The grave of Lord Young, St John's, Edinburgh

George Young, Lord Young, (2 July 1819 – 21 May 1907) was a Scottish

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

MP in the British Parliament and a judge, with the judicial title of Lord Young.

Life

He was born in Dumfries and educated locally before being sent to the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

to study law. He became a member of the

Faculty of Advocates The Faculty of Advocates is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary. The Faculty of Advocates is a constitu ...

in 1840 and was also called to the English bar. He held the judicial offices of

Sheriff of Inverness The Sheriff of Inverness was historically the office responsible for enforcing law and order and bringing criminals to justice in Inverness, Scotland. Prior to 1748 most sheriffdoms were held on a hereditary basis. From that date, following the J ...

in 1853–1860 and Haddington and Berwick in 1860–1862. He was appointed

Solicitor General for Scotland , body = , insignia = Crest of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg , insigniasize = 110px , image = File:Official Portrait of Ruth Charteris QC.png , incumbent = Ruth Charteris KC , incumbentsince = 22 June 2021 , department = Crown Office and ...

in 1862–1866 and 1868–1869. He was appointed

Lord Advocate , body = , insignia = Crest of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg , insigniasize = 110px , image = File:Official Portrait of Dorothy Bain QC.png , incumbent = Dorothy Bain KC , incumbentsince = 22 June 2021 , appointer = Monarch on the advice ...

in 1869, the most senior legal position in Scotland, and technically a governmental post. This role is primarily one of law-making. He represented Wigtown Burghs in 1865–1874, until he lost an election. After an election petition, that election was declared void and the seat awarded to Young on 28 May 1874. However, in June 1874, he was appointed a Judge of the

Court of Session The Court of Session is the supreme civil court of Scotland and constitutes part of the College of Justice; the supreme criminal court of Scotland is the High Court of Justiciary. The Court of Session sits in Parliament House in Edinburgh ...

and left Parliament. On 3 March 1874 he was created a

Senator of the College of Justice The senators of the College of Justice are judges of the College of Justice, a set of legal institutions involved in the administration of justice in Scotland. There are three types of senator: Lords of Session (judges of the Court of Session); ...

with the title Lord Young. He served until 1905. He lived his final years at 28 Moray Place on the prestigious Moray Estate in western Edinburgh.Edinburgh and Leith Post Office Directory 1905-6 He is buried with his wife Janet Bell (d. 1901), daughter of George Graham Bell, near the south-west corner of St John's churchyard in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. Given his wealth and power it is a very humble grave.

Legislation

The most important legislation framed and created by Lord Young was the

Education (Scotland) Act 1872 The Education (Scotland) Act 1872 (35 & 36 Vict. c. 62) made elementary education for all children between the ages of 5 and 13 mandatory in Scotland. The Act achieved a more thorough transfer of existing schools to a public system than the 1 ...

under which every town and village in Scotland were obliged to give free education to both boys and girls from the age of five to the age of eleven. This created a wave of school building across Scotland. Whilst children were still permitted to attend private schools they were not permitted to attend no school, and also imbedded in this legislation is the creation of the concept of

truancy Truancy is any intentional, unjustified, unauthorised, or illegal absence from compulsory education. It is a deliberate absence by a student's own free will (though sometimes adults or parents will allow and/or ignore it) and usually does not refe ...

Family

He married Janet Graham Bell on 18 July 1847. They had 14 children: Janet 1848-? Alexander 1849-71 who died aged 22 leaving a succession problem for his lordship George Graham Bell 1850–1905. George was dispatched to Hong Kong under a cloud where he married Frances Emily Huffam on 28 Feb 1880. The couple later migrated to Australia to a sheep property outside Goulburn NSW. This line of the family continues to live in New South Wales, Australia. William 1852-1923 Lillias (Lily) 1854-? , married

Charles Kincaid Mackenzie file:Charles Kincaid Mackenzie (The Scotsman).png, right Charles Kincaid Mackenzie, Lord Mackenzie (1857–1938) was a Scottish lawyer who served as a Senator of the College of Justice. He was also a cricketer. Life He was born on 8 March ...

(later styled Lord Mackenzie). Marion 1856-? Christian 1858-? Elizabeth 1861-1929 Annabel Jane 1864-1923 Arthur 1866 Edward 1868-1923 Charles 1870-? Edith 1871-? Henry 1875-? Their daughter Lillias (Lily) Young, married

(later styled Lord Mackenzie). Janet Graham Bell died in Edinburg on 15 Oct 1901 and was followed 6 years later by Lord George Young in 1907 pdated by: Geoffrey Bruce Young - Great Great Grandson and Great Grandson of George Graham Bell Young

References

Sources

* * ''Who's Who of British Members of Parliament: Volume I 1832-1885'', edited by M. Stenton (The Harvester Press 1976) *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Young, George 1819 births 1907 deaths Scottish Liberal Party MPs Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Scottish constituencies UK MPs 1865–1868 UK MPs 1868–1874 UK MPs 1874–1880 Members of the Faculty of Advocates

Young Young may refer to: * Offspring, the product of reproduction of a new organism produced by one or more parents * Youth, the time of life when one is young, often meaning the time between childhood and adulthood Music * The Young, an American roc ...

Solicitors General for Scotland Lord Advocates Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Scottish sheriffs