Birth and education

Bury was the youngest son of Sir William Bury, knight, of Linwood, Lincolnshire

Linwood, Lincolnshire

Linwood is a small village and civil parish in the West Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England, on the minor B1202 road about south of the town of Market Rasen....

, was born in 1655, took a bachelor's degree at Lincoln College, Oxford

Lincoln College, Oxford

Lincoln College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is situated on Turl Street in central Oxford, backing onto Brasenose College and adjacent to Exeter College...

, in February 1667, and in 1668 was entered a student at Gray's Inn

Gray's Inn

The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court in London. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, an individual must belong to one of these Inns...

.

Career

He was called to the bar in 1676, and after some years' practice became a serjeant-at-law

Serjeant-at-law

The Serjeants-at-Law was an order of barristers at the English bar. The position of Serjeant-at-Law , or Sergeant-Counter, was centuries old; there are writs dating to 1300 which identify them as descended from figures in France prior to the Norman Conquest...

 in 1700, and on 26 January 1701, when Sir Littelton Powys was removed to the King's Bench

King's Bench

The Queen's Bench is the superior court in a number of jurisdictions within some of the Commonwealth realms...

, he was created a Baron of the Exchequer. Of this his epitaph

Epitaph

An epitaph is a short text honoring a deceased person, strictly speaking that is inscribed on their tombstone or plaque, but also used figuratively. Some are specified by the dead person beforehand, others chosen by those responsible for the burial...

 says that he 'by his Great Application to the Study of the Law, raised himself to one of the highest Degrees in that Profession,' but Mr. Speaker Onslow, in his notes to Bishop Burnet's 'History,' affirms 'that it appeared from Bury's book of accounts' (a most unlikely place for such a revelation) that he gave Lord-keeper Wright a bribe of 1,000l. for elevating him to the bench. For fifteen years he continued to discharge the duties of a puisne judge.

Aylesbury election

In 1704, when corrupt practices had extensively prevailed at the Aylesbury election, the Whigs, who were then defeated, knowing that proceeding by a petition to the House of Commons

House of Commons of Great Britain

The House of Commons of Great Britain was the lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain between 1707 and 1801. In 1707, as a result of the Acts of Union of that year, it replaced the House of Commons of England and the third estate of the Parliament of Scotland, as one of the most significant...

 would be useless, caused actions to be brought in the Queen's Bench division by some of the electors against the returning officer

Returning Officer

In various parliamentary systems, a returning officer is responsible for overseeing elections in one or more constituencies.-Australia:In Australia a returning officer is an employee of the Australian Electoral Commission or a State Electoral Commission who heads the local divisional office...

s. One of these actions, the leading case of Ashby v. White

Ashby v. White

Ashby v White 92 ER 126, is a foundational case in UK constitutional law and English tort law. It concerns the right to vote and misfeasance of a public officer.-Facts:...

, after judgment for the defendants in the Queen's Bench, from which Lord Chief Justice Holt dissented, was taken to the House of Lords

House of Lords

The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....

 upon a writ of error, and the judges were summoned to advise the house. Of these judges Bury was one, and his opinion was given in support of that of the Lord Chief Justice in the court below; and Lord Somers being of the same opinion, the decision of the queen's bench was reversed by fifty to sixteen. On 20 and 22 April 1710 he, with Chief Justice Parker and Mr. Justice Tracy, at the Old Baile, tried one Damary for riot and being ringleader of a mob.

Robert Mann

There is a letter of his (25 June 1713) preserved among the treasury papers to the lord high treasurer, about offering a reward for the apprehension of one Robert Mann.

As Lord High Treasurer and death

On the death of Sir Samuel Dodd, Bury was raised by King George I to be Chief Baron of the Exchequer 10 June 1716. He died on 4 May 1722, suddenly, having been engaged in the discharge of his judicial duties until within a few hours of his death; and was buried, with a handsome tomb, in the parish church of Grantham

Grantham

Grantham is a market town within the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It bestrides the East Coast Main Line railway , the historic A1 main north-south road, and the River Witham. Grantham is located approximately south of the city of Lincoln, and approximately east of Nottingham...

, Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...

. He left no issue, and his estates at Irby

Irby in the Marsh

Irby in the Marsh is a settlement approximately 5 miles north of Wainfleet All Saints, with a population of 135 inhabitants.The village lies on the B1195 east of Spilsby...

, near Wainfleet

Wainfleet, Lincolnshire

Wainfleet All Saints is an ancient port and market town on the east coast of Lincolnshire, England, situated on the B1195 between Spilsby and Boston. The town stands on the small rivers Steeping and Limb that form Wainfleet Haven. The town is close to Skegness, Boston, Spilsby, the Lincolnshire...

, passed to his grandnephew, William Bury, of Lyndwood Grange, Lincolnshire. There is a portrait of him, engraved in mezzotint by Smith, after a picture by J. Richardson dated 1720.