The Chief Baron of the Exchequer was the first "baron" (meaning

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

) of the

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 ...

Exchequer of Pleas. "In the absence of both the Treasurer of the Exchequer or

First Lord of the Treasury The first lord of the Treasury is the head of the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury exercising the ancient office of Lord High Treasurer in the United Kingdom, and is by convention also the prime minister. This office is not equivalent to the ...

, and the

Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of HM Treasury, His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Ch ...

, it was he who presided in the equity court and answered the bar i.e. spoke for the court." Practically speaking, he held the most important office of the Exchequer of Pleas. The chief baron, along with the three

puisne Puisne (; from Old French ''puisné'', modern ''puîné'', "later born, younger" (and thence, "inferior") from late Latin ''post-'', "after", and ''natus'', "born") is a legal term of art obsolete in many jurisdictions and, when current, used main ...

barons, sat as a court of

common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omniprese ...

, heard suits in the court of equity and settled revenue disputes. A puisne baron was styled "Mr Baron X" and the chief baron as "Lord Chief Baron X". From 1550 to 1579, there was a major distinction between the chief baron and the second, third and fourth puisne barons. The difference was in social status and

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

. All of the chief barons had been trained as

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solicit ...

s in the

inns of court The Inns of Court in London are the professional associations for barristers in England and Wales. There are four Inns of Court – Gray's Inn, Lincoln's Inn, Inner Temple and Middle Temple. All barristers must belong to one of them. They have ...

. With the exception of Henry Bradshaw and Sir Clement Higham, both

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and givin ...

s-at-law, all of the chief barons who served

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eli ...

, had attained the highest and most prestigious rank of a lawyer,

serjeant-at-law A Serjeant-at-Law (SL), commonly known simply as a Serjeant, was a member of an order of barristers at the English and Irish Bar. The position of Serjeant-at-Law (''servientes ad legem''), or Sergeant-Counter, was centuries old; there are wri ...

. In 1875, the Court of Exchequer became the Exchequer Division of the High Court. Following the death of the last chief baron in 1880, the division and that of Common Pleas were merged into the

King's Bench Division The King's Bench Division (or Queen's Bench Division when the monarch is female) of the High Court of Justice deals with a wide range of common law cases and has supervisory responsibility over certain lower courts. It hears appeals on point ...

Chief Barons of the Exchequer

* 1303 William de Carleton * 1317 Sir Walter Norwich * 1327 Hervey de Stanton * 1328–1329 Sir Walter Norwich * 1329 Sir John Stonor * 1331 Sir

Henry le Scrope Sir Henry le Scrope (b. in or before 1268 - 7 September 1336) was an English lawyer, and Chief Justice of the King's Bench for two periods between 1317 and 1330. He was the eldest son of Sir William le Scrope (c. 1259 - c. 1312), who was bailif ...

* 1337 Sir

Robert Sadington Robert Sadington (''fl''. 1340) was Lord Chancellor of England. Life He is assumed to be a native of Saddington in Leicestershire, and perhaps a son of John de Sadington, a valet of Isabella of France. He appears as an advocate in the year- ...

* 1344 Sir William de Shareshull * 1345 Sir John Stowford * 1345 Sir

* 1350

Gervase de Wilford Gervase is a masculine given name which may refer to: Pre-modern era :''Ordered chronologically'' * Gervase of Besançon (died 685), saint and a bishop of Besançon * Gervase of Bazoches (died 1108), Prince of Galilee * Gervase of Blois (died c ...

* 1362

William de Skipwith William de Skipwith (died after 1392) was a fourteenth-century English judge, who also served as a judge in Ireland. He held the office of Chief Baron of the Exchequer 1362-5. He suffered temporary disgrace when he was removed from office for corr ...

* 1366

Thomas de Lodelow Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

* 1375 Sir

William Tauk William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Eng ...

* 1376

Henry Asty Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

* 1381

Robert de Plessyngton The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, ho ...

* 1384 William de Carleol * 1386 Sir John Cary (d.1395) of

Cockington Cockington is a village near Torquay in the English county of Devon. It has old cottages within its boundaries, and is about a half a mile away from Torquay. Bus service 62 (Torquay circular) calls at the village five times per day (Mon-Fri) a ...

, Devon. * 1387 Sir Robert de Plesyngton * 1388

Thomas Pinchbeck Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

* 1389

John Cassey John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

* 1401

Sir John Cokayne ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English language, English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist i ...

, known as the Elder. * 1414

William Lasingby William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Eng ...

* 1420 William Babington * 1423 Sir John Ivyn * 1438 John Fray * 1448 Peter Ardern * 1463

Richard Illingworth Richard Keith Illingworth (born 23 August 1963) is an English former cricketer, who is currently an umpire. The bulk of his domestic cricketing career occurred with Worcestershire, although he had a spell with Derbyshire, and overseas with Nat ...

* 1472 Sir Thomas Urswick * 1480 Sir William Nottingham * 1483

Humphrey Starkey Sir Humphrey Starkey (died 1486) was a British justice. He studied at Inner Temple and was made Recorder of London in 1471. In 1478 he was made a Serjeant-at-Law, allowing him to practice in the Court of Common Pleas. He served briefly as Lord ...

* 1486 Sir

William Hody Sir William Hody (born before 1441, died 1524) of Pilsdon in Dorset,Heraldic Visitation of Dorset 1565, p.21 was an English lawyer, judge and politician who served as Attorney General of England and Chief Baron of the Exchequer under King Hen ...

* 1513 John Scot * 1522 John FitzJames * 1526

Sir Richard Broke Sir Richard Broke or Brooke (died 1529), was an English judge, who served as Chief Baron of the Exchequer. Broke was fourth son of Thomas Broke of Leighton in Cheshire, and his wife, daughter, and heiress of John Parker of Copnall. His ancestor ...

* 1529 Sir Richard Lyster * 1545 Sir Roger Cholmley * 1552 Henry Bradshaw * 1553 David Brooke * 1558 Sir Clement Higham * 1559 Sir Edward Saunders * 1577

Sir Robert Bell Sir Robert Bell SL (died 1577) of Beaupré Hall, Norfolk, was a Speaker of the House of Commons (1572–1576), who served during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. He was legal counsel (1560) and recorder (1561) for King's Lynn, legal counsel f ...

* 1577 Sir John Jefferay, of

Chiddingly Chiddingly ( ) is an English village and civil parish in the Wealden District of the administrative county of East Sussex, within historic Sussex, some five miles (8 km) northwest of Hailsham. The parish is rural in character: it inc ...

, Sussex * 1578 Sir Roger Manwood * 1593 Sir William Peryam * 1604 Sir Thomas Fleming * 1607 Sir Lawrence Tanfield * 1625 Sir John Walter * 1631 Sir Humphrey Davenport * 1645 Sir Richard Lane * 1648

John Wilde John Wilde (December 12, 1919 – March 9, 2006, pronounced "WILL-dee") was a painter, draughtsman and printmaker of fantastic imagery. Born near Milwaukee, Wilde lived most of his life in Wisconsin, save for service in the U.S. Army during Wor ...

* 1655 William Steele, appointed

Lord Chancellor of Ireland The Lord High Chancellor of Ireland (commonly known as Lord Chancellor of Ireland) was the highest judicial office in Ireland until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. From 1721 to 1801, it was also the highest political office of ...

in 1656Ball, F. E., The Judges in Ireland, 1221-1921, Volume 1, P 342 * 1658 Sir Thomas Widdrington * 1660

* 1660 Sir Orlando Bridgeman * 1660

Sir Matthew Hale Sir Matthew Hale (1 November 1609 – 25 December 1676) was an influential English barrister, judge and jurist most noted for his treatise '' Historia Placitorum Coronæ'', or ''The History of the Pleas of the Crown''. Born to a barrister an ...

* 1671 Sir Edward Turnor * 1676 Sir William Montagu * 1686 Sir Edward Atkyns * 1689 Sir Robert Atkyns * 1695 Sir Edward Ward * 1714 Sir Samuel Dodd * 1716 Sir Thomas Bury * 1722

Sir James Montagu Sir James Montagu SL KC (2 February 1666 – 1723), of the Middle Temple, London, was an English lawyer and Whig politician, who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1695 and 1713. He became a judge and also served as Solicit ...

* 1723 Sir Robert Eyre * 1725 Sir Jeffrey Gilbert * 1726

Sir Thomas Pengelly ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as p ...

* 1730 Sir James Reynolds, junior * 1738 Sir John Comyns * 1740 Sir Edmund Probyn * 1742 Sir Thomas Parker * 1772 Sir Sydney Smythe * 1777 Sir John Skynner * 1787 Sir James Eyre * 1793 Sir Archibald Macdonald * 1813 Sir Vicary Gibbs * 1814 Sir Alexander Thomson * 1817 Sir Richard Richards * 1824 Sir William Alexander * 1831 The Lord Lyndhurst * 1834 Sir James Scarlett * 1844 Sir Frederick Pollock * 1866 Sir Fitzroy Kelly

Peerages created for the Chief Baron of the Exchequer

Chief Barons of the Exchequer

Peerages created for the Chief Baron of the Exchequer

See also

References

Further reading