Joseph Leese

Sir Joseph Francis Leese, 1st Baronet QC (28 February 1845 – 29 July 1914) was a British first class cricketer, lawyer and Liberal politician.

He was born in Chorlton, Lancashire in 1845. He was educated at the University of London, gaining a Bachelor of Arts from Regent's Park College in 1863. He briefly attended the University of Cambridge. He married in 1867, Mary Constance Hargreaves. They had six sons and two daughters.

He played first-class cricket for Lancashire County Cricket Club from 1865 to 1881. He played 25 first class matches as a batsman but only averaged 13 runs per innings. He occasionally bowled, taking 5 wickets in his career at an average of 19.

He qualified as a barrister and was admitted to the Inner Temple in 1868. He was invested as a Queen's Counsel in 1891. He was appointed Recorder (judge) of Manchester in 1893. He became a Bencher at the Inner Temple in 1898.

He first stood as a Liberal candidate for Preston in 1868;

He next stood as Liberal candidate for Accrington in 1886, coming second. He served as the Member of Parliament for Accrington from 1892 to 1910. He was first elected at the 1892 General Election, gaining the seat from the Conservative. Whilst an MP he voted in favour of the 1908 Women's Enfranchisement Bill. He retired from parliament prior to the January 1910 General Election.

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