Cyril Asquith, Baron Asquith of Bishopstone
Lord Justice of Appeal | |
---|---|
In office 13 February 1946 – 23 April 1951 | |
Preceded by | None |
Succeeded by | Sir John Morris |
Justice of the High Court | |
In office 28 March 1938 – 13 February 1946 | |
Preceded by | Sir Samuel Porter |
Succeeded by | Sir Frederic Sellers |
Personal details | |
Born | London, England | 25 February 1890
Died | 24 August 1954 London, England | (aged 64)
Spouse |
Anne Stephanie Pollock
(m. 1918) |
Children | 4 |
Parent(s) | H. H. Asquith Helen Kelsall Melland |
Alma mater | Balliol College, Oxford |
Cyril Asquith, Baron Asquith of Bishopstone,
The youngest child of British prime minister
Asquith was widely regarded as possessing one of the finest minds on the bench, although his rapid rise, after an unremarkable career at the bar, was the cause for some adverse comment. According to the
Early life and career
Born in Hampstead, London, Cyril Asquith was the fourth son and youngest child of the barrister H. H. Asquith, later Prime Minister and subsequently Earl of Oxford and Asquith, from his first marriage to Helen Kelsall Melland. His mother died in 1891, a year after his birth.[1]
Known to his friends as Cys, Asquith was educated at
At the outbreak of the
After the war, Asquith was
Judicial career
Asquith was appointed a Justice of the High Court on 28 March 1938 to fill the vacancy left by the appointment of Mr Justice Porter to the House of Lords. He was assigned to the King's Bench Division and received the customary knighthood three days later.[8][9] His appointment caused some surprise at the bar and bench.[4][1] In particular, the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Hewart, felt that he had not been properly consulted about the appointment.[1] Hewart assigned Asquith a number of high-profile criminal trials at the Old Bailey, where mistakes would adversely affect his reputation. However, as a judge, Asquith was especially successful in the trial of criminal cases, where his ability to explain the law to the jury was valuable, though he was occasionally criticised as being too lenient in his sentences.[1][4]
During the
After the war, following the death of
In October 1951, Asquith was offered the Lord Chancellorship by Winston Churchill. Lacking in political experience and in poor health, the offer came as a surprise to him. Although his family pleaded with him to accept the post, he declined it; to his son-in-law John Stephenson he wrote that Churchill "mustn't be saddled with a lame duck on the Woolsack". In selecting Asquith Churchill might have been influenced by the fact that Asquith's father had appointed him to his first Cabinet post, or by their shared membership of The Other Club, where they met frequently. (Brendan Bracken told Harold Macmillan that Churchill had "set his heart on getting Cys Asquith as Lord Chancellor, chiefly because he wished his last administration to hold both an Asquith and a Lloyd George.") Eventually, the post was given to Lord Simonds, a law lord whom Churchill had never met.[1]
Asquith remained on the bench until his sudden death at his London home on 24 August 1954. His funeral was held at Bishopstone Church, Sussex on 28 August. A memorial service, attended by Churchill, was held at Temple Church on 5 October.
Asquith was the author of Trade Union Law for Laymen (1927), a Latin translation of poems from
Assessment
Asquith's intellect was highly regarded by his contemporaries. However, assessments of his performance as a judge were more mixed, though it was said that "the higher he went the better he became".
"perhaps because of his nature and his natural conservatism, he had virtually no impact in the Lords … It was an undistinguished period in the House of Lords as a final court of appeal; Asquith did nothing to ameliorate it."[1]
However, his judgments, which combined his knowledge of the law and his literary interests, were said by Stevens to possess a certain distinction.[1]
Family
At St Margaret's, Westminster on 12 February 1918, Asquith married Anne Stephanie Pollock (27 April 1896 – 1964), daughter of Sir Adrian Donald Wilde Pollock, solicitor Chamberlain of the City of London. Through her father she was the great-granddaughter of the judge Sir Frederick Pollock, 1st Baronet. They had two sons and two daughters.[1] His younger daughter, the Hon (Frances) Rose Asquith (1925–2020), married in 1951 John Stephenson, later a Lord Justice of Appeal.[17]
Arms
Selected judgments
- Victoria Laundry (Windsor) Ltd v Newman Industries Ltd [1949] 2 KB 528 — remoteness
- negligent misstatement
- Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) Ltd. v. Sheikh of Abu Dhabi (1951) 18 ILR 144 — the Abu Dhabi Arbitration
- National Coal Board v England [1954] AC 403 — illegality
References
- ^ doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/30481. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ISBN 9780719022678.
- OCLC 1032778667.
- ^ a b c d "Lord Asquith of Bishopstone". The Times. 25 August 1954. p. 9.
- ^ "No. 34256". The London Gazette. 18 February 1936. p. 1055.
- ^ "No. 34416". The London Gazette. 9 July 1937. p. 4415.
- ^ "Liberal Party Convention". The Times. 20 June 1936. p. 17.
- ^ "No. 34497". The London Gazette. 29 March 1938. p. 2083.
- ^ "No. 34498". The London Gazette. 1 April 1938. p. 2148.
- ISBN 9781107056787.
- ^ "German Spies Executed". The Sydney Morning Herald. 7 August 1941. p. 10.
- Library of Congress of Chile.
- ^ "No. 37470". The London Gazette. 15 February 1946. p. 973.
- ^ "No. 39212". The London Gazette. 24 April 1951. p. 2327.
- ^ Lord Jowitt (26 August 1954). "Lord Asquith Of Bishopstone". The Times. p. 8.
- ^ Candler v Crane, Christmas & Co [1951] 2 KB 164.
- ^ "Asquith of Bishopstone, Baron (UK, 1951 – 1954)". Cracroft's Peerage.