James Laurence Carew (1853 – 31 August 1903) was an

Irish nationalist Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...

politician and Member of Parliament (MP) in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

of the

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. A member of the

Irish Parliamentary Party The Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP; commonly called the Irish Party or the Home Rule Party) was formed in 1874 by Isaac Butt, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish national ...

and later a

Parnellite The Irish National League (INL) was a nationalist political party in Ireland. It was founded on 17 October 1882 by Charles Stewart Parnell as the successor to the Irish National Land League after this was suppressed. Whereas the Land League h ...

, he was MP for North Kildare from 1885 to 1892, for Dublin College Green from 1896–1900, and for South Meath from 1900 until he died in 1903.

Early life

Youngest son of Laurence Carew of Kildangan,

Kinnegad Kinnegad or Kinagad () is a town in County Westmeath, Ireland. It is on the border with County Meath, near the junction of the M6 and the M4 motorways - two of Ireland's main east–west roads. It is roughly 60 km from the capital, Dublin ...

, (then Co. Meath), Co Westmeath, and Anne, older daughter of Garrett Robinson of Kilrainy, Co. Kildare. Carew was educated at the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

St Stanislaus ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

' and

Clongowes Wood College Clongowes Wood College SJ is a voluntary boarding school for boys near Clane, County Kildare, Ireland, founded by the Jesuits in 1814, which features prominently in James Joyce's semi-autobiographical novel ''A Portrait of the Artist as a Yo ...

s and at

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 ...

, where he graduated in 1873. He was called to the

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Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

, London, in July 1874, and then practised as an

equity Equity may refer to: Finance, accounting and ownership * Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them ** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business ** Home equity, the dif ...

draftsman and

conveyancer In most Commonwealth countries, a conveyancer is a specialist lawyer who specialises in the legal aspects of buying and selling real property, or conveyancing. A conveyancer can also be (but need not be) a solicitor, licensed conveyancer, or a f ...

Career

He was elected to Parliament for North Kildare in the Irish Parliamentary Party landslide in the 1885 general election by a large majority over the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

candidate, and returned unopposed in the election of the following year. He assisted J. J. Clancy in running the Irish Press Agency in London. During the

Land War The Land War ( ga, Cogadh na Talún) was a period of agrarian agitation in rural Ireland (then wholly part of the United Kingdom) that began in 1879. It may refer specifically to the first and most intense period of agitation between 1879 and 18 ...

, in February 1889, he was prosecuted for a speech calling for the boycott of the

Earl of Drogheda Earl of Drogheda is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1661 for The 3rd Viscount Moore. History The Moore family descends from Sir Garrett Moore, a staunch friend of Hugh O'Neill, the Great Earl of Tyrone, whose submission ...

. Following his arrest, in

Perthshire Perthshire (locally: ; gd, Siorrachd Pheairt), officially the County of Perth, is a historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, ...

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, while campaigning in support of a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

by-election candidate, he was sentenced to four months imprisonment and confined in

Kilkenny Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilken ...

, and later

Kilmainham Gaol Kilmainham Gaol ( ga, Príosún Chill Mhaighneann) is a former prison in Kilmainham, Dublin, Ireland. It is now a museum run by the Office of Public Works, an agency of the Government of Ireland. Many Irish revolutionaries, including the lead ...

s. When the Irish Parliamentary Party split in December 1890 over the leadership of

Charles Stewart Parnell Charles Stewart Parnell (27 June 1846 – 6 October 1891) was an Irish nationalist politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1875 to 1891, also acting as Leader of the Home Rule League from 1880 to 1882 and then Leader of the ...

, Carew supported the latter. He then acted as one of the whips of the Parnellite parliamentary party. In the subsequent bitter 1892 general election, he was defeated by an Anti-Parnellite

Irish National Federation The Irish National Federation (INF) was a nationalist political party in Ireland. It was founded in 1891 by former members of the Irish National League (INL), after a split in the Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP) on the leadership of Charles S ...

candidate by 56 to 44 percent. He contested North Kildare again in 1895 and was defeated by a slightly smaller margin of 53 to 47 percent. The following year the opportunity to return to the House of Commons arose when his fellow Parnellite Dr.

J. E. Kenny Joseph Edward Kenny (1845 – 9 April 1900) was an Irish physician, Coroner of the City of Dublin, nationalist politician and Member of Parliament (MP). In the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, he was an Iris ...

resigned from the strongly Parnellite seat of Dublin College Green. Carew was selected and returned unopposed. Later in this parliamentary term, Carew came under attack in the

Irish Nationalist Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...

movement for attending royal functions. He also became associated with the Healyite faction in the

. Consequently, in 1900, he was opposed in Dublin College Green by a new Nationalist candidate, Joseph Nannetti. Although the exact circumstances appear to be disputed, he was additionally nominated for his native seat of South Meath, and elected unopposed because the sitting member John Howard Parnell, expecting no opposition, omitted to submit the fees necessary for nomination in a contested election. Carew subsequently stated in a letter to the press that his return at South Meath was secured without his knowledge or consent, and offered to resign in favour of Parnell or any other candidate nominated by the constituency. However, he was defeated at College Green and did not resign from South Meath. At the subsequent National Convention of the

United Irish League The United Irish League (UIL) was a nationalist political party in Ireland, launched 23 January 1898 with the motto ''"The Land for the People"''. Its objective to be achieved through agrarian agitation and land reform, compelling larger grazi ...

, Carew was excluded from the Irish Parliamentary Party, along with Timothy Healy. Whereas Healy was later reconciled, temporarily, with the IPP, Carew did not live long enough for this to occur. He died suddenly three years later, after having recently been appointed

High Sheriff of Kildare The High Sheriff of Kildare was the British Crown's judicial representative in County Kildare, Ireland from the 16th century until 1922, when the office was abolished in the new Free State and replaced by the office of Kildare County Sheriff. T ...

Personal life

In 1896, he married Helen (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Wyllie) Kennard (1856–1928), widow of Hugh Coleridge Kennard of the

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

and mother of Sir Coleridge Kennard, 1st Baronet.1901 Census return for 54 Hans Place, Chelsea He died suddenly on 31 August 1903, while on holiday at

St Moritz St. Moritz (also german: Sankt Moritz, rm, , it, San Maurizio, french: Saint-Moritz) is a high Alpine resort town in the Engadine in Switzerland, at an elevation of about above sea level. It is Upper Engadine's major town and a municipality in ...

Footnotes

Sources

* ''Freeman's Journal'', 2 October 1886, 12 December 1900, 1 September 1903 * ''The Times'' (London), 27 November 1885, 22 February and 5 March 1889, 5 July 1892, 14 July and 4 October 1900 * Brian M. Walker (ed.), ''Parliamentary Election Results in Ireland, 1801–1922'', Dublin, Royal Irish Academy, 1978 * ''Who Was Who'', 1897–1916

External links

*
James Laurence Carew (1853-1903), Politician; MP for several constituencies
at the

National Portrait Gallery, London The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London housing a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. It was arguably the first national public gallery dedicated to portraits in the world when it ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Carew, James Laurence 1853 births 1903 deaths Healyite Nationalist MPs Independent Nationalist MPs Irish Parliamentary Party MPs Parnellite MPs UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1886–1892 UK MPs 1895–1900 UK MPs 1900–1906 Alumni of Trinity College Dublin People educated at Clongowes Wood College High Sheriffs of Kildare Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Kildare constituencies (1801–1922) Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Dublin constituencies (1801–1922) Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Meath constituencies (1801–1922) People educated at St Stanislaus College