Sir Nicholas Roderick O'Conor (; 1843 – 19 March 1908) was an Anglo-Irish diplomat. When he died, Sir Nicholas was the British ambassador to Turkey."Sir Nicholas O'Conor Dead,"
''New York Times.'' 20 March 1908.

Early life

He was born, the youngest of three sons, to Patrick A. C. O'Conor and Jane ( French), into a cadet branch of the Catholic

O'Conor Don The O'Conor dynasty (Middle Irish: ''Ó Conchobhair''; Modern ) are an Irish noble dynasty and formerly one of the most influential and distinguished royal dynasties in Ireland. The O'Conor family held the throne of the Kingdom of Connacht up ...

family of

County Roscommon County Roscommon () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the province of Connacht and the Northern and Western Region. It is the List of Irish counties by area, 11th largest Irish county by area and Li ...

. He was raised on his family estate, Dun Dermot, on the Roscommon-

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

border. He was educated at

Stonyhurst College Stonyhurst College or Stonyhurst is a co-educational Catholic Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing education for boarding school, boarding and day school, day pupils, adhering to the Society of Jesus, Jesuit tradition. It is ...

Career

O'Conor entered the diplomatic service in 1866. In his early years, he was attached to the Embassy in Berlin, achieving the rank of Third Secretary in 1870. He served as Secretary at the Hague, Madrid, Rio de Janeiro, and Paris. He was trained in the diplomatic service by

Richard Lyons, 1st Viscount Lyons Richard Bickerton Pemell Lyons, 1st Earl Lyons (26 April 1817 – 5 December 1887) was a British diplomat, who was the favourite diplomat of Queen Victoria, during the four great crises of the second half of the 19th century: Italian unificat ...

, and was a member of the

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

-sympathetic 'Lyons School' of British diplomacy. He was Secretary and Chargé d'Affaires at Peking and Washington, Political Agent and Consul-General in Bulgaria.

Head of Mission

O'Conor's first ministerial appointment was at the British Legation at Peking. * 1892: In Seoul, O'Conor was the British Minister to the

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

. * 1895: In St. Petersburg, he was Ambassador of His Britannic Majesty in the Imperial court of the Russian Czar. * 1898: In Constantinople, he was Ambassador to the Court of the

Sublime Porte The Sublime Porte, also known as the Ottoman Porte or High Porte ( or ''Babıali''; ), was a synecdoche or metaphor used to refer collectively to the central government of the Ottoman Empire in Istanbul. It is particularly referred to the buildi ...

of the Ottoman Empire. In 1896, O'Conor was made a

Privy Counsellor The Privy Council, formally His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its members, known as privy counsellors, are mainly senior politicians who are current or former ...

. O'Conor died in Constantinople following a hemorrhage of the stomach. He was the first British ambassador to die in post in Turkey since Sir Edward Barton, Ambassador of

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

to Sultan Mehmet III, died in 1598 at the

Panagia Apsinthiotissa Panagia Apsinthiotissa or Absinthiotissa () is a Greek Orthodox monastery located at the southern foot of the Pentadaktylos range in the Republic of Cyprus. The nearest settlements are Sychari (Συγχαρί, Tr. Kaynakköy) and Vouno (Βουν ...

(now in Cyprus).

Family

He was married to Minna Margaret Hope-Scott (1862-1934), daughter of James Robert Hope-Scott, Q.C. (1812–1873) and Lady Victoria Hope-Scott (1840–1870). They had three daughters: Eldest daughter: Fearga Victoria Mary O'Conor (b. 1892, d. 22 March 1969), married her half first cousin, Rear-Admiral Malcolm Raphael Joseph Constable-Maxwell-Scott, son of Hon. Joseph Constable-Maxwell-Scott and Mary Monica Hope-Scott, on 6 September 1918. She died on 22 March 1969. They had three children: # Sir Michael Fergus Constable-Maxwell-Scott, 13th Bt. of the

Constable Maxwell-Scott baronets There have been two baronetcies created for members of the Haggerston, later Constable Maxwell-Scott family, one in the Baronetage of England and one in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. Only one creation is extant as of 2008. The Haggerston, ...

(b. 23 Jul 1921, d. 29 Nov 1989) # Elizabeth Mary Constable-Maxwell-Scott (b. 28 May 1924, d. 1991) # Ian Malcolm Constable-Maxwell-Scott (b. 18 July 1927, d. 27 November 1993) Middle daughter: Muriel Margaret Minna O'Conor (b. 1894), married Charles Joseph Nevile, son of Ralph Henry Christopher Nevile, on 21 April 1919. Youngest daughter: Eileen Winifred Madeleine O'Conor (1897-1963), married, in 1918, at the

Brompton Oratory Brompton Oratory, also known as the London Oratory, is a neo-classical late-Victorian Catholic parish church in the Brompton area of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, neighbouring Knightsbridge, London. Its name stems from Oratorian ...

, to

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

Prince Matyla Ghyka (1881–1965).

Arms

References

External links

The Papers of Sir Nicholas and Lady (Minna) O'Conor
held at

Churchill Archives Centre The Churchill Archives Centre (CAC) at Churchill College at the University of Cambridge is one of the largest repositories in the United Kingdom for the preservation and study of modern personal papers. It is best known for housing the papers ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oconor, Nicholas People from County Roscommon British diplomats 1843 births 1908 deaths Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Korea Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to the Ottoman Empire Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to the Russian Empire Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Nicholas Roderick Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People educated at St Stanislaus College