William Sharp McKechnie

William Sharp McKechnie (2 September 1863 – 2 July 1930) was a Scottish scholar, historian, lecturer in Constitutional Law and History, and author of Magna Carta: A Commentary on the Great Charter of King John with an Historical Introduction. He later held the Chair of Conveyancing at the University of Glasgow from 1916 until 1927. Upon his retirement, he was awarded an honorary LL.D.

Biography

Born in Paisley, Scotland to William McKechnie on 2 September 1863, He completed his LLB in 1887, and a DPhil in 1897, having qualified as a solicitor in 1890. In 1894 he became a lecturer in Constitutional Law and History at Glasgow, and the same year married Elizabeth Cochrane Malloch, daughter of the late John Malloch. He continued to serve as a lecturer until his appointment to the Chair of Conveyancing in 1916. McKechnie died on 2 July 1930. McKechnie's work, particularly his Magna Carta essay, was identified by Herbert Butterfield as a primary factor in the undermining of Whig history. His thoughts on The State and the Individual were acceptable with reservations to the early Fabian intellectual Sidney Ball. His 1909 work to reform the House of Lords earned a favourable review, and influenced the Parliament Act 1911; Corinne Comstock Weston considered him a highly influential constitutional thinker of the period.