James Chambers QC (1863 – 11 June 1917) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

lawyer and Unionist politician.

Background and education

Chambers was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Chambers, of

Darkley Darkley () is a small village and townland near Keady in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 224 people (80 households) in the 2011 Census. (2001 Census: 282 people) History Darkley is first mentioned on the ''Maps of the ...

County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and ha ...

. Leaving

Lurgan College Lurgan College is a selective, non-denominational, co-educational 14-19 Grammar School, situated in the town of Lurgan, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. History In lieu of the establishment of Lurgan Model primary school in 1863, the town of Lur ...

, he proceeded to

Queen's College, Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

, where he studied Law, going on to the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

to complete his studies.

Legal and political career

Chambers was called to the Bar in 1885, serving in the North-East Circuit. In 1902 he

took silk In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...

, and three years later was elected a bencher of

King's Inns The Honorable Society of King's Inns ( ir, Cumann Onórach Óstaí an Rí) is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environment ...

. He sat as Unionist

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for South Belfast from 1910 to 1917 and was appointed

Solicitor-General for Ireland The Solicitor-General for Ireland was the holder of an Irish and then (from the Act of Union 1800) United Kingdom government office. The holder was a deputy to the Attorney-General for Ireland, and advised the Crown on Irish legal matters. On rar ...

in March 1917, in succession to James O'Connor, who became

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

. He retained this office until his death in June of the same year. In addition to his legal career, Chambers was an ardent Unionist, viz. an excerpt from a speech he made on the Home Rule debate : As regards the future, what if a day should come when Ireland would be clamouring for independence complete and thorough from Great Britain? … What side would we take then? (A voice : 'Germany!' ) I bind no man to my opinions. We owe to England allegiance, loyalty, and gratitude; but if England cast us off, then I reserve the right, as a betrayed man, to say: 'I shall act as I have a right to act. I shall sing no longer "God Save the King" ' … I say here solemnly that the day England casts us off and despises our loyalty and allegiance, that day I will say: 'England, I will laugh at your calamity, I will mock when your fear cometh'. — James Chambers K.C., M.P., South Belfast, May 23, 1913. He was one of the 10 signatories on the first page of the Ulster Covenant, as reported in the book ''Ulster's stand for Union'': : When Carson had signed the Covenant he handed the silver pen to Londonderry, and the latter's name was followed in order by the signatures of the Moderator of the General Assembly, the Lord Bishop of Down, Connor, and Dromore (afterwards Primate of All Ireland), the Dean of Belfast (afterwards Bishop of Down), the General Secretary of the Presbyterian Church, the President of the Methodist Conference, the ex-Chairman of the Congregational Union, Viscount Castlereagh, and Mr. James Chambers, M.P. for South Belfast; and the rest of the company, including the Right Hon. Thomas Sinclair and the veteran Sir William Ewart, as well as the members of the Corporation and other public authorities and boards, having attached their signatures to other sheets, the general public waiting outside were then admitted. Chambers died in June 1917.

Maurice Healy Maurice Healy (3 January 1859 – 9 November 1923) was an Irish nationalist politician, lawyer and Member of Parliament (MP). As a member of the Irish Parliamentary Party, he was returned to in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Gre ...

in his memoir ''The Old Munster Circuit'' remembered him with affection as a handsome and good-humoured man, and probably the best barrister on the North-East Circuit.

References

External links

*
Journal of the Craigavon Historical Society Vol. 6 No. 3
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chambers, James 1863 births 1917 deaths Solicitors-General for Ireland People from County Armagh Irish barristers Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Belfast constituencies (1801–1922) Irish Unionist Party MPs UK MPs 1910–1918 Alumni of the University of London