Thomas Chisholm Anstey (1816 – 12 August 1873) was an English lawyer and one of the first Catholic parliamentarians in the nineteenth century. He served as

Attorney General of Hong Kong The secretary for justice () is the head of the Hong Kong Department of Justice, the chief legal advisor to the chief executive of Hong Kong and the government, and the chief law enforcement officer of the Government of Hong Kong. Before th ...

for 4 years. He also wrote pamphlets on legal and political topics, particularly those relevant to Roman Catholics.

Early life

He was the second son of Thomas Anstey (1777–1851) and his wife Mary Turnbull, born in

Kentish Town Kentish Town is an area of northwest London, England, in the London Borough of Camden, immediately north of Camden Town, close to Hampstead Heath. Kentish Town likely derives its name from Ken-ditch or Caen-ditch, meaning the "bed of a waterw ...

, London. In 1823, his father, a lawyer who had gone into commerce, moved to

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

, and he followed in 1827 with his elder brother George Alexander (1814–1895). In his early education he studied Hebrew with the minister James Garrett. Anstey returned to England, intending to take up law, and was educated at school in

Wellington, Somerset Wellington is a market town in Somerset, England. It is situated south west of Taunton, near the border with Devon, which runs along the Blackdown Hills National Landscape, Blackdown Hills to the south of the town. The town had a population o ...

and at

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

. He came under the influence of the

Tractarians The Oxford Movement was a theological movement of high-church members of the Church of England which began in the 1830s and eventually developed into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose original devotees were mostly associated with the Un ...

, and also entered the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

, being

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 ...

in 1839. He had become a Catholic convert, married that year, and moved with his wife to

Hobart, Tasmania Hobart ( ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent (Tasmania), River Derwent, it is the southernmo ...

. He became a Catholic leader there, and achieved prominence for a court appearance (''R. v. Espie'', 1840). But he lost a position as commissioner of insolvent estates after a few months. Returning to England, Anstey took an appointment as Professor of Law and Jurisprudence at

Prior Park College Prior Park College is a co-educational public school for both boarding and day pupils in Bath, south-west England. Its main building, Prior Park, stands on a hill overlooking the city and is a Grade I listed building. The adjoining Prior P ...

, Bath. By 1846 he had turned his attention to politics, and resigned.Norton-Kyshe, ''History of the Laws and Courts of Hong Kong'', p367-8 citing a biographical notice

Political career

Anstey favoured the repeal of the Union both with Ireland and Scotland. He was a Liberal in English politics, but Walker classifies him as an Irish Confederate candidate when he was elected Member of Parliament for the Irish constituency of

Youghal Youghal ( ; ) is a seaside resort town in County Cork, Ireland. Located on the estuary of the Munster Blackwater, River Blackwater, the town is a former military and economic centre. Located on the edge of a steep riverbank, the town has a long ...

in 1847. He was not renominated at Youghal in 1852, but contested

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population was 106,940. Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire and seat of the Borough of Bedford local government district. Bedford was founded at a ford (crossin ...

in the general election of that year. An opponent of

Lord Palmerston Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston (20 October 1784 – 18 October 1865), known as Lord Palmerston, was a British statesman and politician who served as prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1855 to 1858 and from 1859 to 1865. A m ...

, Anstey often worked with

David Urquhart David Urquhart (1 July 180516 May 1877) was a British diplomat, writer and politician, serving as a Member of Parliament for Stafford from 1847 to 1852. He also was an early promoter in the United Kingdom of the hammam (known to westerners as th ...

as ally in foreign policy issues. On first entering politics in 1846, he aligned with the more radical followers of

Daniel O'Connell Daniel(I) O’Connell (; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilisation of Catholic Irelan ...

, who died in 1847, and supported

William Smith O'Brien William Smith O'Brien (; 17 October 1803 – 18 June 1864) was an Irish republicanism, Irish republican who, in the course of Ireland's Great Famine (Ireland), Great Famine, had been converted to the cause of Irish nationalism, national i ...

Legal career

On Anstey's return to England, he joined the Northern Circuit before moving to practice at the Chancery Bar. After he dropped out of Parliament, in 1855, he was appointed

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

of Hong Kong and served in that capacity until 1859. His attempts to enforce building regulations on Chinese merchants led in 1858 to a strike, retrospectively named the "Anstey Riots". Anstey left Hong Kong in 1859, having fallen out with the Governor Sir

John Bowring Sir John Bowring , or Phrayā Siam Mānukūlakicca Siammitra Mahāyaśa (17 October 1792 – 23 November 1872) was a British political economist, traveller, writer, literary translator, polyglot and the fourth Governor of Hong Kong. He was ...

. He went to

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

(now

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

) where at times he acted Judge of the High Court of Bombay in 1865. He came back to England in 1866 and in a tract entitled ''A Plea for the Unrepresented for the Restitution of the Franchise'' advocated

universal suffrage Universal suffrage or universal franchise ensures the right to vote for as many people bound by a government's laws as possible, as supported by the " one person, one vote" principle. For many, the term universal suffrage assumes the exclusion ...

as a panacea for the ills resulting from class legislation. In 1867 he published an attack on

Benjamin Disraeli Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman, Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician and writer who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a ...

's Reform Act of that year. He was from the defendant side in the

Maharaj Libel Case The Maharaj Libel Case was an 1862 trial in the Supreme Court of Bombay, in British Raj, British India. The case was initiated by Jadunath Brajratanjee Maharaj against Nanabhai Rustomji Ranina and Karsandas Mulji. It stemmed from an editorial artic ...

. In 1868 Anstey returned to Bombay and resumed his practice as a barrister. Anstey died in Bombay on 17 August 1873, ending a life hampered by quarrels. He was buried at

Sewri Sewri (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''Śivdī,'' Help:IPA/Marathi, �iʋɖiː is a locality along the eastern edge of South Mumbai, in Maharashtra, India. It is also the name of a Sewri railway station, railway sta ...

Works

Anstey's publications included: * ''British Catholics and the New Parliament'' (1841), * ''Guide to the Laws of England affecting Roman Catholics'' (1842) * ''Guide to the History of the Laws and Constitution of England in Six Lectures'' * '' Crime and Government at Hong Kong'' (1859) He was a contributor in its early years to the '' Dublin Review''.

Family

In 1839, Anstey married Harriet, daughter of Jarrard Edward Strickland of Loughlinn, County Roscommon, Ireland. She was one of a family of six sons, including

Edward Strickland Sir Edward Strickland, , (7 August 1820 – 18 July 1889) was a British Army officer, commissariat officer in charge of the British army of occupation in Greece from 1855 to 1857 and a vice-president of the Geographical Society of Australasia. ...

, and four daughters. s:Historical account of Lisbon college/Appendix 3/N-S

References

External links

* ;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Anstey, Thomas Chisholm 1816 births 1873 deaths English Roman Catholics Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Cork constituencies (1801–1922) UK MPs 1847–1852 Members of the Middle Temple Attorneys general of Hong Kong Alumni of the UCL Faculty of Laws