Barnes Peacock
Sir Barnes Peacock (1810–December 3, 1890) was an English judge. He was the first Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court in India.
He was the son of Lewis Peacock, a solicitor. After practising as a special pleader, he was called to the bar in 1836, and in 1844 obtained great reputation by pointing out the flaw which invalidated the conviction of Daniel O'Connell and his fellow defendants. In 1852 be went to India as legal member of the Governor General's council. He here displayed great activity as a law reformer, but sometimes manifested too little consideration for native susceptibilities. The Legislative Council was established soon after his arrival, and although no orator, he was so frequent a speaker that legislation enjoining councillors to deliver their speeches sitting was said to have been devised with the sole object of restraining him. As a member of Lord Dalhousie's council he supported the annexation of Oudh, and he stood by Lord Canning all through the Mutiny. In 1859 he became the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. He was appointed as the first Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court and assumed his charge on July 1, 1862. He returned to England in 1870 and in 1872 was placed upon the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, the court of last resort for the British Empire, where his Indian experience rendered him invaluable.
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
