Early Life and Education
Grant Duff was born in Eden, Aberdeenshire on 21 February 1829, the elder son of James Grant Duff, a well known Indian official from Bombay Presidency and British Resident at the princely state of Satara and his wife Jane Catherine, daughter of Sir Whitelaw Ainslie. He was named after Mountstuart Elphinstone whom James Grant Duff regarded as his mentor. Grant Duff had his schooling at Edinburgh Academy and Grange School and at Balliol College, Oxford from 1847 to 1850. Grant Duff completed his master's degree in 1853. During these years he experienced problems with his vision, and for the rest of his life he relied on the sight of others.
Grant Duff studied law at the Inns of Court and passed with honours, appearing next to James Fitzjames Stephen. He was called to the bar at Inner Temple, London on 17 November 1854 and practised for sometime as a junior under William Ventris Field. During this time, Grant Duff lectured at the Working Men's College and wrote for the Saturday Review. Soon afterwards, Grant Duff entered politics and joined the Liberal Party.
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