Sir Samuel Eyre (1633 – 12 September 1698) was an English judge.

Life

Eyre came of a legal family, his grandfather, Robert, having been a bencher and reader of Lincoln's Inn, and his father being a barrister, Robert Eyre of Salisbury and Chilhampton, who married Anne, daughter of Samuel Aldersey of

Aldersey Aldersey is a civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It contains the villages of Aldersey Green and Aldersey Park , and is about south-east of Chester. According ...

in Cheshire. He was baptised on 16 March 1638. This was the same year as his father started an accounts book; his mother soon took over the accounting and her detailed records are still available, providing an insight into 17th-century households in the period up to the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians ("Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of Kingdom of England, England's governanc ...

. Samuel was educated at

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road. Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Doroth ...

, matriculating on 9 December 1653. The June after Eyre left Wadham, he was admitted to Lincoln's Inn. In 1660, his mother wrote to him, telling him to think deeply about his marriage plans, advising "when done, not to be undone, and done either happy or unhappy". After studying for seven years, he was called to the bar at Lincoln's Inn in June 1661, becoming a qualified barrister. That October he married Martha Lucy. His wife brought him considerable property. Under the patronage of the

Earl of Shaftesbury Earl of Shaftesbury is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1672 for Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Baron Ashley, a prominent politician in the Cabal then dominating the policies of King Charles II. He had already succeeded his f ...

, whose adviser he was, he attained some professional eminence. He was made a serjeant on 21 April 1692, and succeeded Justice Dolben on the King's Bench on 6 February 1694, although was not sworn in until 22 February. Eyre was knighted as a result of being promoted to the Bench. When Charles Knollys' claim to the earldom of Banbury came before the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster ...

in 1698, Eyre was called on, along with

Chief Justice Holt Sir John Holt (23 December 1642 – 5 March 1710) was an English lawyer who served as Lord Chief Justice of England from 17 April 1689 to his death. He is frequently credited with playing a major role in ending the prosecution of witches in Eng ...

, to state to the house the grounds upon which he had given judgement in favour of Knollys, who being tried in the King's Bench in 1694 for murder had pleaded his privilege as a peer. This the two judges refused to do, the matter not coming before the house on writ of error from the King's Bench. They were threatened with committal to the Tower, but the matter was dropped. Eyre died on circuit at Lancaster of an attack of

colic Colic or cholic () is a form of pain that starts and stops abruptly. It occurs due to muscular contractions of a hollow tube (small and large intestine, gall bladder, ureter, etc.) in an attempt to relieve an obstruction by forcing content out. ...

on 12 September 1698. A monument was erected at Lancaster to him, and his body was removed to St. Thomas's, Salisbury, the family burial-place, on 2 July 1699. He and Martha had six children; the eldest son, Sir Robert Eyre, was judge of the queen's bench.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eyre, Samuel 1638 births 1698 deaths 17th-century English judges English knights Members of Lincoln's Inn Justices of the King's Bench