Herbert Hardy Cozens-Hardy, 1st Baron Cozens-Hardy, (1838–1920) was a British

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, ...

and judge who served as Master of the Rolls from 1907 until 1918.

Early life and career

Cozens-Hardy was born in

Letheringsett Letheringsett with Glandford is a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It includes the village of Letheringsett, along with the hamlet of Glandford. The village straddles the A148 King’s Lynn to Cromer road. Letheringsett is 1.2 mil ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nor ...

in 1838, the second son of William Hardy Cozens-Hardy, a former

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the Episcopal see, See of ...

solicitor, and Sarah, ''née'' Theobald, daughter of Thomas Theobald, textile manufacturer. His grandmother was the diarist Mary Hardy. His family were Methodists, a connection which proved to be useful in his career at the bar. Cozens-Hardy was educated at

Amersham School Amersham School is a mixed secondary school in Amersham, Buckinghamshire. In September 2011, the school became an Academy. It takes children from the age of 11 through to the age of 18 and has approximately 1020 pupils. In September 2005, the sc ...

and University College, London, where he matriculated in 1858 and gained the LLB in 1863, later becoming a fellow of University College. He was called to the bar at

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincol ...

in 1862, and read in the chambers of Thomas Lewin and James Dickinson. Cozens-Hardy acquired a large junior practice at the Chancery bar, and became

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister o ...

in 1882. It was then the practice of Chancery Queen's Counsels to attach themselves to the court of a particular Chancery Division judge: Cozens-Hardy initially attached himself to the court of Mr Justice Fry; upon the latter's promotion to the Court of Appeal in 1883 he attached himself to Mr Justice North. In 1893 he became a 'special', a Chancery silk unattached to any particular judge, but who charged a special fee of £50 () per appearance. Popular among his peers, he was elected chairman of the

General Council of the Bar The General Council of the Bar, commonly known as the Bar Council, is the representative body for barristers in England and Wales. Established in 1894, the Bar Council is the 'approved regulator' of barristers, but discharges its regulatory functi ...

and served until his elevation to the bench 1899.

Political career

In 1885, Cozens-Hardy was returned as the Liberal

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

North Norfolk North Norfolk is a local government district in Norfolk, England. Its council is based in Cromer. The population at the 2011 Census was 101,149. History The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972. It was ...

, keeping the seat until 1899. He frequently spoke on legal matters, although he was never a prominent figure. His most important achievement was the Law of Property Amendment Act 1860 subduing the law of

mortmain Mortmain () is the perpetual, inalienable ownership of real estate by a corporation or legal institution; the term is usually used in the context of its prohibition. Historically, the land owner usually would be the religious office of a church ...

into only the modern

rule against perpetuities The rule against perpetuities is a legal rule in the American common law that prevents people from using legal instruments (usually a deed or a will) to exert control over the ownership of private property for a time long beyond the lives of p ...

. This enabled charities and schools to be set up with less bureaucracy to avoid them being declared void. It is nicknamed the ''Cozens-Hardy Act''. He remained with

Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-cons ...

when the Liberal Party split over

Irish Home Rule The Irish Home Rule movement was a movement that campaigned for self-government (or "home rule") for Ireland within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It was the dominant political movement of Irish nationalism from 1870 to the ...

in 1886, although he wavered towards the defectors for a time.

Legal career

In 1899, the elevation of Sir Robert Romer to the Court of Appeal on the death of Lord Justice Chitty created a vacancy in the Chancery Division. Though Lord Halsbury, the

Lord Chancellor The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. Th ...

, was known to biased toward Conservatives in judicial appointments, he nevertheless recommended Cozens-Hardy for the vacancy, writing to him that "Notwithstanding your abominable politics I think you are the fittest person to succeed Romer". Cozens-Hardy was duly appointed to the High Court and assigned to the Chancery Division, receiving the customary

knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the ...

in the 1899 Birthday Honours. In 1901, he succeeded

Lord Justice Rigby Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or a ...

as a Lord Justice of Appeal and was sworn of the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mo ...

. In 1907 Cozens-Hardy succeeded Sir Richard Henn Collins as Master of the Rolls. He was created Baron Cozens-Hardy, of

, in the

County of Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North ...

, on 1 July 1914. Retiring from in 1918, he died less than two years later in 1920, aged 81, and was buried in Kensal Green Cemetery. His eldest son, the Hon William Cozens-Hardy KC MP, succeeded to the barony.

Family

In 1868 he married Maria Hepburn, who bore him two sons and two daughters before her death in 1886; the spouse's shared tombstone gives to her its sole epigraph: "Love is as strong as death". His town house was 50

Ladbroke Grove Ladbroke Grove () is an area and a road in West London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, passing through Kensal Green and Notting Hill, running north–south between Harrow Road and Holland Park Avenue. It is also a name given to ...

, Kensington, London."Cozens-Hardy, 1st Baron, (Herbert Hardy Cozens-Hardy) (22 November 1838 – 18 June 1920)." WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO. 1 December 2007; Accessed 12 Dec. 2020. https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/10.1093/ww/9780199540891.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-195118. Via his elder daughter, Katharine, who married

Silvester Horne Charles Silvester Horne (1865–1914) was a Congregational minister, who additionally served as Liberal MP for Ipswich, and was a noted orator. He was the father of the humorous broadcaster, Kenneth Horne. Childhood He was born in Cuckfield, ...

, he was the maternal grandfather of

Kenneth Horne Charles Kenneth Horne, generally known as Kenneth Horne, (27 February 1907 – 14 February 1969) was an English comedian and businessman. He is perhaps best remembered for his work on three BBC Radio series: ''Much-Binding-in-the-Marsh ...

. His younger daughter, Hope, married Austin Pilkington of that glass and crystal making family.

Arms

Footnotes and references

Footnote

Citations

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cozens-Hardy (1st Baron Letheringsett), Herbert 1838 births 1920 deaths Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery 20th-century English judges UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1886–1892 UK MPs 1892–1895 UK MPs 1895–1900 UK MPs who were granted peerages People from Letheringsett with Glandford Chancery Division judges Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Masters of the Rolls Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Knights Bachelor 19th-century King's Counsel English Methodists Alumni of University College London Members of Lincoln's Inn Barons created by George V