Colonel James Martin McCalmont (23 May 1847 – 2 February 1913) was a British Army officer and Conservative, later Irish Unionist, politician.

Early life and education

McCalmont was born in May 1847, second and final son of James McCalmont (1819–1849), JP, DL for County Antrim, and his wife Emily Anne Martin (1827–1901). His older brother was Major-General Sir Hugh McCalmont, Member of Parliament for North Antrim from 1895 to 1899. Both he and his brother were educated at Eton College.

Military career

After leaving Eton, McCalmont joined the

8th Hussars The 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1693. It saw service for three centuries including the First and Second World Wars. The regiment survived the immediate post-war reduction in forces, ...

as a

Cornet The cornet (, ) is a brass instrument similar to the trumpet but distinguished from it by its conical bore, more compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B, though there is also a sopr ...

in 1866. He was promoted to Lieutenant in 1869, then

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in 1871. He retired from the Hussars in 1874, in order to pursue a career in politics. Two years later, he resumed his career as a Lieutenant with the Denbighshire Hussars and was re-promoted to captain in 1877. During this time, he served as A.D.C. to The Duke of Marlborough, Viceroy of Ireland, and his successor Earl Cowper. McCalmont resigned his commission again in 1883. He was made an honorary Colonel to the

Antrim Artillery The Antrim Artillery was a part-time reserve unit of Britain's Royal Artillery based in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, from 1853 to 1919. It numbered 1st on the order of precedence of the Militia Artillery. Volunteers from the unit served in the ...

in the 1890s.

Political career

Having left the military, McCalmont was eligible to stand in the 1874 general election, and he was nominated as one of three candidates for the Home Rule League in

Longford Longford () is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It has a population of 10,008 according to the 2016 census. It is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the county's population lives there. Longford lies at the meet ...

. The election was won by Myles O'Reilly and George Errington, with McCalmont receiving only 26 votes. Following this defeat he returned to the military for a further seven years, before again retiring to stand for the newly created Antrim East constituency as a Conservative candidate in

1885 Events January–March * January 3– 4 – Sino-French War – Battle of Núi Bop: French troops under General Oscar de Négrier defeat a numerically superior Qing Chinese force, in northern Vietnam. * January 4 – ...

. He was elected, and was subsequently re-elected for a further seven elections, holding the seat until his death. From 1892 he was a member of the

Irish Unionist party The Irish Unionist Alliance (IUA), also known as the Irish Unionist Party, Irish Unionists or simply the Unionists, was a unionist political party founded in Ireland in 1891 from a merger of the Irish Conservative Party and the Irish Loyal and P ...

. During his time in parliament, McCalmont was heavily involved in Irish and military affairs, particularly with regards to the increasingly dominant subject of Irish home rule. He was involved in the defeat of the Irish Home Rule Bill in 1886 and 1893.

Personal life & death

McCalmont was married to Mary Caroline Romer (1859–1922) in

Dolgelly Dolgellau () is a town and community in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, lying on the River Wnion, a tributary of the River Mawddach. It was the traditional county town of the historic county of Merionethshire ( cy, Meirionnydd, Sir Feirionnydd) u ...

, Wales, in 1880. The couple had two children, Robert and Margaret. Outside of politics, McCalmont was a keen pianist and sportsman. He frequently entered the

Waterloo Cup The Waterloo Cup was a coursing event organised by the National Coursing Club. The three-day event was run annually at Great Altcar in Lancashire, England from 1836 to 2005 and it used to attract tens of thousands of spectators to watch and gamble ...

, and was heavily involved in the development of the Royal Portrush Golf Club. McCalmont made his final public appearance in September 1912 at a demonstration regarding the Home Rule Crisis. He died in February 1913, aged 65, following a short illness. His death resulted in a by-election in Antrim East, and his son,

Robert McCalmont Brigadier-General Sir Robert Chaine Alexander McCalmont (29 August 1881 – 4 November 1953) was a Northern Irish unionist politician and British Army officer. Macalmont was born in Merrion Square East in Dublin, the son of Colonel and MP Ja ...

succeeded him as MP until 1919.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McCalmont, James Martin 1847 births 1913 deaths Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Antrim constituencies (1801–1922) Irish Conservative Party MPs Irish Unionist Party MPs UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1886–1892 UK MPs 1892–1895 UK MPs 1895–1900 UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs 1906–1910 UK MPs 1910 UK MPs 1910–1918 People educated at Eton College 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars officers