William Snowdon Robson, Baron Robson, (10 September 1852 – 11 September 1918) was an

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lawyer, judge and

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politician who sat in the

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twice between 1885 and 1910.

Background and early life

Robson was born in

Newcastle-upon-Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is als ...

, the son of Robert Robson merchant of Newcastle-on-Tyne and his wife Emily Jane Snowden, daughter of William Snowden of Newcastle-on-Tyne.Debretts House of Commons and the Judicial Bench 1886
/ref> He was educated at Newcastle and at

Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

. He was called to the

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by the

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in 1880 and became a

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

in 1892.

Political career

At the 1885 general election Robson was elected

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 of ...

for Bow and Bromley and held the seat until 1886. At the 1895 general election he was elected MP for

South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. Historically, it was known in Roman times as Arbeia, and as Caer Urfa by Early Middle Ages. According to the 20 ...

and held the seat until 1910.

Government

He was the Solicitor General from 1905 to 1908. Upon his appointment, he was

knighted 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 Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

the same year. In 1908, he was promoted to be the

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from 1908 to 1910. On 19 July 1910, he was sworn of the

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Peerage

On 12 October 1910, Robson was made a

Lord of Appeal in Ordinary Lords of Appeal in Ordinary, commonly known as Law Lords, were judges appointed under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 to the British House of Lords, as a committee of the House, effectively to exercise the judicial functions of the House of ...

and a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

with the title Baron Robson, of Jesmond in the County of

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

. He was appointed to the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

as a Knight Grand Cross (GCMG) in the 1911 New Year Honours for "services in connection with the North Atlantic Coast Fisheries Arbitration". He resigned as Lord of Appeal two years later.

Family

Robson married Catharine Burge, daughter of Charles Burge, of Portland Place, London on 26 May 1887. They had a family. Robson died, aged 66, at Telham Court, Battle,

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

Arms

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Robson, William 1852 births 1918 deaths Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1895–1900 UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs 1906–1910 UK MPs 1910 UK MPs who were granted peerages English King's Counsel 20th-century King's Counsel Solicitors General for England and Wales Attorneys General for England and Wales Knights Bachelor Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Law lords Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Life peers created by George V