John Bathe

Who is John Bathe?

John Bathe was a member of a famous legal dynasty who had a distinguished career under the Tudors, being Solicitor General for Ireland and Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas.

He was a native of County Meath, a member of the long-established Bathe family of Ardcarne Castle. The family produced several distinguished judges and lawyers; his cousin James Bathe served as Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer under four monarchs. The family had claimed the title Baron Louth in the fifteenth century, but it does not seem to have been recognised by the Crown.

He was at Lincoln's Inn in 1536, and was called to the English Bar in 1539. He was in Crown service in Ireland by 1546, when he replaced Walter Cowley as Principal Solicitor for Ireland. In 1550, he became Serjeant-at-law and Solicitor General. In 1554, he became Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas, and held office until 1559. It is unclear whether Elizabeth I chose him to replace her sister's Chief Justice, or whether he died that year. We do know that he was highly thought of by the English Crown, being praised for "knowledge of the laws of England, diligence, discretion and loyalty."