Edwin Charles Clark (5 November 1835 – 20 July 1917) was a British legal scholar,

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

and

antiquarian An antiquarian or antiquary () is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artefacts, archaeological and historic si ...

, who specialised in

Roman Law Roman law is the law, legal system of ancient Rome, including the legal developments spanning over a thousand years of jurisprudence, from the Twelve Tables (), to the (AD 529) ordered by Eastern Roman emperor Justinian I. Roman law also den ...

. He was Regius Professor of Civil Law at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

from 1872 to 1914. He had been elected a

Fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

in 1859 and then moved to

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College, formally the College of St John the Evangelist in the University of Cambridge, is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch L ...

in 1883 having been elected a professorial fellow. The author of a number of books, he wrote mainly for the benefit of his students (such as introductory texts), and his works "had little influence and are seldom cited" by jurists. Clark was also an amateur antiquarian, with an interest in coins and

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

, and published a number of related papers. He was elected a

Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London The Society of Antiquaries of London (SAL) is a learned society of historians and archaeologists in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1707, received its royal charter in 1751 and is a Charitable organization, registered charity. It is based ...

(FSA), and also served as president of the Cambridge Archaeological Society.

Personal life

Clark was born on 5 November 1835, and was the son of Edwin Clark of Ellinthorp Hall in

Boroughbridge Boroughbridge ( ) is a town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is north-west of York. Until a bypass was built the town lay on the main A1 road from London to Edinburgh, which c ...

, Yorkshire, England. His mother and siblings died young, and so he was brought up with his father as his "sole companion". On 17 June 1865, Clark married Mary Kitson: she was the daughter of

James Kitson James Kitson may refer to: * James Kitson, 1st Baron Airedale (1835–1911), British industrialist, locomotive builder and politician * James Kitson (businessman) (1807–1885) , English cricketer and railway industrialist {{hndis, Kitson, James ...

(1807–1885), a locomotive manufacture, and the sister of

(1835–1911), a politician and later Lord Airedale. He and Mary had two children: one daughter and a son, Edwin Kitson Clark (1866–1943), who was an engineer and British Army officer. Among his grandchildren were

Mary Kitson Clark Anna Mary Hawthorn Kitson Clark, (14 May 1905 – 1 February 2005), married name Mary Chitty, was an English archaeologist, curator, and independent scholar. She specialised in the archaeology of Romano-British Northern England but was also inv ...

, an archaeologist, curator and independent scholar, and

George Kitson Clark George Sidney Roberts Kitson Clark (14 June 1900 – 8 December 1975) was an English historian, specialising in the nineteenth century. He was a fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge from 1922 to 1975, and additionally held the title of Reader i ...

, a historian.

Selected works

* * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Edwin Charles 1835 births 1917 deaths English legal scholars English barristers Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge Fellows of St John's College, Cambridge English antiquarians Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London 19th-century English lawyers