Elliot Bovill

Sir Elliot Charles Bovill (23 April 1848[1] – 24 March 1893) was a British lawyer and judge. He served as Chief Justice of Cyprus and the Straits Settlements in the late 19th century.

Elliot Bovill, Chief Justice of Cyprus and the Straits Settlements

Early life

Bovill was born in Clapham, at that time in Surrey, the fourth son of William Bovill, often confused with William John Bovill QC of Lincoln's Inn, and his wife, Lavinia Ann I'Anson, daughter of architect Edward I'Anson.[2][3] He was educated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford, graduating from the latter with honours in 1871. He was called to the Bar at Lincoln's Inn in 1873.[4][5][6]

He married Anna White, the daughter of John Tahourdin White on 27 July 1876 at Kensington.[7]

Bovill was appointed assistant Judicial Commissioner in Cyprus in 1875 soon after its cessation from Turkey to Britain. He was legal adviser to the government (the predecessor position to King's Advocate) from 1877 to 1881. He was appointed Judicial Commissioner in 1881 and Chief Justice in 1883 on creation of that position. He was knighted the following year, in 1884.[8]

In 1890, it was reported that he was to be appointed Chief Justice of Western Australia.[8] He declined the appointment. Instead, in 1892, he was appointed Chief Justice of the Straits Settlements on the departure of Edward Loughlin O'Malley. He first sat as Chief Justice in October 1892. His family made up of his wife and two boys and a daughter remained in Cyprus, planning to join him in Singapore later.

Death
Gravestones in Fort Canning Green, Singapore. Bovill's gravestone is in front on the right.
Bovill's gravestone

Bovill died at the age of 45 of cholera on 24 March 1893 at his residence in Paterson Road, Singapore, after returning from a trip to Malacca. He was buried at the Bukit Timah Cemetery.[4] His gravestone was moved to Fort Canning Green when the Bukit Timah Cemetery was closed.[9] There is a commemorative plaque placed by Bovill's wife in St Andrew's Cathedral, Singapore.[10]

References
  1. England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975
  2. 1851 England Census
  3. London, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1917
  4. "DEATH OF SIR ELLIOT C. BOVILL, KNIGHT. CHIEF JUSTICE, S.S." The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  5. Joseph Foster (1885). Men-at-the-bar: A Biographical Hand-list of the Members of the Various Inns of Court, Including Her Majesty's Judges, Etc. Reeves and Turner. p. 45.
  6. University of Oxford (26 August 2016). The Honours Register of the University of Oxford; a Record of University Honours and Distinctions, Complete to the End of Trinity Term 1883. WENTWORTH Press. p. 421. ISBN 978-1-363-28945-5.
  7. London Week News, 5 August 1876, p. 26.
  8. The West Australian, 10 February 1890, p. 3.
  9. Elliot Charles Bovill, Find a Grave, 25 October 2010, archived from the original on 7 August 2014.
  10. Sir Elliot Charles Bovill, BillionGraves, archived from the original on 7 August 2014, retrieved 7 August 2014.

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