He entered at the Inner Temple on 15 January 1862, was called to the bar on 17 November 1868, and went the Home Circuit. On 4 February 1878, he married Madeline Emma Loftus, daughter of Rev. Robert Loftus Tottenham, of Florence, and granddaughter of the Bishop of Clogher. Onslow was Attorney-General of

British Honduras British Honduras was a Crown colony on the east coast of Central America — specifically located on the southern edge of the Yucatan Peninsula from 1783 to 1964, then a self-governing colony — renamed Belize from June 1973

from 1878 to 1880, and Attorney-General of Western Australia from 1880 to 1883. In July of the latter year he was appointed Chief Justice, in which capacity he administered the government during the absence of Sir Frederick Broome in England in 1884–5. Onslow's relations with that Governor having subsequently become strained, the latter threatened Onslow's security of tenure by "interdicting" him from his functions as Chief Justice, for the alleged premature and improper publication of certain correspondence then pending between them and with the Colonial Office. The Executive Council unanimously confirmed the interdict, and placed Mr. Onslow on half-pay pending the decision of the Colonial Office. In the result, Lord Knutsford reinstated Mr. Onslow, but censured him. Ultimately, in view of the attitude assumed by the Chief Justice in adjudicating on certain cases of newspaper libel, the Legislative Council passed a resolution requesting the Home Government, in the interests of tranquillity, to transfer him to some other location. He was accordingly given, a year's leave of absence but this was extended. In February 1890 it was announced that he was to exchange posts with Sir

Elliot Bovill Sir Elliot Charles Bovill (23 April 1848 – 24 March 1893) was a British lawyer and judge. He served as Chief Justice of Cyprus and the Straits Settlements in the late 19th century. Early life Bovill was born in Clapham, at that time in Surre ...

, Chief Justice of Cyprus. This arrangement did not actually take place and Sir Henry T. Wrensfordsley was sent out to the colony in 1890 as Acting Chief Justice. Mr. Onslow returned to Western Australia and resumed his occupancy of the office of Chief Justice in July 1891. He was Administrator of Western Australia during the Governor's absence from March 1900. He retired in 1901 and returned to England, where he died on 20 October 1908. Onslow was knighted in 1895 for services rendered to the Queen's colonies since 1878.

Family

;Father * Arthur Pooley Onslow - father ;Mother * Rosa Roberta, née McLeay - mother * Alexander McLeay (1767–1848) - Rosa Roberta's father * Rosa Roberta's siblings ** William Sharp Macleay (1792–1865) He never married and the heir to his estate was his brother, George W. J. Macleay ** Sir George W. J. Macleay (1809–1891) ** James Robert (1811–1892) secretary of the commission for the suppression of the slave trade in Cape Colony. ** Margaret (b. 1802) married Archibald Clunes Innes (1800–1857) in 1829 ** Christiana Susan (b.1799) married Captain William Dumaresq (1793–1868) in 1830 ** Barbara Isabella (b.1797) married Pieter Laurentz Campbell (1809–1948)Hazel King
'Campbell, Pieter Laurentz (1809–1848)'
Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 1, Melbourne University Press, 1966, pp 201-202. in 1834. ;Siblings * Arthur Alexander Walton Onslow (1833–1882) - brother ** James Macarthur-Onslow - nephew

References

, 1974, pp 367–369. * Black, David, and Bolton, Geoffrey (1990) ''Biographical register of members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Volume one. 1870-1930'' assisted by Ann Mozley and Patricia Simpson. Perth W.A: Western Australian Parliamentary History Project. * ''biographical details'' West Australian, 27/5/1895, {{DEFAULTSORT:Onslow, Alexander 1842 births 1908 deaths Knights Bachelor Australian people of Scottish descent Chief justices of Western Australia Colony of Western Australia judges Attorneys-general of Western Australia British colonial attorneys general in Oceania Attorneys-general of British Honduras

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

Judges of the Supreme Court of Western Australia 19th-century Australian judges 20th-century Australian judges Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge 19th-century Australian politicians

Biography

Family

See also

References

Further reading