MURRAY, William, Earl of Mansfield, a celebrated English lawyer, was the fourth son of David, Earl of Stormont, and was born at Perth on 2d March 1705. He received his education in England, first at Westminster School, and subsequently at Christ Church College, Oxford, where he took the degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1727, and that of Master in 1730. Having completed his academical studies, he shortly after became a member of Lincoln's Inn. Being called to the bar, Murray early acquired reputation as a speaker, and obtained a good practice in his profession. As early as 1736 we find him professionally employed against the bill of pains and penalties, which afterwards passed into a law, against the city of Edinburgh on account of the riotous murder of Captain Porteous. In 1738 he married Elizabeth, daughter of the Earl of Winchester; and in 1742 he was appointed solicitor-general, and chosen representative of Boroughbridge, for which place he was afterwards returned in 1747, and again in 1754. In 1748 he acted as one of the managers for the impeachment of Lord Lovat by the Commons, and in his observations on the evidence, in reply to the prisoner, displayed singular candour and ability.
In 1754 Mr Murray was appointed attorney-general in the room of Sir Dudley Ryder; and in 1756 he succeeded the same person as chief justice of the King's Bench. He took his seat on the bench on the 11th of November, and was immediately afterwards raised to the peerage by the title of Baron Mansfield. Owing to various reforms which he introduced, the business of the court increased to an extent never before known, and continued to be despatched with exemplary regularity. It is stated by Sir James Burrow, in the preface to his Reports, that at the sitting for London and Middlesex there were as many as eight hundred causes set down in a year, "and all disposed of."
During the very unsettled state of the ministry in 1757 Lord Mansfield accepted the office of chancellor of the exchequer, and was the means of effecting a coalition of parties, out of which was formed a strong and successful administration. In the same year he was offered the great seal, on the retirement of Lord Hardwicke, but declined it. His political sympathies were not on the popular side, and at the commencement of the reign of George III. he was marked out as an object of party rancour, and continued for many years exposed to violent and unsparing invective, the most vigorous specimens of which have come down to us in the Letters of Junius. The affair of Mr Wilkes' outlawry served to rekindle the animosity with which he had been regarded by the popular party, and exposed him to renewed attacks. On the day when judgment was to be given on this case, not only the court, but the whole of Westminster Hall and Palace Yard, were crowded with anxious spectators. Lord Mansfield took notice of the popular excitement which had been directed against the judges of the court, particularly himself; and declared his contempt for all the threats which had been employed to deter the court from doing their duty. "I honour the King," said he, "and respect the people; but many things acquired by the favour of either are, in my account, objects not worth ambition. I wish popularity; but it is that popularity which follows, not that which is run after."
In the beginning of 1770 Lord Mansfield was once more offered the great seal, which he again declined; and a similar offer, renewed the following year, found him equally inflexible. About the same time he was attacked, in both Houses of Parliament, on account of his direction to the jury in the case of Woodfall the printer, who had been prosecuted for a libel. He maintained the dangerous principle that the question of law belonged exclusively to the court, and that the only point competent for the jury to try was merely the fact of publication, leaving it to the judges afterwards to decide whether the matter published did or did not amount to a libel. In 1776 his lordship was raised to the dignity of earl.
During the excitement and lawlessness of June 1780 Lord Mansfield was marked out as an object of popular vengeance, and his house in Bloomsbury Square, with every thing it contained, including his library and manuscripts, were wholly consumed. His lordship submitted to his loss with calmness and dignity, and declined a proposed indemnification by the House of Commons.
From this time it seemed as if popular hatred had spent its force; and during the remainder of his life all parties united in a common feeling of respect and reverence for his character and virtues. Notwithstanding his advanced age, he continued until 1787 to discharge his judicial functions with his wonted regularity; but from that time his infirmities increased so rapidly, that in June 1788 he came to the resolution of resigning his office, and withdrawing into the shade of retirement. His health continued to decline, but his mental faculties remained unimpaired almost to the last. He died on the 20th of March 1793, in the eighty-ninth year of his age, leaving his immense fortune to his nephew Lord Stormont, who also, in virtue of a new patent granted in 1792, succeeded to his title.
As a politician, Mansfield had too little courage to be the leader, and too much ability to be the dupe, of any party. He was not a forward nor a frequent speaker, but reserved himself for occasions worthy of himself, and never spoke except on subjects which he had carefully considered. In debate he was eloquent as well as judicious; displaying wisdom and good sense, set forth in the clearest method. He affected no sallies of imagination nor bursts of passion, and he never condescended to personal abuse or virulent altercation. His character as a judge has always stood high, although his legislation was more successful in commercial law than in that of real property; and the depth of his legal learning has been frequently questioned. He was tolerant in matters of religion; and in private life he was easy, friendly, and engaging; extremely sensible of worth in other men, and ready upon all occasions to countenance and patronize it. (See Life of Lord Mansfield, by Henry Roscoe, in Lardner's Cabinet Cyclopædia.)