Gershon Ellenbogen (7 January 1917 – September 2003), was a British barrister, author and a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

politician. He was notable for his contribution to the well known and much used legal reference work the ''Constitutional Laws of Great Britain''.

Early life

Ellenbogen was born Gershon Katzenellenbogen in Liverpool, the son of Max Katzenellenbogen and Gertrude Hamburg. He was educated at

Liverpool Collegiate School Liverpool Collegiate School was an all-boys grammar school, later a comprehensive school, in the Everton, Liverpool, Everton area of Liverpool. Foundations The Collegiate is a striking, Grade II listed building, with a facade of pink Woolton s ...

and

King's College, Cambridge King's College, formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, is a List of colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college lies beside the River Cam and faces ...

, where he was a Foundation Scholar. He won a First Class in the

Classical Tripos The Classical Tripos is the taught course in classics at the Faculty of Classics, University of Cambridge. It is equivalent to '' Literae Humaniores'' at Oxford University. It is traditionally a three-year degree, but for those who have not previ ...

, then read Moral Sciences for two years and Law for one year. While at Cambridge, he was a contemporary and friend of

Alan Turing Alan Mathison Turing (; 23 June 1912 – 7 June 1954) was an English mathematician, computer scientist, logician, cryptanalyst, philosopher and theoretical biologist. He was highly influential in the development of theoretical computer ...

. His elder brother

Basil Basil (, ; , ; ''Ocimum basilicum'' (, )), also called great basil, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints). It is a hardiness (plants), tender plant, and is used in cuisines worldwide. In Western cuisine, the generic term "basil" r ...

was a physician and author, and his younger brother Raymond Ellenbogen was a dental surgeon.

Professional career

He served six years in the RAF as a Flight-Lieutenant in the Intelligence Branch, serving in Europe and the Middle East, being posted to Cairo in 1943. He was

called to the Bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

. He was a Bacon scholar of

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

, and a Barstow scholar of the

Inns of Court The Inns of Court in London are the professional associations for barristers in England and Wales. There are four Inns of Court: Gray's Inn, Lincoln's Inn, Inner Temple, and Middle Temple. All barristers must belong to one of them. They have s ...

. He was an author and lecturer on legal matters, as well as a practising barrister on the

Northern Circuit The Northern Circuit is a circuit of the General Council of the Bar and English judiciary. The Northern Circuit stretches from Carlisle in Cumberland at its northernmost point, running through Lakeland to the port of Whitehaven in the West, ...

. He wrote ''English Arbitration Practice'' and co-authored ''Questions and Answers on Constitutional Law and Legal History'' in 1950. In 1952, following an invitation from

Owen Hood Phillips Owen Hood Phillips, QC (30 September 1907 – 25 May 1986) was a British jurist. He was Lady Barber Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of Birmingham and Dean of the Faculty of Law, Vice-Principal and Pro-Vice-Chancellor of that universi ...

, he undertook a major revision of Chalmers and Hood Phillips ''Constitutional Laws of Great Britain''. The reference work was widely regarded as the fullest modern exposition of the law on this subject. He was a frequent contributor to ''The Times'', writing on legal matters.

Political career

He was Liberal candidate for the new Southgate division of

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

at the 1950 General Election, finishing third; He did not stand for parliament again.British parliamentary election results 1950-1973, Craig, F.W.S.

Personal life

In 1944 he married Eileen Alexander. They had one daughter, who as

Kate Whiteman Katherine Whiteman (1945 - 4 January 2009) was a British food writer. Early life She was born Katherine Ellenbogen in Hampstead, London, the daughter of Gershon Ellenbogen, a British barrister, author and Liberal Party politician, and his wife ...

, became well known as a food writer. His wife died in 1986 and in 1993 he married Myrtle Ruth Franklin (born Myrtle Ruth Sebag-Montefiore), who had been married to David Ellis Franklin (son of

Ellis Arthur Franklin Ellis Arthur Franklin (28 March 1894 – 16 January 1964) was an English merchant banker. Early life Franklin was born in Kensington, London into an affluent Anglo-Jewish family. He was the son of Arthur Ellis Franklin, a merchant banker an ...

) until his death in 1986.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellenbogen, Gershon 2003 deaths 1917 births Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Alumni of King's College, Cambridge People educated at Liverpool Collegiate Institution

Gershon According to the Torah, Gershon ( ''Gērǝšôn'') was the eldest of the sons of Levi, and the patriarchal founder of the Gershonites, one of the four main divisions among the Levites in biblical times. The Gershonites were charged with the care ...

English Jews Members of Gray's Inn Royal Air Force officers Jewish British politicians