Sir Ellis William Hume-Williams, 1st Baronet KBE, PC, KC (19 August 1863 – 4 February 1947) was a British barrister and

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

politician. Hume-Williams was a King's Counsel (KC), and in October 1901 was appointed Recorder of the Borough of Bury St Edmunds.

Biography

Born to an Anglo-Irish family with Welsh roots, Hume Williams' father was a doctor turned lawyer who built up a large practice in London, 'and was for a time on the staff of

the Lancet ''The Lancet'' is a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal and one of the oldest of its kind. It is also the world's highest-impact academic journal. It was founded in England in 1823. The journal publishes original research articles, ...

. Ellis Hume-Williams attended schools in Brighton, Germany, France and Hitchin, before going up to

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

, where he attended Trinity Hall. Williams showed an interest in politics from an early age, perhaps unsurprisingly, since his father was a member of the

Junior Carlton Club The Junior Carlton Club was a London gentlemen's club, now dissolved, which was established in 1864 and was disbanded in 1977. History Anticipating the forthcoming Second Reform Act under Benjamin Disraeli, numerous prospective electors decide ...

, a London Gentlemen's Club associated with the

. Hume-Williams was selected to fight North Monmouthshire Constituency at the 1895 general election, losing to

Reginald McKenna Reginald McKenna (6 July 1863 – 6 September 1943) was a British banker and Liberal politician. His first Cabinet post under Henry Campbell-Bannerman was as President of the Board of Education, after which he served as First Lord of the Admir ...

, but reducing McKenna's majority by almost 400 votes. He fought the Frome constituency at the 1900 general election, but again failed to be elected. At the 1906 general election, Williams fought the North Kensington constituency, another unsuccessful fight. In his autobiography, Hume Williams claimed that he could have secured election for the safe Marylebone constituency, but did not wish to let the North Kensington Conservatives down. At the January 1910 general election, Hume-Williams was elected as

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

for the Bassetlaw constituency in

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The trad ...

. He was created a baronet, of Ewhurst, in the County of Surrey, in 1922. He lost his seat at the 1929 general election to

Malcolm MacDonald Malcolm Ian Macdonald (born 7 January 1950) is an English former professional footballer, manager and media figure. Nicknamed 'Supermac', Macdonald was a quick, powerfully built prolific goalscorer. He played for Fulham, Luton Town, Newcastle ...

(son of the Labour Party leader Ramsay MacDonald), and did not stand for

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

again. He was made a

Privy Counsellor The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of ei ...

in July 1929, shortly after his electoral defeat. Williams published his autobiography, ''The World, The House and the Bar'' in 1930. Besides giving details of his Parliamentary career, this book outlines a number of the legal cases in which he was involved over the years.

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hume-Williams, William E 1863 births 1947 deaths Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire UK MPs 1910 UK MPs 1910–1918 UK MPs 1918–1922 UK MPs 1922–1923 UK MPs 1923–1924 UK MPs 1924–1929 Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom