Hiram Shaw Wilkinson

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Sir Hiram Shaw Wilkinson (1840–1926) was a British judge and diplomat who worked mainly in China and Japan. He finished his career as Chief Justice of the British Supreme Court for China and Corea (1900–1905).

Early life and family
- Born on 13 June 1840 to a Belfast family. His father was John Wilkinson; his mother was Annabella Shaw.
- In 1864 he married Prudie Gaffikin. She died in 1870 in Yokohama.
- They had two sons, Hiram Parkes Wilkinson and the Reverend Thomas Gaffikin Wilkinson, both born in Yokohama. He never remarried.

Education
- Studied at Queen’s College, Belfast (B.A. 1864; LL.D. 1881).

Career
- Entered Her Majesty’s Consular Service in Japan in 1864 as a student interpreter and learned fluent Japanese.
- Admitted to the Middle Temple in 1872.
- Held several posts in the Far East:
- 1st Assistant and interpreter at the British Consulate in Yokohama; Visiting Judge of the British Consular Court in Kanagawa.
- Acting Law Secretary of the British Supreme Court for China and Japan (based in Yokohama).
- Assistant Judge of the British Court for China and Japan in Shanghai.
- Crown Advocate of the Supreme Court based in Shanghai (from 1882).
- Lead prosecutor in the Edith Carew murder case in Yokohama (1896).
- Became Judge of the British Court for Japan, the last holder of that court before it was wound down in 1900 when extraterritorial rights ended in Japan.
- In 1900 he was appointed Chief Justice of the British Supreme Court for China and Corea, succeeding Sir Nicholas Hannen. He was knighted in 1903.

Later life and other roles
- Retired in 1905 and moved to Moneyshanere, near Tobermore in Northern Ireland. He was succeeded as Chief Justice by Sir Havilland de Sausmarez.
- His son Hiram Parkes Wilkinson also served as Crown Advocate in Shanghai, continuing in the role for many years.
- Wilkinson served as Pro-Chancellor of Queen’s College, Belfast (1914–1926). He was invited to join the Irish Convention in 1917.
- He contributed to a World War I battlefield monument for the 36th Ulster Division and faced IRA threats in 1922.
- He was a Justice of the Peace and Deputy Lieutenant for County Londonderry.

Death
- Sir Hiram Shaw Wilkinson died on 27 September 1926 in Tobermore. He is buried in Kilcronaghan parish church graveyard in Tobermore, beside his son Thomas.