Justin Huntly McCarthy (1859 – 20 March 1936) was an Irish author, historian, and

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...

politician. He was a

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 o ...

(MP) from 1884 to 1892, taking his seat 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. T ...

of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

. He was the son of Justin McCarthy (1830–1912). Since both father and son were authors, historians, and Members of Parliament, they are sometimes confused in lists and compilations.

Political career

McCarthy was first elected to

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

at a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to ...

on 12 June 1884, when he was returned unopposed as the

Home Rule League The Home Rule League (1873–1882), sometimes called the Home Rule Party, was an Irish political party which campaigned for home rule for Ireland within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, until it was replaced by the Irish Parliam ...

member for

Athlone Athlone (; ) is a town on the border of County Roscommon and County Westmeath, Ireland. It is located on the River Shannon near the southern shore of Lough Ree. It is the second most populous town in the Midlands Region with a population of ...

, following the death of the Liberal MP Sir John James Ennis. Athlone lost its status as a

parliamentary borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

under the

Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 (48 & 49 Vict., c. 23) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a piece of electoral reform legislation that redistributed the seats in the House of Commons, introducing the concept of equal ...

, and at the 1885 general election McCarthy stood instead in the borough of Newry in

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to th ...

, where he was returned unopposed for 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 nation ...

. He was re-elected in

1886 Events January–March * January 1 – Upper Burma is formally annexed to British Burma, following its conquest in the Third Anglo-Burmese War of November 1885. * January 5– 9 – Robert Louis Stevenson's novella ''Strange ...

, with a comfortable majority over the

Liberal Unionist The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a politic ...

Reginald Saunders, but did not contest the 1892 election.

Writing

McCarthy wrote various novels, plays, poetical pieces and short histories. He was briefly married to the actress

Cissie Loftus Cecilia Loftus (born Marie Cecilia Loftus Brown; 22 October 1876 – 12 July 1943) was a Scottish actress, singer, mimic, vaudevillian, and music hall performer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Early life Loftus was born in Glasgow ...

. They married in Edinburgh in 1894, and though they divorced in 1899, she originated the role of Katherine de Vaucelles, the heroine in ''If I Were King'' in 1901. Among other works, he wrote biographies of Sir

Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet, (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850) was a British Conservative statesman who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835 and 1841–1846) simultaneously serving as Chancellor of the Excheque ...

(1891),

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-ol ...

(1896) and

William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-con ...

(1898). In 1889 he published prose translations of 466 quatrains of the ''

Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam ''Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám'' is the title that Edward FitzGerald gave to his 1859 translation from Persian to English of a selection of quatrains (') attributed to Omar Khayyam (1048–1131), dubbed "the Astronomer-Poet of Persia". Altho ...

''. He also wrote: In 1893, he translated some Gazels from Divan of Hafiz, the 14th century Persian poet, which was published in a 152-page volume by David Nutt. 1000 copies were made, 800 for England and 200 for America. *'' Serapion and Other Poems'' (1883) *'' Outline of Irish History'' (1883) *'' England under Gladstone, 1880-1885'', 2nd ed. (1885) *''Doom'' (1886) *'' Our Sensation Novel'' (1886) *''Hafiz in London'' (1886) *''Lady Burton's Edition of Her Husband's Arabian Nights Translated Literally from the Arabic'' (1886-1888); Prepared for Household Reading by Justin Huntly McCarthy, MD; 6 vols.; London: Waterlow & Sons, Limited, London Wall. *'' The Case for Home Rule'' (1887) *'' Camiola, a Girl with a Fortune'' (1888) *''An outline of Irish history: from the earliest times to the present day'' (1890) *''Lily Lass'' (1890) *'' The Fate of Fenella: A Novel'', co-written in 1892. * Divan of Hafiz, ''Gazels'', translated by J H McCarthy London: D.Nutt (1893) *''Modern England'' (1898) *

Michel de Montaigne Michel Eyquem, Sieur de Montaigne ( ; ; 28 February 1533 – 13 September 1592), also known as the Lord of Montaigne, was one of the most significant philosophers of the French Renaissance. He is known for popularizing the essay as a lit ...

, '' Essayes of Montaigne'' (1899) Justin Huntly McCarthy Editor *''Cissie Loftus: An Appreciation'' (1899) *''Reminiscences'' (2 vols., 1899) *''A Short History of the United States'' (1899) *''A Woman of Impulse'' (1899) was made into a film in 1918 '' Woman of Impulse'' *''The French Revolution,'' (1890 Vols 1,2 & 1897 Vols 3,4) *''A History of the Four Georges (and of William IV)'' (1901) with Justin McCarthy *''If I Were King'' (1901)

Garden Theatre (New York) The Garden Theatre was a major theatre on Madison Avenue and 27th Street in New York City, New York. The theatre opened on September 27, 1890, and closed in 1925. Part of the second Madison Square Garden complex, the theatre presented Broadway ...

, (1902)

St James's Theatre The St James's Theatre was in King Street, St James's, London. It opened in 1835 and was demolished in 1957. The theatre was conceived by and built for a popular singer, John Braham; it lost money and after three seasons he retired. A succ ...

(London)), which was named "Best Play of the 1901–02

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

Season", and was adapted into the 1925 operetta '' The Vagabond King'', its '' 1930 film version'', its '' 1956 film version'', and the 1938 film '' If I Were King''. *'' The Reign of Queen Anne'' (1902) *''Marjorie'' (1903) *''The Proud Prince'' (1903), the play opened at The Lyceum, Broadway, NY on 2 Nov 1903. *''The lady of Loyalty house'' (1904) *''The Dryad'' (1905) *''The flower of France'' (1906) *''The illustrious O'Hagan'' (1906) *''Needles and Pins'' (1907) *''Seraphica: A Romance'' (1907) *''The Duke's Motto: A Melodrama'' (1908) *''The god of love'' (1909) *''The gorgeous Borgia: a romance'' (1909) *''The O'Flynn: A Novel'' (1910) *''The king over the water: or, The marriage of Mr. Melancholy'' (1911) *''A health unto His Majesty'' (1912) *''Calling the Tune'' (1913) it was made into a musical film in 1936, ''

Calling the Tune ''Calling the Tune'' was a 1936 British musical drama film directed by Reginald Denham and Thorold Dickinson and starring Adele Dixon, Sally Gray and Sam Livesey. It was based on a play written by the Irish MP and novelist, Justin Huntly McCart ...

''. *''Fool of April'' (1914) *'' The Glorious Rascal (Pretty Maids All in a Row)'' (1915) *'' Nurse Benson'' (1919) *'' Henry Elizabeth'' (1920) *'' The Golden Shoe'' (1921) see internet catalogue for details
Justin Huntly McCarthy
/ref>

Family life

McCarthy married musical artist

Cecilia Loftus Cecilia Loftus (born Marie Cecilia Loftus Brown; 22 October 1876 – 12 July 1943) was a Scottish actress, singer, mimic, vaudevillian, and music hall performer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Early life Loftus was born in Glasgow, ...

in 1893 in Edinburgh, Scotland, but the marriage did not last long and was dissolved in 1899. He married again in 1908 to Loullie Killick. McCarthy died at his home in Putney on 20 March 1936."Deaths." Times ondon, England23 Mar. 1936: 1. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 31 May 2015.

References

;Secondary Sources * * * * *

External links

*Repository for ''Rubaiyat'' of Omar Khaiyyam
Trinity College Dublin Library
* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:McCarthy, Justin Huntly Irish non-fiction writers Irish male non-fiction writers Irish Parliamentary Party MPs Home Rule League MPs Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Athlone Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Newry (1801–1918) UK MPs 1880–1885 UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1886–1892 Translators of Omar Khayyám 1859 births 1936 deaths