Eleanor Butler (7 September 1914 – 21 February 1997), also known as Lady (Countess of) Wicklow, was an Irish Labour Party politician and architect.

Background

Butler was born on 7 September 1914, the daughter of Rudolf Maximilian Butler, who was the first Professor of Architecture in

University College Dublin University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...

. Butler had a

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

attack at age six. Shortly after achieving a bachelor's degree in architecture from

at age 24 in 1938, had a riding accident that required a year of care in St Vincent's Hospital. Both incidents almost left her without the ability to walk. On the second occasion, she resolved that if she kept her ability to walk that she would try to lead a life of service to others. Her father's influence also pushed her towards public life; early in her life, despite being a Protestant family, he pushed her to base her morality on

Catholic social teaching Catholic social teaching (CST) is an area of Catholic doctrine which is concerned with human dignity and the common good in society. It addresses oppression, the role of the state, subsidiarity, social organization, social justice, and w ...

such as

social justice Social justice is justice in relation to the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society where individuals' rights are recognized and protected. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has of ...

. Later in life she converted to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, as well as marrying a convert to Catholicism.

Political career

She became a Labour member of

Dublin Corporation Dublin Corporation (), known by generations of Dubliners simply as ''The Corpo'', is the former name of the city government and its administrative organisation in Dublin since the 1100s. Significantly re-structured in 1660–1661, even more si ...

, and was chosen by the party in 1945 to visit Britain to investigate modern British housing. She ran as a Labour candidate for the Dáil in 1948, before she was

nominated by the Taoiseach A candidate, or nominee, is a prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position. For example, one can be a candidate for membership in a group or election to an office, in which case a ...

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann ( ; ; "Senate of Ireland") is the senate of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (defined as the house of representatives). It is commonly called the Seanad or ...

in April 1948, where she served until 1951. On 2 September 1959 she married

William Howard, 8th Earl of Wicklow William Cecil James Philip John Paul Howard, 8th Earl of Wicklow (30 October 1902 – 8 February 1978), styled Lord Clonmore until 1946, was an Anglo-Irish peer. Biography He was the only child of Ralph Howard, 7th Earl of Wicklow and the C ...

, cementing a thirteen-year long courtship. They had no children. Lady Wicklow was attached to the

Moral Re-Armament Moral Re-Armament (MRA) was an international moral and spiritual movement that, in 1938, developed from American minister Frank Buchman's Oxford Group. Buchman headed MRA for 23 years until his death in 1961. In 2001, the movement was renamed I ...

movement, and in the 1970s became deeply concerned about

The Troubles The Troubles () were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted for about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it began in the late 1960s and is usually deemed t ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

. Under her leadership, 20 women's organisations in the Republic of Ireland formed together to lobby on behalf of peace in Northern Ireland, eventually creating groups such as the Southern Movement for Peace and Co-operation North: the Ireland Fund of America.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, Eleanor 1914 births 1997 deaths 20th-century Irish architects Labour Party (Ireland) senators Members of the 6th Seanad 20th-century women members of Seanad Éireann Nominated members of Seanad Éireann Politicians from County Dublin

Wicklow Wicklow ( ; , meaning 'church of the toothless one'; ) is the county town of County Wicklow in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located on the east of Ireland, south of Dublin. According to the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, it had ...

Irish women architects Converts to Roman Catholicism from Protestantism Architects from County Dublin