John Leycester Adolphus (1795–1862) 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 id ...

lawyer, jurist and author.

Life

He was the son of Martha Elizabeth née Leycester (1765-1842) and John Adolphus (1768–1845), a well-known London barrister who wrote ''A History of England to 1783 (1802)'', ''A History of France from 1790 (1803)'' and other works. Adolphus was educated at

Merchant Taylors' School Merchant Taylors' School may refer to: *Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood (founded 1561), is a British independent school originally located in the City of London and now located in Northwood in Middlesex . * Merchant Taylors' Boys' School, Crosb ...

and at

St. John's College, Oxford St John's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded as a men's college in 1555, it has been coeducational since 1979.Communication from Michael Riordan, college archivist Its found ...

. In 1821 he published "Letters to Richard Heber, Esq.", in which he discussed the authorship of the then anonymous

Waverley novels The Waverley Novels are a long series of novels by Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832). For nearly a century, they were among the most popular and widely read novels in Europe. Because Scott did not publicly acknowledge authorship until 1827, the se ...

, and fixed it upon

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy ...

. This conclusion was based on the resemblance of the novels in general style and method to the poems acknowledged by Scott. Scott thought at first that the letters were written by

Reginald Heber Reginald Heber (21 April 1783 – 3 April 1826) was an English Anglican bishop, man of letters and hymn-writer. After 16 years as a country parson, he served as Bishop of Calcutta until his death at the age of 42. The son of a rich land ...

, afterwards bishop of Calcutta, and the discovery of J. L. Adolphus's identity led to a warm friendship. Adolphus was called to the bar in 1822, and in the same year he married Clara Richardson (1808-1892). His ''Circuiteers, an Eclogue'', is a parody of the style of two of his colleagues on the

Northern Circuit {{Use dmy dates, date=November 2019 The Northern Circuit is a court circuit in England. It dates from 1176 when Henry II sent his judges on circuit to do justice in his name. The Circuit encompassed the whole of the North of England but in 1876 i ...

. He became judge of the Marylebone County Court in 1852, and was a

Bencher A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher ca ...

of the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and W ...

. Adolphus was a member of the Athenaeum Club, London. He was the author of "Letters from Spain" in 1856 and 1857 (1858), and was completing his father's "History of England" at the time of his death on 24 December 1862.

References

;Attribution 1795 births 1862 deaths Alumni of St John's College, Oxford Members of the Inner Temple English barristers People educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood English male writers 19th-century English lawyers {{UK-law-bio-stub