Marcus was educated at St Leonard's Public Board School,
George Heriot's School and the
University of Edinburgh, before becoming a solicitor. His initial foray into politics came in 1918, when he joined the Edinburgh Central branch of the
Independent Labour Party (ILP), becoming that branch's chairman the following year. From 1923 to 1928 he was the election agent for
William Graham, the sitting Labour MP for
Edinburgh Central. In 1926, he was elected onto
Edinburgh Corporation, representing St Leonard's ward. A supporter of appeasement, in 1938 Marcus resigned from the Labour Party and announced that he would be joining
National Labour. In his letter of resignation, he stated that: Thereafter, he focused on his legal career, becoming a barrister with the
Middle Temple. He settled with his wife in
Hampstead, and from 1946 to 1952 was chairman of the Finsbury and Shoreditch Rent Tribunal. He died in 1960. == Notes ==