William Blackstone
William Blackstone
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Full Name and Common Aliases
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Sir William Blackstone (1723-1780) is the full name of this influential English jurist and scholar. He is often referred to simply as William Blackstone.
Birth and Death Dates
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Blackstone was born on April 10, 1723, in London, England. He passed away on August 14, 1780, at the age of 57.
Nationality and Profession(s)
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Nationality: English
Profession: Jurist, Scholar, Judge
William Blackstone was a renowned jurist, scholar, and judge who made significant contributions to the field of law. He is best known for his comprehensive commentary on English law, which remains a foundational text in the study of jurisprudence.
Early Life and Background
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Blackstone was born into a family of modest means, but he demonstrated exceptional academic ability from an early age. He attended Charterhouse School in London before proceeding to Oxford University, where he studied literature and philosophy. Blackstone's intellectual prowess earned him a place at the prestigious All Souls College, Oxford.
Major Accomplishments
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Blackstone's most notable achievement is his magnum opus, Commentaries on the Laws of England. This four-volume work provides a comprehensive overview of English law, covering topics such as property, contracts, torts, and criminal law. The Commentaries were first published in 1765-1769 and have since become a standard reference text for lawyers, judges, and scholars.
In addition to his writing, Blackstone served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1754 to 1761 and was appointed as a Recorder of the City of Lincoln. He also held various judicial positions, including Baron of the Exchequer, before becoming a Justice of the Common Pleas in 1772.
Notable Works or Actions
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Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England is his most notable work, but he also wrote several other influential books and articles. Some of his notable works include:
An Analysis of the Laws of England (1750)
A Treatise on the Law of Marriage and Divorce (1765)
Impact and Legacy
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Blackstone's Commentaries has had a profound impact on the development of English law. The book's influence extends beyond England, with translations appearing in several languages, including French, German, and Italian.
Blackstone's work on property rights, contracts, and torts laid the foundation for modern contract law and contributed significantly to the concept of individual rights under the law. His Commentaries also introduced the idea of a "rule of law," which holds that all individuals are subject to the same laws and must be treated equally before the law.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
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William Blackstone is widely quoted and remembered for his profound influence on the development of English law. His Commentaries remain a foundational text in the study of jurisprudence, and his ideas continue to shape the concept of individual rights under the law.
Quotes by William Blackstone
William Blackstone's insights on:
All presumptive evidence of felony should be admitted cautiously; for the law holds it better that ten guilty persons escape, than that one innocent party suffer.
No outward doors of a man’s house can in general be broken open to execute any civil process; though in criminal cases the public safety supersedes the private.
The royal navy of England hath ever been its greatest defence and ornament; it is its ancient and natural strength, – the floating bulwark of our island.
No enactment of man can be considered law unless it conforms to the law of God.
Those rights, then, which God and nature have established, and are therefore called natural rights, such as life and liberty, need not the aid of human laws to be more effectually invested in every man than they are; neither do they receive any additional strength when declared by the municipal laws to be inviolate. On the contrary, no human legislature has power to abridge or destroy them, unless the owner shall himself commit some act that amounts to a forfeiture.
Punishments of unreasonable severity, especially where indiscriminately afflicted, have less effect in preventing crimes, and amending the manners of a people, than such as are more merciful in general, yet properly intermixed with due distinctions of severity.
![[Self-defense is] justly called the primary law of nature, so it is not, neither can it be in fact, taken away by the laws of society.](/_vercel/image?url=https:%2F%2Flakl0ama8n6qbptj.public.blob.vercel-storage.com%2Fquotes%2Fquote-1139089.png&w=1536&q=100)
[Self-defense is] justly called the primary law of nature, so it is not, neither can it be in fact, taken away by the laws of society.
THIS law of nature, being co-eval with mankind and dictated by God himself, is of course superior in obligation to any other. It is binding over all the globe, in all countries, and at all times: no human laws are of any validity, if contrary to this; and such of them as are valid derive all their force, and all their authority, mediately or immediately, from this original.
By marriage the husband and wife are one person in law, that is, the very being or legal existence of the woman is suspended during marriage.