John Henry Newbolt

Sir John Henry Newbolt (1769 - 22 January 1823) was an English judge who served as Member of Parliament for Bramber and as a Chief Justice in the Supreme Court of the Madras Presidency. He was also the founder of the Madras Literary Society.

Biography

Born at Winchester, John was the first son of Reverend John Monk Newbolt and his wife Susanna. He studied at Winchester and at Christ Church, Oxford, graduating in 1791. He studied law at All Souls College, Oxford and was called to the Inn in 1795. He worked for a while at the Chancery as a Secretary and then as a Commissioner of Bankruptcy (1796-1811). He married Elizabeth Juliana in 1794 and they had three sons and a daughter. Family life pushed him to seek better pay and position. He tried to obtain a position in Canada and then India. In 1809, his wife died and he lost interest but he obtained a posting in India in 1810 as a puisne judge. The position was obtained through the influence of Lord Canning, a fellow alumnus of Christ Church. He married Henrietta Blenkinsop in 1810 at Madras and they had one son and two daughters. He was knighted on 17 April 1810. Through his work in India he saved £10,000 and in 1815 he succeeded Thomas Andrew Lumisden Strange. In 1817 he founded the Madras Literary Society.^[1] He resigned from his position on 31 Auguts 1820 and hoped to retire to a cottage on the Isle of Wight. He died suddenly on 22 January 1823.^[2]

A monument was erected in his memory at South Stoneham near Southampton.^[3]

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