The King's Advocate (or Queen's Advocate when the monarch was female) was one of the Law Officers of the Crown. He represented the Crown in the

ecclesiastical court An ecclesiastical court, also called court Christian or court spiritual, is any of certain courts having jurisdiction mainly in spiritual or religious matters. In the Middle Ages, these courts had much wider powers in many areas of Europe than ...

s of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

, where cases were argued not by barristers but by advocates (see Doctor's Commons). In the nineteenth century much of the jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts was transferred to other courts, firstly the Courts of

Probate Probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased, or whereby the estate is settled according to the laws of intestacy in the sta ...

and Divorce and Matrimonial Causes and eventually the

Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (Englan ...

of the

High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (Englan ...

. The position of Queen's Advocate remained vacant after the resignation of Sir Travers Twiss in 1872.

Use in colonies and extraterritorial jurisdictions

In some British colonies and

extraterritorial In international law, extraterritoriality is the state of being exempted from the jurisdiction of local law, usually as the result of diplomatic negotiations. Historically, this primarily applied to individuals, as jurisdiction was usually cla ...

British courts, the principal British Government lawyer was called the King's Advocate, Queen's Advocate or

Crown Advocate Crown advocate is a title used in some former British colonies (and until recently in Britain) for a government prosecutor. In former British Colonies and certain British extraterritorial courts the title is (or was) used by the senior government ...

. For example, before the British Supreme Court for China and Japan and in

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

the principal British Government lawyer was called the Crown Advocate. In

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...

, he was referred to as the King's Advocate. The

Attorney General of Sri Lanka The Attorney General of Sri Lanka is the Sri Lankan government's chief legal adviser, and its primary lawyer in the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. The Attorney General is usually a highly respected Senior Advocate, and is appointed by the ruling ...

was known as the King's Advocate or Queen's Advocate between 1833 and 1884.

King's/Queen's Advocates

* ''incomplete before the 18th century'' * 3 March 1609 Sir Henry (Martin) Marten *1625: Sir

Thomas Ryves Sir Thomas Ryves (c.1583–1652) was an English civilian. He was a member of a prominent Dorsetshire gentry family. He became a specialist in ecclesiastical law and Admiralty law. Background and early career He was born around 1583, eighth s ...

* 25 July 1701: Sir John Cooke * 13 January 1715: Sir Nathaniel Lloyd * 26 January 1727: George Paul * 23 April 1755: George Hay * 11 September 1764: James Marriott * 2 November 1778: William Wynne * 6 November 1798: John Nicholl * 1 March 1809: Sir Christopher Robinson * 28 February 1828: Sir Herbert Jenner * 18 October 1834: John Dodson (knighted 29 October 1834) * 5 March 1852: John Dorney Harding (knighted 24 March 1852) * 12 September 1862: Robert Joseph Phillimore (knighted 17 September 1862) * 27 August 1867:

Travers Twiss Sir Travers Twiss QC FRS (19 March 1809 in London14 January 1897 in London) was an English jurist. He had a distinguished academic and legal career culminating in his appointment as Queen's Advocate-General. Twiss was particularly noted for hi ...

(knighted 4 November 1867)

References

Other sources

* Joseph Haydn and Horace Ockerby, ''The Book of Dignities'', London 1894, reprinted Bath 1969, p. 422 *

Edward William Brabrook Sir Edward William Brabrook (10 April 1839 – 20 March 1930) was an English civil servant, author, and anthropologist with a special interest in folklore. He was a member of the Folklore Society and a fellow of Society of Antiquaries of London ...

, paper on the Office of the King's Advocate-General, delivered 16 January 1879, recorded in ''Proceedings of the

Society of Antiquaries of London A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soci ...

''
second series, vol. VIII
p. 13-21 Canon law of the Church of England English civil law History of the Church of England Law Officers of the Crown in the United Kingdom {{anglicanism-stub