Memoirs of the Life of Sir Samuel Romilly: Volume 1: Written by Himself; with a Selection from his Correspondence

by Samuel Romilly

Overview

A friend of Wilberforce and Bentham, Sir Samuel Romilly (1757–1818) combined considerable legal expertise with commitment to progressive political causes such as the abolition of the slave trade. During his time in Parliament - he was Solicitor General in Lord Grenville's 'Ministry of All the Talents' - he sought to lessen the archaic severity of English criminal law regarding corporal and capital punishment. Though he met with resistance, his efforts raised awareness and influenced later reforms. Compiled by his sons and published in 1840, this three-volume collection of autobiographical writings and varied correspondence illuminates the development of his outlook and the principles which guided him. Volume 1 includes Romilly's two-part narrative of his life from 1757 to 1789, letters about English affairs sent to his brother-in-law in Lausanne (1780–3), letters from eminent friends such as the French revolutionary Mirabeau (1783–7), and selected correspondence with the Genevan writer Étienne Dumont and others (1788–91).

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781108064217
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	09/05/2013
Series:	Cambridge Library Collection - British & Irish History, 17th & 18th Centuries
Pages:	492
Product dimensions:	5.51(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.10(d)

Table of Contents

1. Narrative of the early life of Sir Samuel Romilly; 2. Letters to the Rev. John Roget; 3. Letters from the count de Mirabeau and others; 4. Correspondence with M. Dumont and others.