The eldest son of Joseph Priestley (the nephew of natural philosopher Joseph Priestley) and Mary, daughter of James Overend of Morley, he was born at Morley Hall, near Leeds, on 24 June 1829.
Early in his career he was attracted to politics in connection with professional subjects, and on 12 May 1896 he was elected without opposition parliamentary representative of the universities of Edinburgh and St. Andrews in the conservative interest, on the elevation of Sir Charles Pearson to the Scottish bench.