Jurist and historian of English law, born in London, UK. He studied at Trinity College, Cambridge (18736) and Lincoln's Inn, and was called to the bar in 1876. After practising law he became reader in English law (1884) and professor (1888) at Cambridge. His contribution was to apply historical and comparative methods to the study of English institutions, and with Frederick Pollock he wrote the classic The History of English Law before the Time of Edward I (1895). In 1887 he co-founded the Selden Society for the study of English law.
Frederic William Maitland (May 28, 1850 - December 19, 1906) was an English jurist and historian.
Biography
He was the son of John Gorham Maitland, and was educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge, being bracketed at the head of the moral sciences tripos of 1872, and winning a Whewell scholarship for international law.
He was called to the bar (Lincoln's Inn) in 1876, and became a competent equity lawyer and conveyancer, but finally devoted himself to comparative jurisprudence and especially the history of English law.
He edited numerous volumes for the Selden Society, including Select Pleas for the Crown, 1200-1225, Select Pleas in Manorial Courts and The Court Baron; see also his article "English Law" in the Encyclopædia Britannica) Domesday Book and Beyond (1897) Township and Borough (1898) Canon Law in England (1898) English Law and the Renaissance (1901) the Life of Leslie Stephen (1906).
He also made important contributions to the Cambridge Modern History, the English Historical Review, the Law Quarterly Review, Harvard Law Review and other publications.
His written style was lively, and as a historian he used original sources;
See Paul Vinogradoff's article on Maitland in the English Historical Review (1907);
Reference
This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
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