William Martin Geldart

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(7 June 1870 – 12 February 1922) was a British jurist. A classical scholar of Balliol College, Oxford, he went on to become

Vinerian Professor of English Law The Vinerian Professorship of English Law, formerly Vinerian Professorship of Common Law, was established by Charles Viner who by his will, dated 29 December 1755, left about £12,000 to the Chancellor, Masters and Scholars of the University of O ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and a leading jurist of his day.

Biography

Son of the Rev. Edmund Martin Geldart, he was educated at

Whitgift School ("He who perseveres, conquers") , established = , closed = , type = Independent school , religious_affiliation = Church of England , president = , head_label = Head Master , head = Christopher Ramsey , c ...

Croydon Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Greater London. It is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensi ...

; St Paul's School, and Balliol College, Oxford, where he was a scholar and in 1890 won the

Gaisford Prize The Gaisford Prize is a prize in the University of Oxford, founded in 1855 in memory of Thomas Gaisford, Dr Thomas Gaisford (1779–1855). For most of its history, the prize was awarded for Ancient Greek, Classical Greek Verse and Prose. The priz ...

for Greek Verse.'GELDART, William Martin', in ''Who Was Who'', A & C Black, 1920–2007; online edition by

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, December 2007
GELDART, William Martin
' (subscription required), accessed 18 August 2008 He graduated MA in 1892. Elected a Fellow of St John's College, Oxford, in 1892, he was called to the bar from Lincoln's Inn in 1896, continuing at St John's until 1899. He was Official Fellow and Lecturer in Law at

Trinity College, Oxford (That which you wish to be secret, tell to nobody) , named_for = The Holy Trinity , established = , sister_college = Churchill College, Cambridge , president = Dame Hilary Boulding , location = Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BH , coordinates ...

, from 1901 to 1909, All Souls Reader in English Law in the

University A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

, from 1906 to 1909, and Vinerian Professor of English Law and a fellow of All Souls College from 1909 to 1922. He was a member of the

Hebdomadal Council The Hebdomadal Council was the chief executive body for the University of Oxford from its establishment by the Oxford University Act 1854 until its replacement, in the Michaelmas term of 2000, by the new University Council. Chaired by the Vice- ...

from 1905 and chairman of the university's Delegacy for Women Students from 1911 until it was dissolved in 1921.History of the Nettleship Library (III): Jowett Walk
at st-annes.ox.ac.uk, accessed 27 January 2021 He married his wife Emily in 1905. The law library at St Anne's College, Oxford is named after Geldart, who left his law books and reports to the women students of the university. The law society of the college, 'The Geldart Society', is also named in his honour.What is St Anne's Geldart Law Society?
at stanneslawsoc.com, accessed 18 August 2008

Works

Geldart was the author of the influential ''Elements of English Law'' (1911), still in print under the title ''Introduction to English Law'' (Oxford University Press, 11th edition, ed. David Yardley). According to one review "Geldart has over the years established itself as the standard account of English law..." He also coedited ''Aristophanes Comoediae'', a 1906–1907 edition of the comedies of Aristophanes, with

Frederick William Hall Frederick William Hall, (21 February 1885 – 24 April 1915) was an Irish-Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwe ...

.David Konstan, ''Aristophanes: Oxford Bibliographies Online Research Guide'' (2010), p. 8

Honours

He was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

in 1917.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Geldart, William Martin 1835 births 1922 deaths Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Commanders of the Order of the British Empire English classical scholars Fellows of St John's College, Oxford Fellows of Trinity College, Oxford Fellows of All Souls College, Oxford Vinerian Professors of English Law People educated at St Paul's School, London People educated at Whitgift School English legal scholars