Charles Stewart Parnell (June 27, 1846 – October 6, 1891) was an Irish political leader and one of the most important figures in 19th century Ireland and the United Kingdom; William Ewart Gladstone thought him the most remarkable person he had ever met. A future Liberal Prime Minister, Herbert Henry Asquith, described him as one of the three or four greatest men of the nineteenth century, while Lord Haldane described him as the strongest man the British House of Commons had seen in 150 years. June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 187 days remaining. ... 1846 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... October 6 is the 279th day of the year (280th in Leap years). ... 1891 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... A politician is an individual involved in politics. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Right Honourable William Ewart Gladstone (29 December 1809–19 May 1898) was a British Liberal statesman and Prime Minister (1868–1874, 1880–1885, 1886 and 1892–1894). ... The Liberal Party was one of the two major British political parties from the early 19th century until the 1920s, and a third party of varying strength and importance up to 1988, when it merged with the Social Democratic Party to form a new party which would become known as... A prime minister may be either: the chief or leading member of the cabinet of the top-level government in a country having a parliamentary system of government; or the official, in countries with a semi-presidential system of government, appointed to manage the civil service and execute the directives... The Right Honourable Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith, KG, PC (12 September 1852–15 February 1928) served as the Liberal Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1908 to 1916. ... Lord Haldane Richard Burdon Sanderson Haldane, 1st Viscount Haldane, (July 30, 1856 - August 19, 1928), was an important British Liberal politician, lawyer, and philosopher. ... In some bicameral parliaments of a Westminster System, the House of Commons has historically been the name of the elected lower house. ...

Family background

Charles Stewart Parnell, the "uncrowned King of Ireland"

Charles Stewart Parnell¹ was born in County Wicklow, of gentry stock. He was the third son and seventh child of John Henry Parnell, a wealthy Anglo-Irish landowner, and his American wife Delia Stewart, daughter of the famous American naval hero, Commodore Charles Stewart (the stepson of one of George Washington's bodyguards). Commodore Stewart's mother, Parnell's great-grandmother, belonged to the Tudor family and so could claim a distant relationship with the British Royal Family. John Henry Parnell himself was a cousin of one of Ireland's leading aristocrats, Lord Powerscourt. Thus from birth Charles Stewart Parnell possessed an extraordinary number of links with a whole variety of elements of society; from the established Church of Ireland to which he belonged (and most of whose members were unionists) and the aristocracy through his cousins, the Powerscourts, to the American War of Independence and the War of 1812 (where his grandfather had been awarded a gold medal by the United States Congress for gallantry) right to a distant link with the Royal Family. Yet it was as a leader of Irish nationalism that Parnell established his fame. 19th century postcard image - out of copyright This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Wicklow (Cill Mhantáin in Irish) is a county on the east coast of Ireland, immediately south of Dublin. ... The term Anglo-Irish means British-Irish and is used frequently to describe formal contacts, negotiations or treaties between both states. ... Charles Stewart (28 July 1778 - 6 November 1869) was an officer in the United States Navy. ... Order: 1st President Vice President: John Adams Term of office: April 30, 1789 – March 4, 1797 Preceded by: None Succeeded by: John Adams Date of birth: February 22, 1732 Place of birth: Westmoreland, Virginia Date of death: December 14, 1799 Place of death: Mount Vernon, Virginia First Lady: Martha Washington... The Tudor dynasty or House of Tudor (Welsh Tudur) is a series of five monarchs of Welsh origin who ruled England from 1485 until 1603. ... The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion, operating seamlessly in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. ... In the Irish context, Unionists form a group of largely (though not exclusively) Protestant people in Ireland, of all social classes, who wish to see the continuation of the 1801 Act of Union, as amended by the Government of Ireland Act 1920, under which the Northern Ireland provincial state created... The War of 1812 was a conflict fought in North America between the United States and Great Britain from 1812 to 1815. ... A congress is a gathering of people, especially a gathering for a political purpose. ...

The young Parnell studied at Magdalene College, Cambridge and in 1874 became high sheriff of his home county of Wicklow. The following year he entered parliament as member for County Meath, supporting the Home Rule party. Full name The College of St Mary Magdalene Motto Garde ta Foy Keep your Faith Named after Mary Magdalene Previous names - Established 1428 Sister College Magdalen College Master Duncan Robinson Location Magdalene Street Undergraduates 335 Graduates 169 Homepage Boatclub Magdalene College (pronounced Maudlin) was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine... 1874 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Meath (An Mhí in Irish) is a county in the Republic of Ireland, often informally called The Royal County. ... Devolution or Home rule is the pooling of powers from central government to government at regional or local level. ...

Leader

Parnell, though a surprisingly poor speaker in the House of Commons, showed himself to be a skilled organizer. By 1880 he had replaced Isaac Butt and William Shaw as chairman of the Nationalist Party. The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ... 1880 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Issac Butt (September 6, 1813 - May 5, 1879) was the founder and first leader of the Home Rule League, subsequently known as the Irish Parliamentary Party. ... The Nationalist Party existed under various froms from 1874 to 1973. ...

Under his leadership, he reorganized the party as the Irish Parliamentary Party in 1882, becoming perhaps the first professionally organized political party anywhere in Britain and Ireland. Professional selection of candidates took place, with party MPs (who previously had been notorious for their lack of unity) whipped to vote as a block. Parnell's unified Irish block came to dominate British politics, making and unmaking Liberal and Conservative governments in the mid-1880s as it fought for home rule (internal self government within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland) for Ireland. In the mid 1880s, Liberal Party leader William Ewart Gladstone committed his party to support for the cause of Irish Home Rule, introducing the First Home Rule Bill in 1886. However the measure failed to pass the British House of Commons, following a split between pro- and anti-home rulers within the Liberal Party. In 1882 Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Nationalist Party, formed the Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP), replacing the Home Rule League, as a parliamentary party with strict rules. ... 1882 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... In politics, a whip is a member of a political party in a legislature whose task is to ensure that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires. ... The Liberal Party was one of the two major British political parties from the early 19th century until the 1920s, and a third party of varying strength and importance up to 1988, when it merged with the Social Democratic Party to form a new party which would become known as... The Conservative Party is the largest political party on the centre-right in the United Kingdom. ... Events and Trends Technology Development and commercial production of electric lighting Development and commercial production of gasoline-powered automobile by Karl Benz, Gottlieb Daimler and Maybach First commercial production and sales of phonographs and phonograph recordings. ... Devolution or Home rule is the pooling of powers from central government to government at regional or local level. ... The Union Flag, in its modern form, was first adopted in 1801. ... The Right Honourable William Ewart Gladstone (29 December 1809–19 May 1898) was a British Liberal statesman and Prime Minister (1868–1874, 1880–1885, 1886 and 1892–1894). ... There were three Home Rule bills introduced in the British Parliament, intended to give Ireland more autonomy; all three were sponsored by William Gladstone of the Liberal Party. ... 1886 is a common year starting on Friday (click on link to calendar) // Events January 18 - Modern field hockey is born with the formation of The Hockey Association in England. ... In some bicameral parliaments of a Westminster System, the House of Commons has historically been the name of the elected lower house. ...

Though home rule was a central demand of the Irish Parliamentary Party, it also campaigned for Irish land reform. In its campaign, some of its members worked closely with a radical agitation organization known as the Irish Land League. These associations led various members, including John Dillon, Tim Healy, William O'Brien and Parnell himself to serve periods in prison. The agitation led to the passing of a series of Land Acts that over three decades changed the face of Irish land ownership, replacing large Anglo-Irish estates by tenant ownership. The Irish Land League was an Irish political organization of the late 19th century which aimed to help poor tenant famers. ... John Dillon (September 4, 1851 - August 4, 1927) was an Irish nationalist politician. ... Timothy Michael Healy, KC (17 May 1855–26 March 1931) was one of the most brilliant and most controversial of Irish politicians, with a career that spanned the period from Charles Stewart Parnells leadership of the Irish Parliamentary Party in the 1880s to the foundation of the Irish Free... William OBrien (2 October 1852_25 February 1928) was an Irish journalist, writer and politician, particularly associated with campaigns for land reform in Ireland during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. ... The term Anglo-Irish means British-Irish and is used frequently to describe formal contacts, negotiations or treaties between both states. ...

The Piggott Forgeries

In March 1887, Parnell found himself accused by the British newspaper The Times of support for the murders of the Chief Secretary for Ireland Lord Frederick Cavendish, and the Permanent Under-Secretary for Ireland, T.H. Burke. Burke and Cavendish had been brutally stabbed to death on May 6, 1882 in the Phoenix Park in Dublin. Letters were published which suggested Parnell was complicit in the murders. However a Commission of Enquiry, set up to destroy Parnell, vindicated him, as did a libel action instituted by him, when it was revealed in February 1890 that the letters were in fact a fabrication created by Richard Piggott, an anti-Parnell journalist who promptly committed suicide. He then took The Times to court for libel and in an out court settlement they paid him £5,000 in damages. They have since been known as the Piggott Forgeries. The Times is a national newspaper published daily in the United Kingdom. ... The Chief Secretary was the most important position for determining Ireland after the Lord Lieutenant, and was frequently a cabinet level position in the 19th and early twentieth centuries. ... Lord Frederick Charles Cavendish (November 30, 1836 - May 6, 1882), son of William Cavendish, 7th Duke of Devonshire, was a British Liberal politician and protégé of the Prime Minister, William Ewart Gladstone, who was appointed to the post of Chief Secretary for Ireland in May 1882. ... Thomas Henry Burke, (1829 – 1882) He was Permanent Under Secretary at the Irish Office for many years before being assassinated during the Phoenix Park Murders on Saturday May 6, 1882. ... May 6 is the 126th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (127th in leap years). ... 1882 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... The Wellington Monument in Phoenix Park The Phoenix Park (in Irish, Páirc an Fhionn-Uisce) is a large park near the outskirts of Dublin City, Ireland. ... In English and American law, and systems based on them, libel and slander are two forms of defamation (or defamation of character), which is the tort or delict of making a false statement of fact that injures someones reputation. ... 1890 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

Mrs O'Shea

Parnell's grave in the predominantly Roman Catholic Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin, alongside Eamon de Valera, Michael Collins and Daniel O'Connell.

Parnell was viewed as an Irish national hero, referred to as the Uncrowned King of Ireland, a term originally coined to describe Daniel O'Connell. However Parnell's triumph was shortlived, when it was 'revealed' (though it had been widely known among politicians at Westminster) that Parnell had been the longterm lover, and father of some of the children of Catherine O'Shea. Although now known as Kitty O'Shea, this name was coined by Parnell's opponents, and no-one who knew her called her Kitty. (A "kitty" was a slang term for a prostitute.) She was the wife of a fellow MP, Captain Willie O'Shea, who had initiated divorce proceedings after failing to secure a large inheritance due to his wife. Under pressure from the religious wing of the Liberal Party, Gladstone reluctantly indicated that he could not support the Irish Parliamentary party as long as Charles Stewart Parnell remained its leader. Parnells gravestone. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... Glasnevin Cemetery is the main Catholic cemetery in Dublin, the capital of Ireland. ... Dublin (Irish: Baile Átha Cliath1),is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Ireland, located2 near the midpoint of Irelands east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the centre of the Dublin region3. ... Eamon de Valera[1] (born Edward George de Valera, Irish name Éamonn de Bhailéara (October 14, 1882 – August 29, 1975), was an Irish politician, best known as a leader of Irelands struggle for independence from Britain in the early 20th Century, and the Republican anti-Treaty opposition in... Michael Collins (Irish name Micheál Ó Coileáin; October 16, 1890 – August 22, 1922), an Irish revolutionary leader, served as Minister for Finance in the Irish Republic, as a member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations, as Chairman of the Provisional Government and as Commander-in... Daniel OConnell Daniel OConnell (August 6, 1776 – May 15, 1847), known as The Liberator or The Emancipator, was Irelands predominant politician in the first half of the nineteenth century. ... Daniel OConnell Daniel OConnell (August 6, 1776 – May 15, 1847), known as The Liberator or The Emancipator, was Irelands predominant politician in the first half of the nineteenth century. ... Westminster is the area located immediately to the west of the ancient City of London, in the centre of the wider conurbation of London. ... Katherine Parnell, variously known as Katie OShea, Kitty OShea, or Katherine Wood, (1845/1846 - 1921) was an English woman whose affair with Charles Stewart Parnell eventually caused his downfall. ...

Parnell refused to resign, leading to a wholesale party split between Parnellites and Anti-Parnellites. When at a party meeting, he challenged Gladstone's intervention with the question, "Who is the master of the party?" a notoriously waspish MP, Tim Healy responded with the legendary "Who is the mistress of the party?" putdown. Timothy Michael Healy, KC (17 May 1855–26 March 1931) was one of the most brilliant and most controversial of Irish politicians, with a career that spanned the period from Charles Stewart Parnells leadership of the Irish Parliamentary Party in the 1880s to the foundation of the Irish Free...

See also: Diocese of Meath The (Roman Catholic) Diocese of Meath since 1778 until the late 19th century had its seat in Navan, County Meath, Ireland. ...

Death

Parnell was deposed as leader and fought a long and bitter campaign for re-instatement. He conducted a political tour of Ireland to regain popular support, attracting Fenian 'hillside men' to his side. He married Catherine on 25 June 1891 in Steyning, West Sussex, on which day the Catholic hierarchy issued a condemnation of his conduct, only Edward O'Dwyer of Limerick withholding his signature. He lost support of the Freeman's Journal. On the difficult campaign trail he had quicklime thrown at his eyes by hostile crowd in Castlecomer, County Kilkenny. Medical aid was given to him by a Dr Valentine Ryan of Carlow Town, a Home Rule sympathiser. He addressed a crowd in pouring rain at Creggs on the Galway–Roscommon border and contracted pneumonia, 27 September. Fenian is a term used since the 1860s for an Irish nationalist who espouses or is perceived to espouse violence against British rule, usually by people opposed to their aims. ... June 25 is the 176th day of the year (177th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 189 days remaining. ... 1891 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Map sources for Steyning at grid reference TQ1711 The Clock Tower in Steyning High Street Steyning is a small West Sussex town on the South Downs in the Adur valley approximately 4 miles north of Shoreham-by-Sea, though its most famous neighbours are Brighton and Worthing. ... West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex (with Brighton and Hove), Hampshire and Surrey. ... Limerick (Irish: Luimneach) is a city and the county seat of County Limerick in the province of Munster, in the midwest of the Republic of Ireland. ... Calcium oxide (CaO), commonly known as lime or quicklime, is a widely used chemical compound. ... County Kilkenny (Cill Chainnigh in Irish) is located in the south east of Ireland in the province of Leinster. ... County Galway (Contae na Gaillimhe in Irish) is located on the west coast of Ireland. ... County Roscommon (Ros Comáin in Irish) is a county located in central Ireland. ... September 27 is the 270th day of the year (271st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 95 days remaining. ...

He returned to Dublin, thence to Brighton, departing by the mail boat, 30 September. ("I shall be all right. I shall be back next Saturday week"); He died of pneumonia, near midnight, 6 October in his and Catherine's home in Brighton. Though an Anglican, he was buried in Dublin's largest Roman Catholic cemetery, Glasnevin. Such was his reputation that his gravestone carries just one word in large lettering: PARNELL. Brighton on the southern Sussex coast is one of the largest and most famous seaside resorts in England. ... September 30 is the 273rd day of the year (274th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 92 days remaining, as the final day of September. ... October 6 is the 279th day of the year (280th in Leap years). ... The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and acts as the mother and senior branch of the worldwide Anglican Communion as well as a founding member of the Porvoo Communion. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... Glasnevin Cemetery is the main Catholic cemetery in Dublin, the capital of Ireland. ... Headstones in the Japanese Cemetry in Broome, Western Australia A cemetery in rural Spain A typical late 20th century headstone in the United States A headstone, tombstone or gravestone is a marker, normally carved from stone, placed over or next to the site of a burial. ...

Notes

1. Most contemporaries pronounced his name as par-nell with the emphasis on the latter part of the name. He himself disapproved of this pronunciation, pronouncing his name par-nell, with the emphasis on the start of the name.

Additional reading and sources

• Robert Kee, The Green Flag (Penguin, 1972–2000), ISBN 0140291652
• Robert Kee, The Laurel and the Ivy (Penguin, 1994), ISBN 0140239626

External links

• Parnell at the Internet Movie Database, a 1937 film starring Clark Gable