Richard Keatinge (1793-1876) was an Irish barrister and judge who served for many years as the Irish Probate judge.[1] He and his wife Harriet Augusta Joseph has a number of distinguished descendants, including an eminent scientist, a famous novelist and a recipient of the Victoria Cross.
In 1843 he became a judge of the Irish Prerogative Court, which dealt with probate cases, and was reconstituted as the Probate Court in 1857.[1] He continued to sit as the Probate judge until his retirement in 1868.
He was described as a judge of the highest ability, and it was probably for this reason that in 1864, when Judge Kelly, the judge of the Irish Court of Admiralty, was forced to resign while facing serious charges of corruption, it was proposed that Keatinge replace him as Admiralty judge, while he would also continue to sit in the Probate Court.[3] The Government was enthusiastic about the idea, but informed legal opinion in Ireland was generally against it, the objection being that Keatinge was already seriously overworked, and despite his undoubted ability, he had no experience of Admiralty work. Keatinge himself strongly opposed the proposal, citing his very heavy workload, and the plan came to nothing.[4]
Family and later descendants
He married in 1814 Harriet Augusta Joseph, the third daughter of Samuel Joseph, a London merchant.[2] It was a mixed marriage as the Joseph family were Jewish. The eminent mathematician James Joseph Sylvester was Harriet's cousin.[5]
James Joseph Sylvester, Keating's cousin by marriage
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