Seymour Frederick Harris
English barrister, legal scholar and Anglican clergyman (1851–1920)
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Seymour Frederick Harris (18 April 1851 - 1920) was an English barrister, legal scholar and Anglican clergyman.[1] He was the original author of Principles of the Criminal Law (1877), later widely known as Harris's Criminal Law, a leading[2] textbook on English criminal law.
Seymour Frederick Harris | |
|---|---|
| Born | 18 April 1851 |
| Died | 1920 (aged 68–69) |
| Education | Worcester College, Oxford |
| Occupations | Barrister, Anglican clergyman |
| Notable work | Harris's Criminal Law |
Early life and education
Harris was born on 18 April 1851, the second son of Rev. James Harris, a Wesleyan minister of Ormskirk, Lancashire.[3] He passed the University of London Matriculation Examination in 1869, and went up to Worcester College, Oxford graduating B.A. and B.C.L. (later proceeding to M.A. by seniority).[4][5]
He was admitted to the Inner Temple in 1872 and called to the bar in the trinity term of 1875.[3]
Career
Law
Harris joined the Northern Circuit and practiced before the sessions at Liverpool, Kirkdale and Preston.[1][5] He wrote two legal texts: The Elements of Roman Law Summarized (1875);[6] and the first three editions of Principles of the Criminal Law (1877, 1881, 1884).[7][8][9]
Clergy
Harris's legal practice was brief. Although he remained on the Bar roll into the early twentieth century,[10] he entered Anglican holy orders, becoming vicar of St Michael & All Hallows (also styled St Michael & All Angels), Blackburn from 1884 until his death.[1] He wrote two further books: Earnest Young Heroes (1896);[11] and A Century of Missionary Martyrs (1897).[12]
Personal life and death
Harris married Mary Elinor Barber, daughter of William Barber QC (a Chancery barrister and Bencher of Lincoln's Inn). They had two children.[13]
He died in 1920.