Hugh McCalmont Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns (27 December 1819 – 2 April 1885), was an Irish-born British statesman who served as

Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. Th ...

during the first two ministries of

Benjamin Disraeli Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman and Conservative politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a central role in the creation ...

. He was one of the most prominent

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 in ...

statesmen in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...

during this period of Victorian politics. He served as the seventeenth

Chancellor of the University of Dublin Introduction This is a list of chancellors of the University of Dublin, founded in 1592. Chancellors of the University of Dublin * 1592 – 1598: The 1st Baron Burghley * 1598 – 1601: The 2nd Earl of Essex * 1601 – 1612: The ...

between 1867 and 1885.

Background and education

Cairns was born at Cultra,

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 ...

, Ireland. His father, William Cairns, formerly a

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 the 47th regiment, came from a family of Scottish origin which moved to Ireland around 1715. Hugh Cairns was the second son, and was educated at Belfast Academy 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 ...

, graduating with a senior moderatorship in

classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

in 1838.''Alumni Dublinenses : a register of the students, graduates, professors and provosts of Trinity College in the University of Dublin (1593–1860)'',

George Dames Burtchaell George Dames Burtchaell, KC, MA, LLB, MRIA, JP (12 June 1853 – 18 August 1921) was an Irish genealogist. Education Burtchaell was educated at Kilkenny College and Trinity College, Dublin. Career *Barrister King's Inns, 1879 * KC 1918 ...

/ Thomas Ulick Sadleir p. 125: Dublin, Alex Thom and Co, 1935 In 1844 he was called to the Bar by the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's I ...

, to which he had moved from

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.) Lincol ...

Legal and political career

During his first years at the Chancery Bar, Cairns showed little eloquence. He was so slow and diffident that he feared for his legal career. However, in 1852, he entered

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 ...

as member for

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

, and he became a QC in 1856. In 1858 Cairns was appointed Solicitor-General and was

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

ed, and in May of that year made two of his most brilliant and best-remembered speeches 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 ...

. In the first, he defended the action of Lord Ellenborough, who, as

President of the Board of Control The President of the Board of Control was a British government official in the late 18th and early 19th century responsible for overseeing the British East India Company and generally serving as the chief official in London responsible for Indian ...

, had not only censured

Lord Canning Charles Canning, 1st Earl Canning, (14 December 1812 – 17 June 1862), also known as The Viscount Canning and Clemency Canning, was a British statesman and Governor-General of India during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and the first Vice ...

for a proclamation issued by him as

Governor-General of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 1 ...

but had made public the despatch in which the censure was conveyed. On the other occasion referred to, Cairns spoke in opposition to

Lord John Russell John Russell, 1st Earl Russell, (18 August 1792 – 28 May 1878), known by his courtesy title Lord John Russell before 1861, was a British Whig and Liberal statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1852 and a ...

's amendment to the motion for the second reading of the government Reform Bill, winning the approval of

. Disraeli's appreciation found an opportunity for displaying itself some years later, when in 1868 he invited him to be Lord Chancellor in the brief

administration which followed Lord Derby's resignation of the party leadership. Meanwhile, Cairns had maintained his reputation in debate, both when his party was in power and when it was in opposition. In 1866 Lord Derby, returning to office, appointed Cairns

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

, and in the same year he had availed himself of a vacancy to seek the comparative rest of the

Court of Appeal A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much ...

. While a Lord Justice he had been offered a peerage, and though at first unable to accept it, he had finally done so when a relative provided the means necessary for the endowment of a title. The appointment of Baron Cairns as Lord Chancellor in 1868 meant superseding

Lord Chelmsford Viscount Chelmsford, of Chelmsford in the County of Essex, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1921 for Frederic Thesiger, 3rd Baron Chelmsford, the former Viceroy of India. The title of Baron Chelmsford, of Chelms ...

, an act apparently carried out by Disraeli with little tact. Chelmsford declared that he had been sent away with less courtesy than if he had been a butler, but the testimony of

Lord Malmesbury Earl of Malmesbury is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1800 for the diplomat James Harris, 1st Baron Malmesbury. The son of the grammarian and politician James Harris, he served as Ambassador to Spain, Prussia, Russia ...

is that the affair was the result of an understanding arrived at when Lord Chelmsford took office. Disraeli held office on this occasion for only a few months. In 1869, Cairns succeeded Lord Malmesbury as the leader of the Conservative opposition in the

He had distinguished himself in the Commons by his resistance to the Roman Catholics Oath Bill brought in 1865; in the Lords, his efforts on behalf of the Irish Church were equally strenuous. His speech on Gladstone's Suspensory Bill was afterwards published as a pamphlet, but the attitude which he and the peers who followed him had taken up, in insisting on their amendments to the preamble of the bill, was one difficult to maintain, and Lord Cairns made terms with

Lord Granville Earl Granville is a title that has been created twice, once in the Peerage of Great Britain and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It is now held by members of the Leveson-Gower family. First creation The first creation came in the Pee ...

in circumstances which precluded his consulting his party first. He issued a circular to explain his action. The incident appears to have demonstrated his statesmanship, for he secured concessions which would have been irretrievably lost by continued opposition. Not long after this, Lord Cairns resigned the leadership of his party in the upper house, but resumed it in 1870 and opposed the Irish Land Bill in that year. Upon the Conservatives' return to power in 1874, he again became Lord Chancellor; in 1878 he was created Viscount Garmoyle and Earl Cairns; and in 1880 his party went out of office. In opposition he did not take as prominent a part as previously, but when Disraeli (by then created Earl of Beaconsfield) died in 1881, there were some Conservatives who considered that his claim to lead the party was better than that of Lord Salisbury. His health, never robust, had for many years shown intermittent signs of failing. He had periodically made enforced retirements to the Riviera, and for many years had had a house at

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the English ...

, and it was there that he died. Lord Cairns was a great supporter of

Barnardo's Barnardo's is a British charity founded by Thomas John Barnardo in 1866, to care for vulnerable children. As of 2013, it raised and spent around £200 million each year running around 900 local services, aimed at helping these same group ...

and was called upon by Dr.

Thomas John Barnardo Thomas John Barnardo (4 July 184519 September 1905) was an Irish-born philanthropist and founder and director of homes for poor and deprived children. From the foundation of the first Barnardo's home in 1867 to the date of Barnardo's death, ne ...

to open his first girl's home at

Barkingside Barkingside is an area in Ilford, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It includes the major road junction of ''Fullwell Cross'' which also gives its name to the locality near that roundabout. The area is situated 10.6 miles (17km) north east of ...

, Ilford, Essex, on 9 July 1876. Today Cairns house still stands on the one remaining green at Barkingside which was built by the children of England in memory of the First President of Dr Barnardo's Homes, The Right Honourable Earl Cairns. Cairns House was officially opened 6 August 1887.

Legacy

Of his legal attainments there can be no doubt. His influence upon the legislation of the day was largely felt where questions affecting religion and the

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chri ...

were involved and in matters peculiarly affecting his own profession. His power was felt, as has been said, both when he was in office and when his party was in opposition. He had been chairman of the committee on judicature reform, and although he was not in office when the

Judicature Acts In the history of the courts of England and Wales, the Judicature Acts were a series of Acts of Parliament, beginning in the 1870s, which aimed to fuse the hitherto split system of courts of England and Wales. The first two Acts were the Supr ...

were passed, all the reforms in the legal procedure of his day owed much to him. He took part, when out of office, in the passing of the Married Women's Property Act 1882, and was directly responsible for the Conveyancing Acts, and for the Settled Land Act. Many other statutes in which be was largely concerned might be quoted. His judgments are to be found in the Law Reports and those who wish to consider his oratory should read the speeches above referred to, or that delivered in the

on the

Compensation for Disturbance Bill The Compensation for Disturbance Bill (Ireland - 1880), under pressure from John O'Connor Power, member for Mayo, was introduced by Ireland's Chief Secretary, W.E. Forster, on 18 June 1880 as a temporary measure to deal with a deteriorating sit ...

in 1880, and his memorable criticism of Mr Gladstone's policy in the Transvaal, after

Majuba Hill The Battle of Majuba Hill on 27 February 1881 was the final and decisive battle of the First Boer War that was a resounding victory for the Boers. The British Major General Sir George Pomeroy Colley occupied the summit of the hill on the night ...

Family

Lord Cairns married, in 1856, Mary Harriet, eldest daughter of John MacNeile, of

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population ...

, by whom he had five sons and two daughters. He was succeeded in the earldom by his second but eldest surviving son, Arthur William Cairns, who left one daughter, and from whom the title passed to his two next younger brothers in succession, Herbert John Cairns, third Earl (1863–1905), and Wilfred Dallas Cairns, fourth Earl (1865–1946).

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cairns, Hugh Mccalmont Cairns, Hugh McCalmont Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns, Hugh McCalmont Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns, Hugh McCalmont Cairns, 1st Earl People from County Down Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Chancellors of the University of Dublin UK MPs 1852–1857 UK MPs 1857–1859 UK MPs 1859–1865 UK MPs 1865–1868 UK MPs who were granted peerages Cairns, Hugh McCalmont Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns, Hugh McCalmont Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns, Hugh McCalmont Cairns, 1st Earl Solicitors General for England and Wales Attorneys General for England and Wales Ulster Scots people People educated at the Belfast Royal Academy Irish Conservative Party MPs Irish Anglicans Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Belfast constituencies (1801–1922) Members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council Peers of the United Kingdom created by Queen Victoria