Jump to content

John Westlake (law scholar)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

John Westlake
Profile portrait of John Westlake by Marianne Stokes, 1902
Born4 February 1828
Lostwithiel, Cornwall, UK
Died14 April 1913 (1913-04-15) (aged 85)
London
NationalityBritish
EducationTrinity College, Cambridge
Occupation(s)Academic lawyer and writer
EmployerUniversity of Cambridge
Known forWork in public international law
TitleWhewell Professor of International Law
PredecessorSir Henry Maine
SuccessorLassa Francis Lawrence Oppenheim
SpouseAlice Hare

John Westlake (4 February 1828 – 14 April 1913)[1] was an English law scholar and social reformer.[2][3] He founded the first journal devoted to international law, Revue de Droit International et de Legislation Comparle.[3] Westlake was renowned for his influence in the realm of legal practice, particularly in addressing the complexities of disputes between individuals residing in distinct legal jurisdictions, a field commonly referred to as private international law or conflict of laws.[4]

Biography

[edit]

He was born at Lostwithiel, Cornwall, the son of a Cornish wool-stapler. He was educated at Lostwithiel and, from 1846, at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated BA (6th Wrangler and 6th Classic) in 1850.[5] He was a fellow of Trinity from 1851 to 1860, called to the bar at Lincoln's Inn in 1854, and became a bencher of the Inn in 1874. In 1885 he was elected to Parliament as Liberal member for the Romford Division of Essex; from 1888 to 1908 he held the Whewell Chair as professor of international law at Cambridge; in 1900-06 he was a member for Great Britain of the International Court of Arbitration at The Hague.

In 1864 he married Alice Hare (1842–1923), artist and key supporter of the women's suffrage movement.

He was connected with the Christian Socialist Movement, being a member of the Committee of Teaching and Publication. He is considered to be one of the founders of the Working Men's College in 1854, where he taught mathematics for many years.[6] He was an honorary president of the Institute of International Law.[7]

Serving as a Liberal Member of Parliament from 1885 to 1886, he later held the esteemed position of Whewell Professor of International Law at the University of Cambridge from 1888 to 1908. Westlake's advocacy extended to various social reforms, notably including the advancement of women's suffrage and active involvement in efforts to restore the constitution of Finland from 1899 to 1900.[8]

Westlake's grave

Works

[edit]

His works, of the highest importance in their field, include:

  • A Treatise on Private International Law (1st ed.). London: W. Maxwell. 1858. Retrieved 3 July 2018 – via Internet Archive.; Second edition, rewritten, 1880; fifth edition, 1912.
  • Chapters on the Principles of International Law. Cambridge: At the University Press. 1894. Retrieved 3 July 2018 – via Internet Archive.
  • International Law Part I - Peace (1st ed.). Cambridge: At the University Press. 1904. Retrieved 3 July 2018 – via Internet Archive.;[9] International Law Part II- War (1st ed.). Cambridge: At the University Press. 1907. Retrieved 3 July 2018 – via Internet Archive.;[10] International Law Part I - Peace (2nd ed.). Cambridge: At the University Press. 1910. Retrieved 3 July 2018 – via Internet Archive.; International Law Part II- War (2nd ed.). Cambridge: At the University Press. 1913. Retrieved 3 July 2018 – via Internet Archive..
  • Westlake, John (1911). "International Law (Private)" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 14 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 701–705.
  • His Collected Papers on Public International Law were edited by L. Oppenheim in 1914.[11]
  • The Transvaal war: a lecture delivered in the University of Cambridge on 9th November, 1899 (2nd ed.), London: C. J. Clay and sons, 1899, Wikidata Q105802083

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "R" (part 2)
  2. ^ Gilman, Daniel Coit; Peck, Harry Thurston; Colby, Frank Moore, eds. (1903). "WESTLAKE John (1828- )". The New International Encyclopaedia. Vol. XX. New York: Dodd, Mead and Company. p. 440. hdl:2027/uc1.c2557560. Retrieved 5 February 2019 – via HathiTrust Digital Library.
  3. ^ a b "Professor John Westlake (1828-1913)". American Journal of International Law. 7 (3): 582–584. 1913. doi:10.1017/S0002930000165741. ISSN 0002-9300.
  4. ^ "John Westlake | Legal Expert, Constitutional Law & Human Rights | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 31 January 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  5. ^ "Westlake, John (WSTK845J)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
  6. ^ J. F. C. Harrison, A History of the Working Men's College (1854-1954), Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1954
  7. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1922). "Westlake, John" . Encyclopædia Britannica (12th ed.). London & New York: The Encyclopædia Britannica Company.
  8. ^ "John Westlake | Legal Expert, Constitutional Law & Human Rights | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 31 January 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  9. ^ "Review of International Law Part I, Peace, by Professor Westlake". The Oxford Magazine. 23. The Proprietors: 421. 21 June 1905.
  10. ^ "Review of International Law. Part II.—War by John Westlake". The Athenaeum (4179): 680–681. 30 November 1907.
  11. ^ Oppenheim, L., ed. (1914). The Collected Papers of John Westlake on Public International Law. Cambridge: At the University Press. Retrieved 3 July 2018 – via Internet Archive.

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Gilman, D. C.; Peck, H. T.; Colby, F. M., eds. (1905). New International Encyclopedia (1st ed.). New York: Dodd, Mead. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

[edit]
Parliament of the United Kingdom
New constituency Member of Parliament for Romford
1885 – 1886 		Succeeded by


Stub icon

This article related to international law is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Stub icon 1 Flag of EnglandPolitician icon

This article about a Liberal Member of the Parliament of the United Kingdom representing an English constituency is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_Westlake_(law_scholar)&oldid=1209573618"