Edward George Robey (1900 – 1983) born Edward George Wade,Wilson, p. 239. was an English barrister. He was best known for his role as the Chief Prosecutor in the

John George Haigh John George Haigh (; 24 July 1909 – 10 August 1949), commonly known as the Acid Bath Murderer, was an English serial killer convicted for the murder of six people, although he claimed to have killed nine. Haigh battered to death or shot his ...

case and for becoming a member of the British legal team at the Nuremberg war trials. He was appointed a Metropolitan Magistrate in 1954. He was the first child and only son of the music hall comedian

George Robey Sir George Edward Wade, CBE (20 September 1869 – 29 November 1954), Harding, James"Robey, George" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, accessed 10 May 2014. known professionally as George Robey, was an ...

Life and career

Robey was born in

St John's Wood St John's Wood is a district in the City of Westminster, London, lying 2.5 miles (4 km) northwest of Charing Cross. Traditionally the northern part of the ancient parish and Metropolitan Borough of Marylebone, it extends east to west from ...

, London and was the first of two children of the music hall comedian

and his wife, the musical theatre actress Ethel Haydon. From an early age, Edward showed some talent for the stage and appeared in a few minor roles as a child but gave up acting in his teenage years. He was educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

, London and then

Jesus College, Cambridge Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's full name is The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge. Its common name comes fr ...

where he studied law.Wilson, p. 66. He furthered his studies under the barrister

Edward Marshall Hall Sir Edward Marshall Hall, (16 September 1858 – 24 February 1927) was an English barrister who had a formidable reputation as an orator. He successfully defended many people accused of notorious murders and became known as "The Great Defende ...

, who sponsored him when he came to the bar in 1925.Cotes, p. 62. Robey changed his surname from Wade at the start of his professional career in honour of his father and continued to use it for the rest of his life. Robey's first major law assignment was as the Chief Prosecutor in the trial of

, a serial killer who was subsequently hanged in 1949. Soon after, Robey became a member of the British legal team at the Nuremberg war trials and was later appointed a Metropolitan Magistrate in 1954.

References

Bibliography

* * 1900 births People educated at Westminster School, London Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge Members of Gray's Inn English barristers Stipendiary magistrates (England and Wales) 1983 deaths 20th-century British lawyers 20th-century English lawyers {{England-law-bio-stub