Marcus Paterson (1712 – 12 March 1787) was an Irish politician, Solicitor-General for Ireland and

Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas The chief justice of the Common Pleas for Ireland was the presiding judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Ireland, which was known in its early years as the Court of Common Bench, or simply as "the Bench", or "the Dublin bench". It was one of the ...

. He became the

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 Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house ...

for Ballynakill in 1756 and

Lisburn Lisburn (; ) is a city in Northern Ireland. It is southwest of Belfast city centre, on the River Lagan, which forms the boundary between County Antrim and County Down. First laid out in the 17th century by English and Welsh settlers, with th ...

in 1768. He was appointed as Solicitor-General in 1764 and became Chief Justice of Common Pleas in 1770. He held office until his death although he had been contemplating retirement due to ill health. He was a native of

Ennis Ennis () is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in County Clare, with a population of 25,27 ...

, County Clare; and was the third son of Montrose Paterson. The Paterson family settled in Ennis in the eighteenth century and became substantial landowners in the area. He went to school in

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

and graduated from the

University of Dublin The University of Dublin ( ga, Ollscoil Átha Cliath), corporately designated the Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin, is a university located in Dublin, Ireland. It is the degree-awarding body for Trinity College Dubl ...

. In character, he seems to have been a typical eighteenth-century

rake Rake may refer to: * Rake (stock character), a man habituated to immoral conduct * Rake (theatre), the artificial slope of a theatre stage Science and technology * Rake receiver, a radio receiver * Rake (geology), the angle between a feature on a ...

: he was famed for his hospitality, shortened his life by heavy drinking and fought numerous duels. John Scott, 1st Earl of Clonmell called him one of those old men who die because they insist on living like young men. On the other hand, he was a considerable scholar, a fine lawyer and a diligent and zealous law officer. He died near Bray on 12 March 1787. He was married and had a son, also called Marcus (c.1744-1768). The younger Marcus joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

and was sent to

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territor ...

, where he died of a fever at

Fort de Chartres Fort de Chartres was a French fortification first built in 1720 on the east bank of the Mississippi River in present-day Illinois. It was used as the administrative center for the province, which was part of New France. Due generally to river floo ...

, on the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it ...

. The judge's estate passed to his nephew, yet another Marcus Paterson.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paterson, Marcus 1712 births 1787 deaths Irish MPs 1727–1760 Irish MPs 1761–1768 Irish MPs 1769–1776 Solicitors-General for Ireland Members of the Privy Council of Ireland People from Ennis Politicians from County Clare Chief Justices of the Irish Common Pleas Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for Queen's County constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Antrim constituencies Serjeants-at-law (Ireland)