Eldon Law Scholarship

The Eldon Law Scholarship is a scholarship awarded to students from the University of Oxford who wish to study for the English Bar. Applicants must either have obtained a first class honours degree in the Final Honours School, or obtained a distinction on the BCL or MJur.^[1] It is a two-year scholarship presently funded at £9,000 a year.^[2]

The Earl of Eldon

History

The scholarship dates from 12 May 1830, and was funded in response to an application from subscribers.^[3][4] Although the scholarship is named after Lord Eldon LC, it is not funded from his will; Lord Eldon did not die until eight years after the scholarship was founded.^[4] The first trustees included the Duke of Richmond, Earl of Mansfield, Earl of Romney and Lord Arden.^[3]

Until 1963 it was a requirement that an applicant be a member of the Church of England. In 1963 that was downgraded to a preference, and in 1983 the requirement was dropped entirely.^[3]

Past winners

Past winners include:^[5]

• Herman Merivale (1831), civil servant and historian^[6]
• Roundell Palmer, 1st Earl of Selborne (1834), Lord Chancellor^[7]
• Thomas Henry Haddan (1840), founder of The Guardian
• Edward Karslake (1843), barrister and politician^[7]
• Ralph Lingen, 1st Baron Lingen (1846), civil servant^[8]
• John Conington (1849), classical scholar (who gave up the scholarship)^[9]
• Sir George Osborne Morgan (1851), barrister and politician^[10]
• Sir Robert Herbert (1854), first Premier of Queensland, Australia^[11]
• Horace Davey, Baron Davey (1859), Law Lord
• Sir Courtenay Ilbert (1867), lawyer and civil servant^[12]
• Alfred Barratt (1870), philosopher
• Arthur Godley, 1st Baron Kilbracken (1874), civil servant^[13]
• Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner (1878), politician and colonial administrator
• Francis William Pember (1887), lawyer and academic, vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford^[14]
• Sir Frederick Liddell, KC (1892), civil servant^[15]
• Alfred Hazel MP^[16]
• Murray Coutts-Trotter, Chief Justice of Madras High Court
• Sir Arthur Steel-Maitland (1899), politician
• Raymond Asquith (1902), barrister^[17]
• Sir John Behan (1906), lawyer and educationist^[18]
• Patrick Shaw-Stewart, banker and war poet^[19]
• Cyril Asquith, Baron Asquith of Bishopstone (1913), Law Lord
• Professor Sir Carleton Allen, QC (1913), law professor and Warden of Rhodes House
• Sir Geoffrey Faber (1920), academic and publisher
• Gordon Alchin (1920), poet, judge and politician^[5]
• Sir Eric Beckett, QC (1921), legal adviser to the Foreign Office
• Tom Denning, Baron Denning (1921), Law Lord and Master of the Rolls^[20]
• Cyril Radcliffe, 1st Viscount Radcliffe (1923), Law Lord
• Sir John Foster, QC (1924), politician, army officer and legal scholar
• John Sparrow (1929), academic and barrister, Warden of All Souls
• Richard Wilberforce, Baron Wilberforce (1930), Law Lord^[5]
• J.H.C. Morris, QC (1933), academic^[21]
• Sir James Fawcett, QC (1935), President of the European Commission for Human Rights^[22]
• Sir Thomas Smith, QC (1937), barrister and academic
• Robert Blake, Baron Blake (1938), historian
• Sir Wilfrid Bourne, QC (1948), Permanent Secretary to the Lord Chancellor's Office
• W.A.N. Wells (1949), Australian barrister and judge
• Sir Richard Blackburn (1949), Australian judge
• Sir Anthony Barrowclough, QC (1949), government lawyer
• Sir Christopher Slade (1950), Lord Justice of Appeal^[5]
• Patrick Neill, Baron Neill of Bladen, QC (1951), barrister, public servant and Warden of All Souls
• Dick Taverne, Baron Taverne, KC (1952), barrister and politician
• Edward Nugee, QC (1953), barrister^[23]
• Tom Bingham, Baron Bingham of Cornhill (1957), Senior Law Lord, Lord Chief Justice and Master of the Rolls^[24]
• Sir Christopher Rose (1959), Lord Justice of Appeal ^[5]
• Richard Mawrey, KC (1964), barrister
• Sir David Keene (1965), Lord Justice of Appeal ^[5]
• Nicholas Wilson, Lord Wilson of Culworth (1967), Supreme Court judge^[5]
• Sir James Munby (1970), President of the Family Division^[5]
• Sir Michael Hart (1970), High Court judge
• Dame Sonia Proudman (1973), High Court judge^[5]
• Sir Stephen Tomlinson (1974), Lord Justice of Appeal^[5]
• Sir Peter Gross (1978), Lord Justice of Appeal
• Sir Paul Walker (1980), High Court judge
• Nicholas Hamblen, Lord Hamblen of Kersey (1982), Justice of the UK Supreme Court^[25]
• Sir Christopher Nugee (1984), High Court judge.^[5]
• Philip Sales, Lord Sales (1986) Justice of the UK Supreme Court^[5]
• Sir Christopher Butcher (1987), High Court judge^[5]
• Sir David Foxton (1989), High Court judge^[5]
• Dame Sara Cockerill (1990), High Court judge and Judge in Charge of the Commercial Court^[5][26]
• Sir Martin Chamberlain (1997), High Court judge^[5]