Sir George Hay (25 January 1715 – 6 October 1778) was a British

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 ...

and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1754 and 1778. He committed suicide. The son of John Hay, a Church of England clergyman who was Rector of St Stephen's, Coleman Street, London, he was educated at the

Merchant Taylors' School Merchant Taylors' School may refer to: *Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood (founded 1561), is a British independent school originally located in the City of London and now located in Northwood in Middlesex . * Merchant Taylors' Boys' School, Crosb ...

and

St John's College, Oxford St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded as a men's college in 1555, it has been coeducational since 1979.Communication from Michael Riordan, college archivist Its founder, Sir Thomas White, intended to pro ...

.
Article by Sir Lewis Namier in History of Parliament Online. He was Chancellor of the Anglican Diocese of Worcester, Diocese of Worcester 1751–64; King's Advocate General from 1755 to 1764 (with interval in 1756) and Vicar General to the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

for the same period; He was

Dean of Arches The Dean of the Arches is the judge who presides in the provincial ecclesiastical court of the Archbishop of Canterbury. This court is called the Arches Court of Canterbury. It hears appeals from consistory courts and bishop's disciplinary tribun ...

1764–1778 and also Judge of the

Prerogative Court of Canterbury In law, a prerogative is an exclusive right bestowed by a government or state and invested in an individual or group, the content of which is separate from the body of rights enjoyed under the general law. It was a common facet of feudal law. The ...

and Chancellor of the Diocese of Lichfield for the same period. In 1773, the year he was knighted, he was appointed

Judge of the High Court of Admiralty The Judge of the High Court of Admiralty was established in 1483 he was the chief law officer of the High Court of Admiralty. The office holder was supported by various officials and existed until 1875. History The High Court of Admiralty was ...

. In

1754 Events January–March * January 28 – Horace Walpole, in a letter to Horace Mann, coins the word ''serendipity''. * February 22 – Expecting an attack by Portuguese-speaking militias in the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Pla ...

, he was returned as Member of Parliament for Stockbridge, but left the House of Commons in 1756 to take up the post of Commissioner of the Admiralty. He returned to Parliament in July 1757 for Calne in Wiltshire, at the request of Pitt the Elder. At the 1761 election, he was returned as MP for Sandwich in Kent, holding that seat until the next election, in 1768, when he stood unsuccessfully for Oxford University. Later that year, through a by-election, he became MP for

Newcastle-under-Lyme Newcastle-under-Lyme ( RP: , ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. The 2011 census population of the town was 75,082, whilst the wider borough had a population of 1 ...

, holding the seat until his death. In May 1778, he became ill and was known to be 'lunatic' by August. Arrangements to terminate his legal offices were being made, when in October he escaped from his asylum and drowned himself at the age of 63. He never married.

References

1715 births 1778 deaths Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Newcastle-under-Lyme British MPs 1754–1761 British MPs 1761–1768 British MPs 1768–1774 British MPs 1774–1780 People educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood Alumni of St John's College, Oxford English lawyers Members of Doctors' Commons Lords of the Admiralty Suicides by drowning in England British politicians who committed suicide {{England-GreatBritain-MP-stub