James Hewitt, 1st Viscount Lifford

James Hewitt, 1st Viscount Lifford (28 April 1712 – 28 April 1789), was an Anglo-Irish politician, lawyer and judge. He served as Lord Chancellor of Ireland from 1767 to 1789.

For the contemporary of Diana, Princess of Wales, see Major James Hewitt.

For the early American musician and music publisher, see James Hewitt (musician).

The Right Honourable The Viscount Lifford PC (Ire)
Lord Lifford.
Lord Chancellor of Ireland
In office 24 November 1767 – 28 April 1789
Monarch	George III
Preceded by	The Lord Bowes
Succeeded by	John FitzGibbon
Member of Parliament for Coventry
In office 1761–1766 Serving with Hon. Andrew Archer
Preceded by	William Grove Samuel Greatheed
Succeeded by	Hon. Henry Seymour-Conway Hon. Andrew Archer
Personal details
Born	1712
Died	1789 (aged 77)
Spouse(s)	Mary Rhys Williams (m.1749, d.1765) Ambrosia Bayley (m.1766, d.1807)
Profession	Lawyer, Politician

Background

Hewitt was the son of a Coventry draper, William Hewitt (1683–1747), who was born in Rockcliffe, Cumberland, the son of James Hewitt and Mary Urwin. The judge's mother was Hannah Lewis. His brother, William Hewitt (1719–1781), was governor of the West Indies, a position he obtained through his brother's influence with the Government. In a class-conscious age, his background was something of a handicap, and his "small-town" manners were the subject of unkind comment throughout his life.[1]

Career

Hewitt first worked as an attorney's clerk. By 1742, he had become a barrister. Rising quickly through the legal profession, his career climaxed when he was made Lord Chancellor of Ireland in 1767, a post he held until his death in 1789.[2] He was raised to the Peerage of Ireland as Baron Lifford, of Lifford in the County of Donegal, in 1768, and was further honoured when he was made Viscount Lifford in 1781, also in the Irish peerage.

He was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Coventry for 1761 to 1766. He was not highly regarded as a Parliamentarian: his fellow MPs complained that his speeches were almost inaudible.

Character and Reputation

Lord Lifford made his reputation as Lord Chancellor of Ireland: he had until then had the name of being a "dull, heavy lawyer", an uninspiring though "safe" MP, and a man of mediocre intelligence who was painfully conscious of his rather humble origins. Even the Government which chose him, while praising him as a good lawyer and an honest man, was rather doubtful that he had the necessary strength of character to be an effective Lord Chancellor, while the English Bench reacted to his appointment with general ridicule.[3]

They were quickly proved wrong: within two years of his arrival in Ireland, Lord Lifford was earning the highest praises as a judge.[4] As his colleague in the Irish Government John Hely-Hutchinson (not a man normally given to speaking well of others) wrote to a friend-

"He does his business very ably and expeditiously and to the general satisfaction of suitors and practicers in this country, where he is much respected and a very popular character and is, in his public and private deportment, a most worthy, honest and amiable man".[5]

His efficiency in doing business was such that it was said that virtually all equity litigation in his time was diverted to Chancery (this may have been partly because the Court of Exchequer, which had a competing equity jurisdiction, was described earlier in the century as being in a state of "confusion and disorder beyond remedy"). [6]

Barristers who practiced in his court, like John Philpot Curran, fondly recalled "the great Lord Lifford" after his death, and cited him as a model for other judges to follow.

Family

Lord Lifford married firstly Mary Rhys Williams, daughter of the Rev. Rhys Williams in 1749, by whom he had four sons, including James, his heir, and Joseph Hewitt (1754-1794), justice of the Court of King's Bench (Ireland). She died in 1765. His second wife was Ambrosia Bayley, daughter of the Rev. Charles Bayley, whom he married in 1766: her youth and beauty aroused much admiration in Ireland. By Ambrosia he had one further son and two daughters.[7] He was succeeded by his eldest son, James Hewitt, 2nd Viscount Lifford (1750–1830). He lived at Belvedere House, Drumcondra. Ambrosia died in 1807.

Arms

Coat of arms of James Hewitt, 1st Viscount Lifford

Crest On a stump of a tree, with one branch growing thereon, an owl Proper. Escutcheon Gules a chevron engrailed between three owls Argent. Supporters Dexter: A vulture Proper wings inverted gorged with a plain collar Sable thereon three bezants; Sinister: A griffin Proper wings elevated gorged as the dexter. Motto Be Just And Fear Not [8]

References

1. Ball, F. Elrington The Judges in Ireland 1221-1921 London John Murray 1926 Vol. 2 p.257
2. Ball p.157
3. Ball p.157
4. Ball p.158
5. Ball p.158
6. Ball p.158
7. Ball p.158
8. Debrett's Peerage & Baronetage. 2000.

• "HEWITT, James (1712-89), of Alveston, Warws". History of Parliament Online. Retrieved 3 April 2013.