Arthur O'Neill
The Honourable Arthur Edward Bruce O'Neill (19 September 1876 – 6 November 1914), was an Irish Ulster Unionist Party politician who was the first Member of Parliament to be killed in World War I.
Early life
O'Neill was the second but eldest surviving son of Edward O'Neill, 2nd Baron O'Neill, and his wife Lady Louisa Katherine Emma (née Cochrane). Hugh O'Neill, later Baron Rathcavan, was his younger brother.
Career
Military career
O'Neill joined the British Army in 1897. He saw active service in South Africa between 1899 and 1900, during the Second Boer War. He was awarded the Queen's South Africa Medal with three clasps.[1] In January 1902, he was temporary appointed Adjutant to the 2nd Regiment of Life Guards.[2]
O'Neill fought in the First World War as a Captain in the 2nd Life Guards and was killed in action at Klein Zillebeke ridge, 6 November 1914, aged 38, the first MP to be killed in the conflict.[3]
Political career
He was elected to the House of Commons for Mid-Antrim in 1910, succeeding his uncle Robert Torrens O'Neill. His brother Hugh succeeded him as MP for Mid-Antrim.
Personal life
O'Neill married, at St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, on 21 January 1902, Lady Annabel Crewe-Milnes, daughter of Robert Crewe-Milnes, 1st Marquess of Crewe. The Archbishop of Armagh, Primate of All Ireland, performed the ceremony.[4] Lady Annabel O'Neill later remarried and died in 1948.
O'Neill and his wife had five children; three boys and two girls. Their youngest child, Terence, was less than two months old at the time of his father's death.[5] Their eldest son Shane succeeded his grandfather in the barony in 1928, while their third son Terence O'Neill was Prime Minister of Northern Ireland between 1963 and 1969.
- Hon. Sibyl O'Neill (1902 to 1946), married Lt Col Edward North Buxton, MC in 1924
- Hon. Mary Louisa Hermione O'Neill (born 1905), married Lt Col Derek Ernest Frederick Orby Gascoigne in 1934
- Shane O'Neill, 3rd Baron O'Neill (1907 to 1944 KIA)
- Hon. Brian Arthur O'Neill (1911 to 1940 KIA)
- Terence O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of the Maine (1914 to 1990), Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
Notes
- ↑ "O’NEILL, Hon. Arthur Edward Bruce". Who Was Who. A & C Black. April 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27403. p. 716. 4 February 1902.
- ↑ CWGC entry
- ↑ "Court circular" The Times (London). Wednesday, 22 January 1902. (36671), p. 10.
- ↑ Mulholland, Marc (September 2012). "O'Neill, Terence Marne, Baron O'Neill of the Maine (1914–1990)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 33567. p. 45. 3 January 1930. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
- ↑ Lundy, Darryl. "Captain Hon. Arthur Edward Bruce O'Neill". The Peerage. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
References
- Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990,
- Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs
- Lundy, Darryl. "FAQ". The Peerage. External link in
|publisher=(help)
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Arthur O'Neill
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Robert Torrens O'Neill |
Member of Parliament for Mid Antrim January 1910 – 1914 |
Succeeded by Hugh O'Neill |