Eaton Stannard (1685–1755) was a leading politician and lawyer in 18th-century Ireland. He was a popular

Recorder of Dublin Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * '' Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a new ...

, a very unpopular

serjeant-at-law (Ireland) This is a list of lawyers who held the rank of serjeant-at-law at the Irish Bar. Origins of the office of serjeant The first recorded serjeant was Roger Owen, who was appointed between 1261 and 1266, although the title itself was not commonly ...

, and an experienced parliamentarian who represented

Midleton Midleton (; , meaning "monastery at the weir") is a town in south-eastern County Cork, Ireland. It lies approximately 16 km east of Cork City on the Owenacurra River and the N25 road, which connects Cork to the port of Rosslare. A satellit ...

in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fran ...

for many years.Hart, A.R. ''History of the King's Serjeants at law in Ireland'', Dublin Four Courts Press (2000), p. 182. He is mainly remembered now as a close friend of

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dubl ...

, whose last known letter was written to him.

Family

He was born in

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...

, son of George Stannard of Ballyhealy, and his wife and cousin Martha Aldworth, daughter of Boyd Aldworth MP. George was the grandson of Captain Robert Stannard of

Kilmallock Kilmallock () is a town in south County Limerick, Ireland, near the border with County Cork. There is a Dominican Priory in the town and King's Castle (or King John's Castle). The remains of medieval walls which encircled the settlement are sti ...

(died 1655). Robert married Martha Travers, daughter of Sir Robert Travers, Judge of the Irish

Court of Admiralty Admiralty courts, also known as maritime courts, are courts exercising jurisdiction over all maritime contracts, torts, injuries, and offences. Admiralty courts in the United Kingdom England and Wales Scotland The Scottish court's earliest ...

and MP for

Clonakilty Clonakilty (; ), sometimes shortened to Clon, is a town in County Cork, Ireland. The town is located at the head of the tidal Clonakilty Bay. The rural hinterland is used mainly for dairy farming. The town's population as of 2016 was 4,592. Th ...

and his second wife Elizabeth Boyle, a cousin of the

Earl of Cork Earl of Cork is a title in the Peerage of Ireland, held in conjunction with the Earldom of Orrery since 1753. It was created in 1620 for Richard Boyle, 1st Baron Boyle. He had already been created Lord Boyle, Baron of Youghal, in the County o ...

.''Journal of the Cork Historical and Archaeological Society'' (1896), vol. 2, p. 324. The Stannards and Travers families were part of a wide-reaching network of interrelated landowning families: Eaton himself married one of his Travers cousins, Elizabeth, a great-granddaughter of Sir Robert Travers, while his mother Martha Aldworth was yet another Travers descendant.

Career

He entered

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

in 1702, and the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...

in 1710. He was called to the Bar in 1714, and became King's Counsel and a Bencher of the King's Inns in 1726. The following year he entered Parliament as member for Midleton, which he represented until his death. He was an energetic and conscientious MP, though he was apparently not much of an

orator An orator, or oratist, is a public speaker, especially one who is eloquent or skilled. Etymology Recorded in English c. 1374, with a meaning of "one who pleads or argues for a cause", from Anglo-French ''oratour'', Old French ''orateur'' (14th ...

; one historian called him a "long-winded bore". On the other hand, he was a fine barrister, and gave a particularly effective performance in the celebrated ''Annesley peerage case'' of 1745, which inspired the novel

Kidnapped Kidnapped may refer to: * subject to the crime of kidnapping Literature * ''Kidnapped'' (novel), an 1886 novel by Robert Louis Stevenson * ''Kidnapped'' (comics), a 2007 graphic novel adaptation of R. L. Stevenson's novel by Alan Grant and Ca ...

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...

. He was elected

Recorder of Cork The Recorder of Cork was a judicial office holder in pre-Independence Ireland. The Recorder was the chief magistrate of Cork city: his principal duty was to keep the peace. The office was very similar to that of the Recorder of Dublin, except that ...

in 1728, but decided not to take up the appointment, for reasons which are not clear.'''' He accepted the Recordership of Dublin in 1733 and held that office until 1750. Though he acted as a judge of

assize The courts of assize, or assizes (), were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes e ...

in 1741, he never became a High Court judge; some attributed his failure to the enmity of

Hugh Boulter Hugh Boulter (4 January 1672 – 27 September 1742) was the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh, the Primate of All Ireland, from 1724 until his death. He also served as the chaplain to George I from 1719. Background and education Boulter wa ...

, the influential Archbishop of Armagh, who had a habit of meddling in judicial appointments.

Friendship with Jonathan Swift

Stannard enjoyed the friendship of Jonathan Swift, who held him in high regard. He was one of the

executors An executor is someone who is responsible for executing, or following through on, an assigned task or duty. The feminine form, executrix, may sometimes be used. Overview An executor is a legal term referring to a person named by the maker of a ...

of Swift's will. In 1734, Swift, who by his own admission took little interest in politics in general, wrote to Stannard asking him to canvass for a Mr Gorges, who was standing for Parliament, simply because Gorges was a brother of Swift's beloved friend Lucy, Lady Howth "whose commands I dare not disobey". Swift's last known letter, dated 8 June 1741, was to Stannard, asking him to use his influence with his colleagues to advance the career of his young cousin William Swift, who had just started in practice at the Bar.

Serjeant-at-law

Stannard had been a popular Recorder of Dublin, but the decision to appoint him prime serjeant in 1754 in place of

Anthony Malone Anthony Malone (5 December 1700 – 8 May 1776) was an Irish lawyer and politician. Life The eldest son of Richard Malone of Baronston (or Baronstown) House, Ballynacarrigy, County Westmeath, who was a barrister like his three eldest sons, and ...

proved highly unpopular.Hart p. 96. Malone, who had been dismissed for querying the Crown's right to appropriate revenue, was regarded by the government as effectively a member of the opposition, but he was held in high regard by the public, and despite Stannard's long experience of law and politics he was not Malone's equal as a lawyer. Even so, this hardly explains the level of popular fury against Stannard, who was burnt in effigy. In any event the controversy was short-lived: Stannard, who was approaching seventy, fell ill in the spring of 1755 and died at his house at

St Stephen's Green St Stephen's Green () is a garden square and public park located in the city centre of Dublin, Ireland. The current landscape of the park was designed by William Sheppard. It was officially re-opened to the public on Tuesday, 27 July 1880 by ...

, Dublin.

Marriage and children

By his wife and distant cousin Elizabeth Travers, daughter of John Travers of Garycloyne Castle, near

Blarney Blarney () is a suburban town within the administrative area of Cork City in Ireland. It is located approximately north-west of the city centre. It is the site of Blarney Castle, home of the legendary Blarney Stone. Blarney is part of the Dáil ...

, he had several children, including John, his heir, George, and Catherine (died 1819).' John had two daughters and co-heiresses: *Cassandra, who married the Reverend Charles Eustace of Robertstown, County Kildare in 1801, and had five children; *Alicia, who married George Powell of Newgarden,

County Limerick "Remember Limerick" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Limerick.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Republic of Ireland, Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Provinces of Ireland, Province , subd ...

, but had no issue. As a result of Cassandra's marriage the Stannard lands at Ballydoyle, County Cork, passed into the Eustace family. George founded a longer-lasting branch of the Stannard family, who lived at The Priory, County CorkMontgomery-Massingberd, p. 388.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stannard, Eaton Politicians from County Cork 1685 births 1755 deaths Members of the Middle Temple Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Cork constituencies Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Irish MPs 1727–1760 Recorders of Dublin Serjeants-at-law (Ireland) 18th-century Irish judges Lawyers from County Cork Irish Queen's Counsel