The Recollections of Sir James Bacon

The Recollections of Sir James Bacon, a leading light in the evolution of English law during the 19th century, casts an unexpectedly amusing and high-spirited light on turbulent times. Celebrated in his maturity as a witty judge whose decisions were rarely challenged, he was born in humble circumstances, one of ten children. His Recollections describe a happy and industrious, albeit Dickensian, childhood that began with leaving school for work at age twelve and ended with him enshrined as one of highest officials in the land. Enterprising and gifted, Sir James’s story carries us through his early writings and journalism, through his legal career, to his arrival at the pinnacle of government. Sir James also chronicled the colorful panoply of British society in his times: social and political crises, friends imprisoned for gambling debts, travels to Europe in the era of reaction and revolution, the celebrated legal cases he witnessed, and the fascinating Britons he knew. This fresh account, published after 150 years in the family archive, is essential reading for anyone interested in the history of Britain, the evolution of its unparalleled legal tradition, and the extraordinary figures who made it possible.