Roger Therry
Encyclopedia
Roger Therry was an Irish-Australian jurist
.
Therry was born in Ireland. He was called to the bar in Ireland in 1824 and in England in 1827. His A Letter to the Right Hon. George Canning
on the "Present State of the Catholic Question", published in 1826, second edition 1827, probably led to his acquaintance with that statesman, who employed him to edit his speeches and prepare them for publication. They were published after Canning's death in 1828 with a life of Canning written by Therry. By the influence of Canning's widow and friends Therry was appointed commissioner of the court of requests for New South Wales
, and in July 1829 he set sail for Sydney
.
He was a Roman Catholic, and on his arrival found that most of his co-religionists were poor, and few held positions of importance in Sydney. He also found that while the Anglican Church was comparatively well subsidized by the state, very little was allowed to the Roman Catholic clergy. He endeavoured with considerable success to improve their position, and for the next 30 years held an important place among the Catholic laity. He was made a magistrate in 1830 and in 1839 refused an acting judgeship. Governor Gipps
, in a dispatch notifying this to Lord Glenelg, referred to Therry as one of the "two most distinguished barristers of New South Wales".
He was appointed acting attorney-general in 1841, and at the first election for the New South Wales Legislative Council
held in 1843 he was elected as the representative of Camden. In December 1844 Therry was appointed resident judge at Port Phillip and held the position until February 1846, when he became a judge of the supreme court of New South Wales. He visited England in 1847 and retired on a pension in 1859. His Reminiscences of Thirty Years Residence in New South Wales and Victoria was published at the beginning of 1863 and immediately withdrawn. The new edition which appeared in the same year was not, however, an "expurgated version" as has been stated. Some errors were corrected, but the changes are not considerable. The most important were that the author did fuller justice to the work of three governors, Gipps, Fitzroy
, and La Trobe
, and a map was added.
Therry died on 17 May 1874. He was survived by Lady Therry and probably a family, as when he applied for leave of absence in July 1846, he mentioned that he had two daughters being educated in England. He was knighted in 1869.
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
.
Therry was born in Ireland. He was called to the bar in Ireland in 1824 and in England in 1827. His A Letter to the Right Hon. George Canning
George Canning
George Canning PC, FRS was a British statesman and politician who served as Foreign Secretary and briefly Prime Minister.-Early life: 1770–1793:...
on the "Present State of the Catholic Question", published in 1826, second edition 1827, probably led to his acquaintance with that statesman, who employed him to edit his speeches and prepare them for publication. They were published after Canning's death in 1828 with a life of Canning written by Therry. By the influence of Canning's widow and friends Therry was appointed commissioner of the court of requests for New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, and in July 1829 he set sail for Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
.
He was a Roman Catholic, and on his arrival found that most of his co-religionists were poor, and few held positions of importance in Sydney. He also found that while the Anglican Church was comparatively well subsidized by the state, very little was allowed to the Roman Catholic clergy. He endeavoured with considerable success to improve their position, and for the next 30 years held an important place among the Catholic laity. He was made a magistrate in 1830 and in 1839 refused an acting judgeship. Governor Gipps
George Gipps
Sir George Gipps was Governor of the colony of New South Wales, Australia, for eight years, between 1838 and 1846. His governorship was during a period of great change for New South Wales and Australia, as well as for New Zealand, which was administered as part of New South Wales for much of this...
, in a dispatch notifying this to Lord Glenelg, referred to Therry as one of the "two most distinguished barristers of New South Wales".
He was appointed acting attorney-general in 1841, and at the first election for the New South Wales Legislative Council
New South Wales Legislative Council
The New South Wales Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of New South Wales in Australia. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney. The Assembly is referred to as the lower house and the Council as...
held in 1843 he was elected as the representative of Camden. In December 1844 Therry was appointed resident judge at Port Phillip and held the position until February 1846, when he became a judge of the supreme court of New South Wales. He visited England in 1847 and retired on a pension in 1859. His Reminiscences of Thirty Years Residence in New South Wales and Victoria was published at the beginning of 1863 and immediately withdrawn. The new edition which appeared in the same year was not, however, an "expurgated version" as has been stated. Some errors were corrected, but the changes are not considerable. The most important were that the author did fuller justice to the work of three governors, Gipps, Fitzroy
Charles FitzRoy
Charles FitzRoy may refer to:*Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Cleveland , 18th century nobleman*Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton , nobleman who was Lord Lieutenant of Ireland...
, and La Trobe
Charles La Trobe
Charles Joseph La Trobe was the first lieutenant-governor of the colony of Victoria .-Early life:La Trobe was born in London, the son of Christian Ignatius Latrobe, a family of Huguenot origin...
, and a map was added.
Therry died on 17 May 1874. He was survived by Lady Therry and probably a family, as when he applied for leave of absence in July 1846, he mentioned that he had two daughters being educated in England. He was knighted in 1869.