930 William Willis

Constituency : Colchester  1880-85

William was  the  other  Liberal  victor  in  Colchester. He  won  by  a  single  vote.

William  was  the  son  of  a  manufacturer  from  Luton. He  was  educated  at  Huddersfield  College  and  the  University  of  London. He  became  a  barrister  in  1861. He  was  a  Baptist  with  a  Puritan  bent  collecting  books  on  Cromwell, Bunyan, Milton  and  Newton. He  could  get  very  aerated  at  Baptist  Union  assemblies  over  purely  historical  issues.

William  was  noted  for  quoting  seventeenth  century  precedents  when  he  put  down  motions. He  would  also  shake  his  fist  when  passing  Lambeth  Palace.

William  later  became  a  county  court  judge.

He  died  in  1911 aged  76.