born Jan. 10, 1750, Edinburgh, Scot.
died Nov. 17, 1823, Almondell, Linlithgowshire
Scottish lawyer.
He was the youngest son of Henry David Erskine, 10th Earl of Buchan. After service in the British navy and army, he entered the law, and in 1778 he was called to the bar. His practice flourished after he won a seminal libel case, and he went on to make important contributions to the protection of personal liberties. His defense of politicians and reformers on charges of treason and related offenses, including an unsuccessful defense of Thomas Paine (1792), checked repressive measures taken by the British government in the aftermath of the French Revolution. He contributed to the law of criminal responsibility by defending, on the novel ground of insanity, a would-be assassin of George III . He served in Parliament (178384, 17901806) until elevated to the peerage (1806), and he was lord chancellor (180607) in William Grenville's "ministry of all talents." In 1820 he defended Queen Caroline, whom George IV had brought to trial before the House of Lords for adultery in order to deprive her of her rights and title. Erskine's courtroom speeches are characterized by vigour, cogency, and lucidity and often by great literary merit.