Charles Pepys, 1st Earl of Cottenham
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The Right Honourable The Earl of Cottenham PC QC |
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Lord Cottenham wearing ceremonial robes when presiding in the House of Lords as Lord Chancellor. Detail of a painting by Charles Robert Leslie.
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| Lord Chancellor | |
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In office 16 January 1836 – 30 August 1841 |
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| Monarch |
William IV Victoria |
| Prime Minister | The Viscount Melbourne |
| Preceded by | In commission |
| Succeeded by | The Lord Lyndhurst |
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In office 6 July 1846 – 19 June 1850 |
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| Monarch | Victoria |
| Prime Minister | Lord John Russell |
| Preceded by | The Lord Lyndhurst |
| Succeeded by | The Lord Truro |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
29 April 1781 Wimpole Street, London |
| Died | 29 April 1851 (aged 70) Pietra Santa, Lucca, Grand Duchy of Tuscany |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Whig |
| Spouse(s) | Caroline Wingfield-Baker (1801–1868) |
| Alma mater | Trinity College, Cambridge |
Charles Christopher Pepys /ˈpɛpᵻs/, 1st Earl of Cottenham PC QC (29 April 1781 – 29 April 1851) was a British lawyer, judge and politician. He was twice Lord Chancellor of Great Britain.
Cottenham was born in London, the second son of Sir William Pepys, 1st Baronet, a master in chancery, who was descended from John Pepys, of Cottenham, Cambridgeshire, a great-uncle of Samuel Pepys the diarist. Educated at Harrow School and Trinity College, Cambridge, Pepys was called to the bar, Lincoln's Inn in 1804.
Practising at the Chancery bar, Cottenham's progress was slow, and it was not till twenty-two years after his call that he was made a King's Counsel. He sat in Parliament successively for Higham Ferrers and Malton, was appointed Solicitor General in 1834, and in the same year became Master of the Rolls. On the formation of Lord Melbourne's second administration in April 1835, the great seal was for a time in commission, but eventually Cottenham, who had been one of the commissioners, was appointed Lord Chancellor (January 1836) and was at the same time elevated to the peerage as Baron Cottenham, of Cottenham in the County of Cambridge. He held office until the defeat of the ministry in August 1841.
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