Sir Claudius Stephen Hunter, 1st Baronet (24 February 1775 – 20 April 1851), lawyer and

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Biography

Hunter, who was born at Beech Hill, near

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, 24 February 1775, was the youngest son of Henry Hunter (1739–1789) of Beech Hill,

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

, a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

, by Mary, third daughter of William Sloane, the great-nephew of Sir Hans Sloane, bart. His sister Mary (d. 1847) was the second wife of William Manning, M.P. for Lymington, and was thus mother of Cardinal Manning. He was educated at

Newcome's school Newcome's School was a fashionable boys' school in Hackney, then to the east of London, founded in the early 18th century. A number of prominent Whig families sent their sons there. The school closed in 1815, and the buildings were gutted in 18 ...

in Hackney, and afterwards by a Protestant clergyman in

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. He entered as a student of the

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, but was subsequently articled for five years to Beardsworth, Burley, & Moore, solicitors, of

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. He commenced business in 1797 as a solicitor in Lincoln's Inn, in partnership with George Richards. A wealthy marriage in the same year proved of assistance, and his practice grew very large. He was solicitor to the commercial commissioners under the income duty acts, the

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, the

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, the Society for the Promotion of Religion and Virtue and Suppression of Vice, the

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, and the Royal Exchange Assurance Company. In September 1804 he was chosen

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of the ward of Bassishaw, and then relinquished the general management of his business to his partner. Two years afterwards he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the Royal East London Militia (becoming

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on 10 January 1810), and devoted much time to his regiment, which was occasionally called upon to serve at a distance from the metropolis. In June 1808 he was elected

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. He retired from business as a solicitor on 11 January 1811, and was

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. On 9 November 1811 he became lord mayor of the

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, when he revived all the ancient ceremonies worthy of renewal, and his pageant was exceptionally magnificent. He was created a

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on 11 December 1812 and made an honorary D.C.L. of the

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23 June 1819. In 1835 he removed from the ward of Bassishaw to that of Bridge Without, and at the time of his death was the 'father of the city.' He died at

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, Reading, Berkshire, 20 April 1851. His first wife, whom he married 15 July 1797, Penelope Maria, only daughter of James Free, having died in 1840, he married again, on 25 October 1841, Janet, second daughter of James Fenton of Hampstead; she died at Cambridge Terrace, Hyde Park, 21 January 1859. By his first wife he had two sons and a daughter. His elder son John (1798–1842) left a son, Claudius Stephen Paul, who succeeded his grandfather in the

baronetcy A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

References

* Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, Sir Claudius, 1st Baronet 1775 births 1851 deaths People from West Berkshire District Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom English solicitors Sheriffs of the City of London 19th-century lord mayors of London 19th-century English politicians Members of Lincoln's Inn People educated at Newcome's School People from Stratfield Saye