An inquiry into the state of mind of W. F. Windham, Esq., of Fellbrigg Hall, Norfolk, before Samuel Warren, Esq., Q.C., and a special jury : upon the petition of General Windham, C. B., etc., the uncle of the alleged lunatic, and other members of the family, at Her Majesty's Court of Exchequer, Westminster, commencing December 16, 1861.

Date:
1862
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An inquiry into the state of mind of W. F. Windham, Esq., of Fellbrigg Hall, Norfolk, before Samuel Warren, Esq., Q.C., and a special jury : upon the petition of General Windham, C. B., etc., the uncle of the alleged lunatic, and other members of the family, at Her Majesty's Court of Exchequer, Westminster, commencing December 16, 1861. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.

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    AN INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF MIND OP W. F. WINDHAM, ESQ. +. —— By virtue of a Commission de Lunatico, issued by the Lords Justices, an inquiry nto the state of mind of Mr. William Frederick Windham, of Fellbrigg-hall, Norfolk, was commenced in the Court of Exchequer, Westminster, before Mr. Samuel Warren, Q.C., one of the Masters in Lunacy, and a special jury, on Tuesday, December lGth, 1861. The commission had been granted on the petition of General Windham, the uncle of the alleged lunatic, and other members of the family. The public interest in the proceedings was manifested by a crowded court-room on the occasion. Mr. M. Chambers, Q.C., Mr. Field, and Mr. H. Williams, instructed by Messrs. Field and Roscoe, of Lincoln’s-inn-fields, appeared for the petitioners; Mr. Charles Russell, instructed by Mr. Chappel, of Golden-square, for Lady Sophia Elizabeth Giubilei, the mother of the alleged lunatic; Sir Hugh Cairns, Q.C., Mr. Karslake, Q.C., and Mr. Mil ward, instructed by Gregory and Co., of Bedford-row, for Mr. William Frederick Windham ; and Mr. Coleridge, Q.C., for Mr^Wind ham. A FIRST DAY’S PROCEEDINGS—Monday, December 16. The commission having been read, and the Master having addressed the jury, Mr. M. Chambers rose to open the case for the petitioners. He said : I have gone through a great mass of information relative to the state and condition of mind of Mr. Windham, and I have done so for the purpose of endeavouring to place before you as briefly and as simply as possible the history of the alleged lunatic from early life, in order that you may decide, after hearing the evidence, whether he is, or is not, unfit to govern himself and his affairs. Mr. Windham, who is described in the commission asj]of Fellbrigg-hall, Norfolk, attained his majority on the 9th of August last, and the object of. the present inquiry is to ascertain and decide whether, upon the 1st of August, a very short time before he came of age, he was fit and competent to manage himself and his affairs. He is the only son of the late William Howe Windham, who was a nephew of the Mr. Wmdham whose name must be familiar to all persons acquainted with political or even historical matters, and whose estates were inherited, or, in ordinary circumstances, will be inherited by the alleged lunatic. Those estates consist, in the first place, of Fellbrigg-hall, Norfolk, with the park and grounds annexed thereto; and, secondly, of other property to which I will presently direct your particular attention. The late William Howe Windham was married to Lady Sophia Hervey, a sister of the present Marquis of Bristol. The alleged lunatic, therefore, is connected with the Bristol family, and in the course of my narrative yor will find that those connections have been parties to the present proceedings as petitioners. William Frederick Windham was born on the 9th of Augusi., 1840, and, as already stated, attained his majority on the 9th of August)