James Moncreiff, 1st Baron Moncreiff
James Moncreiff, 1st Baron Moncreiff
Life
Moncreiff was born on 29 November 1811 to Ann, daughter of George Robertson, R. N. and
He was educated at
Moncreiff was appointed a
Moncreiff was Member of Parliament for Leith Burghs from 1851 to 1859, for Edinburgh from 1859 to 1868 and for Glasgow and Aberdeen Universities in 1868.[1] During a long career in parliament Moncreiff guided the passing of over 100 acts of parliament, and his name is associated with the reform of legal procedure and mercantile law. As lord advocate he was engaged as public prosecutor in important cases, notably the trials of Madeline Smith, Wielobycki, and the directors of the Western bank. In 1856, he defended the Scotsman in the libel action raised by Duncan McLaren, one of the members for the city of Edinburgh.
In January 1857, Moncreiff was presented with the freedom of his native city for the part he took in regard to the
For 19 years Lord Moncreiff occupied the judicial bench, presiding over the trials in the justiciary court of
Extrajudicially Moncreiff was occupied in many other matters. As a lecturer he was in great request, and delivered numerous orations in Edinburgh and Glasgow on subjects of literary, scientific, and political interest to the Philosophical Institution, Royal Society, Juridical Society, Scots Law Society, and other bodies. Moncreiff also published anonymously in 1871 a novel entitled A Visit to my Discontented Cousin, which was reprinted, with additions, from Fraser's Magazine. He was also a frequent contributor to the Edinburgh Review.[5]
In 1858 Moncreiff received the honorary degree of LL.D. from the
In 1870 he was elected a Fellow of the
In 1875, he became the inaugural President of the conservationist group the Cockburn Association, a position he held until 1893.[9]
In September 1888, Moncreiff resigned the position of Lord Justice Clerk, and took up the preparation of his Memorials. On these he was engaged till his death on 27 April 1895.[5]
Family
On 12 September 1834 Moncreiff married Isabella Bell (d.1881), only daughter of Robert Bell
They had two daughters and five sons. Their eldest son Henry Moncreiff, 2nd Baron Moncreiff sat from 1888 under the title of Lord Wellwood, as a Lord of Session.[5]
References
- ^ a b c d e f Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, 100th Edn, London, 1953.
- ^ Edinburgh Post Office Directory 1810
- ^ Army List
- ^ Maj-Gen J.M. Grierson, Records of the Scottish Volunteer Force 1859–1908, Edinburgh:Blackwood, 1909, pp. 177–84.
- ^ a b c d e f Stronach 1901.
- ^ "No. 23738". The London Gazette. 19 May 1871. p. 2413.
- ^ "No. 24050". The London Gazette. 2 January 1874. p. 1.
- ISBN 0-902-198-84-X. Archived from the original(PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2017.
- ^ "Historic Cockburn Association Office-Bearers".
- ^ "Edinburgh Post Office annual directory, 1832-1833". National Library of Scotland. p. 136. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
- Attribution
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Stronach, George (1901). "Moncreiff, James (1811-1895)". In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography (1st supplement). London: Smith, Elder & Co. pp. 184–186.
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by James Moncreiff
- Portrait and family details Archived 28 March 2020 at the Wayback Machine
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