John Forster (1668 – 2 July 1720) was an Irish lawyer, politician and judge.

Background

Forster was born in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, one of four children of Richard Forster and his wife Anne Webber. His father sat in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until the end of 1800. The upper house was the Irish House of Lords, House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, ...

for Swords and came from a family long associated with the Dublin business community. Nicholas Forster, Bishop of Raphoe, was his brother.

Career

Forster served as Recorder of Dublin from 1701 to 1714, and represented Dublin City in the

from 1703 to 1715. He was

Solicitor-General for Ireland The Solicitor-General for Ireland was the holder of an Kingdom of Ireland, Irish and then (from the Act of Union 1800) United Kingdom government office. The holder was a deputy to the Attorney-General for Ireland, and advised the Crown on Irish ...

in 1709 and

Attorney-General for Ireland The Attorney-General for Ireland was an Kingdom of Ireland, Irish and then, from 1801 under the Acts of Union 1800, United Kingdom government office-holder. He was senior in rank to the Solicitor-General for Ireland: both advised the Crown on ...

from

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas, the festival commemorating nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus. Christmas Day is observance of Christmas by country, observed around the world, and Christma ...

1709 to 1711, before being raised to the Bench as

Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas The chief justice of the Common Pleas for Ireland was the presiding judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Ireland, which was known in its early years as the Court of Common Bench, or simply as "the Bench", or "the Dublin bench". It was one of the ...

on 20 September 1714. In 1713 he took part in the hotly contested Irish General Election and his constituency was the scene of the Dublin election riot. Elrington Ball described Forster as "a sound lawyer and impressive speaker" but lacking in political judgment.Ball, F. Elrington ''The Judges in Ireland'' 1221–1921 John Murray, London 1926 Like

Alan Brodrick, 1st Viscount Midleton Alan Brodrick, 1st Viscount Midleton, Privy Council of Ireland, PC (Ire) (c. 1656 – 29 August 1728) was a leading Irish lawyer and Whigs (British political party), Whig politician who sat in the Parliament of Ireland between 1692 and 1715 and ...

, his mentor, he was stubborn and hot-tempered. His tenure as Recorder of Dublin saw a major conflict between the aldermen of Dublin and the Privy Council; Forster was entirely on the side of the aldermen, and for this, he was violently attacked by

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...

and other critics. These attacks undoubtedly took their toll, and it is believed he exchanged the Recordership for the position of Chief Justice in the belief that the more senior position would, in practice, be less onerous than the Recordership.

Family

Forster married firstly Rebecca Monck, daughter of Henry Monck of St. Stephens Green, Dublin and his wife Sarah, daughter and heiress of Sir Thomas Stanley of Grangegorman, by whom he had at least three children, Richard, Anne and Elizabeth. He married secondly Dorothy Evans, daughter of

George Evans George Evans may refer to: Arts and entertainment * George "Honey Boy" Evans (1870–1915), American songwriter and entertainer * George Evans (bandleader) (1915–1993), English jazz bandleader, arranger and tenor saxophonist * George Evans (sin ...

, of Bulgaden Hall,

County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...

and his wife Mary Eyre, and sister of George Evans, 1st Baron Carbery. They had a daughter, Dorothy. His son Richard married Elizabeth Geering in 1721, and died in 1738. His daughter Anne married the celebrated philosopher

George Berkeley George Berkeley ( ; 12 March 168514 January 1753), known as Bishop Berkeley (Bishop of Cloyne of the Anglican Church of Ireland), was an Anglo-Irish philosopher, writer, and clergyman who is regarded as the founder of "immaterialism", a philos ...

Bishop of Cloyne The Bishop of Cloyne is an episcopal title that takes its name after the small town of Cloyne in County Cork, Ireland. In the Roman Catholic Church, it is a separate title; but, in the Church of Ireland, it has been united with other bishopri ...

; her sister Elizabeth married Rev. Robert Spence. The youngest child Dorothy married Thomas Burton of Buncraggy: they were the grandparents of another leading judge, Thomas Burton Vandeleur. He died following a stroke at his home, Clonshagh, Santry.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forster, John 1668 births 1720 deaths Attorneys-general for Ireland 17th-century Irish lawyers Irish MPs 1703–1713 Irish MPs 1713–1714 Irish MPs 1715–1727 Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Dublin constituencies Solicitors-general for Ireland Speakers of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) Members of the Privy Council of Ireland Chief justices of the Irish Common Pleas Recorders of Dublin 18th-century Irish judges Lawyers from County Dublin