John Wilson, Lord Ashmore (1857 – 8 July 1932) was a Scottish lawyer, a unionist parliamentary candidate, a

sheriff principal In Scotland a sheriff principal (''pl''. sheriffs principal) () is a judge in charge of a sheriffdom with judicial, quasi-judicial, and administrative responsibilities. Sheriffs principal have been part of the judiciary of Scotland since the ...

and a judge.

Early life

Wilson was born in 1857 in

Falkirk Falkirk ( ; ; ) is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow. Falkirk had a resident population of 32,422 at the ...

, where his father James Wilson was a solicitor. He was educated at the Royal High School of Edinburgh and the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

Career

After graduating from university, Wilson initially joined his father's practice in Falkirk. However, in 1885 he was admitted as an advocate in Scotland, and set up a large practice. He was particularly skilled in examining witnesses, and undertook a lot of parliamentary cases.

Politics

Wilson was a parliamentary candidate twice in the 1890s, both times as a Conservative Party or

Liberal Unionist The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a political ...

(it is not clear which), and both times unsuccessfully. At the 1895 general election he contested the Leith Burghs against the Liberal

Ronald Munro Ferguson Ronald Craufurd Munro Ferguson, 1st Viscount Novar, (6 March 1860 – 30 March 1934) was a British politician who served as the List of Governors-General of Australia, sixth Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1914 to 1920. Munro F ...

(later Lord Norvar). He was defeated again at the by-election in 1896 for the Montrose Burghs, where the sitting Liberal MP John Shiress Will had resigned in order to create a vacancy for

John Morley John Morley, 1st Viscount Morley of Blackburn, (24 December 1838 – 23 September 1923), was a British Liberal statesman, writer and newspaper editor. Initially a journalist in the North of England and then editor of the newly Liberal-leani ...

, the

Chief Secretary for Ireland The Chief Secretary for Ireland was a key political office in the British Dublin Castle administration, administration in Ireland. Nominally subordinate to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lord Lieutenant, and officially the "Chief Secretar ...

Legal career

Wilson

took silk A King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarch is a woman, the title is Qu ...

in Scotland in 1900. He was called to the English bar in 1900 at the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

, and became a

King's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

in England in 1901. He was appointed in March 1900 as Sheriff of Caithness, Orkney and Shetland, and transferred in May 1905 to become Sheriff of Inverness, Elgin and Nairn. He held that shrievalty until 1912, when he became Sheriff of Renfrew and Bute, when he transferred again to become

Sheriff of Perth The Sheriff of Perth was historically a royal official, appointed for life, who was responsible for enforcing justice in Perth, Scotland. Prior to 1748 most sheriffdoms were held on a hereditary basis. From that date, following the Jacobite upri ...

. During his two decades as a sheriff, Wilson held numerous other public offices. He was a Commissioner of Northern Lights from 1900 to 1917, and at various times was Prison Commissioner for Scotland, a Commissioner of the General Board of Control for Scotland. To fill the vacancy created by the death of Lord Guthrie, Wilson was appointed in 1920 as a

Senator of the College of Justice The senators of the College of Justice in Scotland 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 ...

, taking the judicial title Lord Ashmore. He was installed as judge on 8 June in a ceremony presided over by the

Lord Justice General 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 are ...

, Lord Clyde. His judgments included a 1924 case of a couple who had been married at Gretna by the village

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

, in his smithy. They sought a declarator that their marriage was legal, which Ashmore granted, allowing hem to register their marriage. After 8 years on the bench, Lord Ashmore resigned as a judge in 1928. He was succeeded by

Alexander Morrice Mackay Alexander Morrice Mackay, Lord Mackay LLD (1875–1955) was a twentieth century Scottish lawyer and Senator of the College of Justice. Life He was born on 6 September 1875 at 8 Albert Street in Aberdeen. He was the son of R. Whyte Mackay of ...

, styled Lord Mackay.

Personal life

Wilson's brothers included Gregg Wilson, who became Professor of Zoology at

Queen's University Belfast The Queen's University of Belfast, commonly known as Queen's University Belfast (; abbreviated Queen's or QUB), is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The university received its charter in 1845 as part of ...

from 1909 to 1931, and David Mackay Wilson (died 1929) an advocate who became a King's Counsel and a

sheriff-substitute In the Courts of Scotland, sheriff-substitute was the historical name for the judges who sit in the local sheriff courts under the direction of the sheriffs principal; from 1971 the sheriffs substitute were renamed simply as sheriff. When researc ...

. In 1884 he married Lillias Hartley from

Ruthwell Ruthwell is a village and parish on the Solway Firth between Dumfries and Annan, Dumfries and Galloway, Annan in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. In 2022 the combined population of Ruthwell and nearby Clarencefield was 400. Thomas Randolph, Earl ...

in Dumfriesshire, and together they had one daughter and two sons, one of whom was killed in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Lord Ashmore died on 8 July 1932 at

Radlett Radlett is a large village in Hertfordshire, England, between Elstree and St Albans on Watling Street, with a population of 10,060. It is in the council district of Hertsmere in the south of the county, and forms part of the civil parish of A ...

in Hertfordshire, aged 75.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashmore, John Wilson, Lord 1857 births 1932 deaths People from Falkirk People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Members of the Faculty of Advocates Scottish King's Counsel English King's Counsel 19th-century King's Counsel 20th-century King's Counsel Scottish sheriffs Senators of the College of Justice Conservative Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Liberal Unionist Party parliamentary candidates