Edward Jenks was born in Clapham, Surrey, (now London) on 20th February 1861.His first marriage was in 1890 to Annie Ingham, who died after giving birth to a son; their son would die fighting in the Great War in 1917. His second marriage in 1898 was to Dorothy Mary,daughter of Sir William Bower Forwood,Liverpool, with whom he had a daughter Barbara Frances died 1958, and a son,Jorian Edward Forwood Jenks. Edward was a brilliant law student at King's College, Cambridge and was placed first in the law tripos of 1886. He was called to the bar in 1887. He held many seats: Director of Studies in Law and History at Jesus College, Cambridge 1888-9, Dean at the faculty of law University of Melbourne 1890, University College, Liverpool 1890-92 then later to 1895 at Victoria University of Manchester, reader of English at University of Oxford from 1896, and then at the University of London from 1928-1930 as as professor of English law in the London School of Economics and Political Science. Edward was a Fellow of the British Academy. He was a founder of the Society of Public Teachers of Law and its secretary 1909-1917. He also wrote many books and articles on law, history and politics. He was an editor of A Digest of English Civil Law (1905–1917) which led to receipt of an honorary doctorate from Paris. He was regarded as a leading academic in relation to the English Civil War.Edward died 10th November 1939. Jorian Jenks was an early pioneer of organic agriculture. During the war, he was the agricultural advisor to an extreme right wing political party and was detained in prison from 1940-1941. After his release, he settled as a tenant farmer in Sussex. He became an active member of the Soil Association and influenced many people with his views on organic farming and good husbandry.He wrote pamphlets on better land use, the dangers of insecticides and the exhaustion of non-renewable natural resources. Jorian died in Devon on the 20th August 1963.