'Carson ... was born in Dublin [on] 9 February 1854, the second son of Edward Henry Carson, a civil engineer ... . He was educated at Portarlington School and at Trinity College, Dublin, where he studied law ... . After taking his degree, he was called to the Irish bar ... in 1877. ... In 1887 he became junior counsel to the Attorney-General ... until, in 1889, he took silk. At the instance of A.J. Balfour ..., he was appointed Solicitor-General for Ireland in June 1892 ... . In July he was returned to parliament as one of the members for Dublin University, a seat which he continued to hold for 26 years. ... He was called to the English bar ... in 1893, becoming QC the following year. ... Carson's first success at the English bar was in the libel action brought in 1895 by Oscar Wilde against the Marquess of Queensberry, which caused him to be acknowledged by common consent as one of the foremost advocates at the bar.

Although he was invited to take office when the Unionists gained power in 1895, Carson refused: he was at the height of his powers as an advocate, and he felt it necessary to devote himself to his professional career. In 1900, however, having been sworn of the Irish Privy Council in 1896, he became Solicitor-General for England, an office which involved a knighthood and which he held until the fall of the Unionist administration in December 1905, when he was sworn of the [British] Privy Council. In January 1910 he was chosen as leader of the Irish Unionists in the House of Commons on the retirement of W.H. (afterwards Viscount) Long from that position. On the resignation of Balfour himself from the leadership of the opposition in the next year, Carson was one of the four men canvassed as possible successors, but he refused to allow his name to go forward, preferring to devote all his energies to the service of Irish Unionism. ...

When in the committee stage of the [Third] Home Rule Bill an amendment was put down ... to exclude the counties of Antrim, Down, Derry, and Armagh from the jurisdiction of the Dublin parliament, Carson advised that it should be supported. His colleagues had doubts, but ... unanimously supported him. Once more, at a gathering at Blenheim on 29 July, Bonar Law pledged the support of the unionists of England, and Carson announced that the people of Northern Ireland would shortly challenge the government to interfere with them if they dared, and would await the result with equanimity. This was followed by the drafting of a ... covenant ... which was to be signed all over the province on 28 September, known as "Ulster day". Carson described the covenant as a step forward, not in defiance, but in defence, not in a spirit of aggression nor of ascendancy, but with a full knowledge that Ulster would carry out everything which it meant, whatever the consequences. Following this up, Carson moved, in January 1913, the exclusion of the whole province of Ulster from the scope of the bill. The amendment was defeated, although Carson's speech made a powerful impression, and on 16 January the bill was read a third time. A fortnight later it was defeated in the Lords by a majority of 257, but it had only to be passed again in two succeeding sessions in order to become law, and therefore preparations were pushed forward in Ulster ... for a provisional government, and Carson, accepting the chairmanship of the central authority, said Ulster might be coerced into submission, but in that case ... would have to be governed as a conquered country. To the guarantee fund of £250,000 for members of the Ulster Volunteer Force and their dependants who might suffer as a result of their services, Carson subscribed immediately £10,000.

The importation of arms and ammunition into Ireland having been prohibited by royal proclamation in December 1913, correspondence took place between Carson and the Prime Minister, H.H. Asquith, which many people looked upon as the forerunner of some concessions on the part of the government. Carson, however, ... had no illusions on the subject, and his scepticism was shown on the subject, and his scepticism was shown to be well founded ... when it was announced that warships had been dispatched to Lamlash in the Isle of Aran, and that extra troops were to be rushed into Ulster. The immediate sequel was the "Curragh incident" (20 March), and the imminence of civil war was brought home to the world. Lastly, when the gun-running at Larne (24 April) was denounced by Asquith as a grave and unprecedented outrage, Carson replied that he took full responsibility for everything that had been done. ...

The promised amending bill was introduced and passed the Commons (25 May), but on 8 July the Lords substituted the permanent exclusion of the whole province of Ulster in the place of "county option". Rumours reached Carson that there were differences of opinion in the Cabinet over the amending bill. At the subsequent conference of party leaders opened at Buckingham Palace on 21 July, Carson and James Craig (afterwards Viscount Craigavon) attended as the Ulster representatives, and when, on 24 July, it broke down on the question [of] what portion of Ulster should be excluded, the amending bill, with "county option", was put down for second reading on 30 July. By then, however, the country was on the brink of war, and at Asquith's request, in order to avoid domestic controversy at such a crisis, Carson and Bonar Law consented to the postponement of the proceedings on the amending bill on the express assurance of the Prime Minister that "this was of course without prejudice to its future".

In Asquith's administration of May 1915, Carson was appointed Attorney-General. In the eighteen months of its existence, he became more and more dissatisfied with the way in which the government was being conducted, holding strong views about the delay in applying conscription, the necessity of a retreat from the Dardanelles, and the dishonour of Great Britain's abandonment of Serbia ... . The exigencies of war having still required the further postponement of the amending bill, Asquith renewed his pledge on the matter, but after the Easter rebellion in Dublin in 1916, the government, to the astonishment of everyone, proposed that negotiations should be opened for an arrangement for bringing the Home Rule Act into immediate operation, subject to an amending bill excluding the whole or a portion of Ulster. On behalf of the government, Lloyd George asked Carson to go to Belfast to try to persuade the people there to agree to the exclusion of the six counties. Carson consented, solely, as he said, "on account of the representations made to me as to the urgency of the matter for the prosecution of the war and the encouragement of America to join the Allies ...".

Carson's resignation from office in October 1916 heralded the break up of Asquith's administration. Under Lloyd George, who became Prime Minister in December 1916, Carson accepted office as First Lord of the Admiralty. His admiration for the men of the navy was unbounded and he avowed that the glory of success belonged only to the officers and men of the ships. His whole duty lay in serving them, in seeing that they got all that they required for their support in guns, ammunition and comfort. [But he also said that he] " ... would never have accepted office in [Lloyd George's] government except on the distinct understanding that no attempt would be made to violate these reiterated pledges not to put Ulster under Home Rule." ... In May [1917], under pressure from the Prime Minister, Carson consented to the setting up of a convention of representative Irishmen under the chairmanship of Sir Horace Plunkett, and it was said by Lloyd George that if this body could propose a settlement "by substantial agreement", the government would introduce legislation to give effect to it. But after it had sat for many months, the Prime Minister admitted that in the report of the convention there was no "substantial agreement". In January 1918, on learning that Lloyd George was intending to introduce a Home Rule Bill for the whole of Ireland, which it was generally assumed would be based on the majority report from which all the Ulster delegates had dissented, Carson, who had become a member of the War Cabinet in July 1917, resigned from the government.

... When the Government of Ireland Bill had been introduced on 25 February 1920, Carson went to Belfast and after a speech from him, the Ulster Unionist Council adopted a resolution disclaiming responsibility for the bill, but declaring that as there was no prospect of securing the repeal of the Act of 1914, the Ulster parliamentary representatives should not assume the responsibility of attempting to defeat it. Therefore when the rejection of the bill was moved on 31 March 1920, Carson rose and reiterated his opposition to the very end to the whole policy of Home Rule for Ireland. ... But he went on: "If I help to kill this bill, I bring automatically into force the Act of 1914", and he added, "It may turn out, as the leader of the House said yesterday, that under this bill, if it passes, the only part of Ireland which will have a parliament is the part that never asked for it. ... One thing I will promise you, that Ulster will do her level best with her parliament." ... When therefore the Government of Ireland Bill became law on 23 December 1920, many people believed that the great struggle had at last come to an end.

Carson now felt that his place should be taken by a younger man, and at a meeting of the Ulster Unionist Council held on 4 February 1921 he announced his resignation as leader of the Ulster Unionists. An urgent request to him to continue in office was met by the plea that it was a case of age and energy, and that he felt himself unequal to the task of undertaking the initiation and establishment of the new Northern Ireland parliament. Three months later (24 May) he left the House of Commons on appointment as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary. As a compliment to his old constituency he took the title of Baron Carson of Duncairn, and from his seat in the House of Lords he ... strongly protested against handing over the southern loyalists to their enemies under the "treaty" of 6 December with Sinn Fein. He also, on 11 May 1922, spoke very strongly in support of measures taken by the government for the protection of the old Royal Irish Constabulary, and once more he called attention to the treatment by Sinn Fein of British subjects in Ireland. At the end of October 1929 he resigned his office as Lord of Appeal in Ordinary.Last years and family life

In October 1926, in the course of a fortnight's stay in Ulster, Carson received the honorary degree of LL.D. from Queen's University, Belfast, and his last two visits were for the opening of the new parliament buildings at Stormont by the Prince of Wales in 1932 and for the unveiling of his own statue in front of these buildings in July 1933.

Soon after his eightieth birthday (1934) Carson fell seriously ill with bronchitis, and although he recovered, his health was undermined and he died at Cleve Court, Minster, Kent, 22 October 1935. He was given a state funeral in Belfast and was buried in St Anne's Cathedral.

Carson was twice married: first, in 1879 to Sarah Annette Foster (died 1913), adopted daughter of Henry Persse Kirwan, of Triston Lodge, Co. Galway, and had two sons and two daughters of whom the elder son and younger daughter pre-deceased their father; secondly, in 1914, to Ruby, elder daughter of Lieutenant-Colonel Stephen Frewen ..., and had one son, [Edward], who was ... conservative member of parliament for the Isle of Thanet ... [1945-1953] ...'.

H. Montgomery Hyde's Carson: The Life of Sir Edward Carson, Lord Carson of Duncairn (London, 1953), although dated in some of its interpretations, is based on the wide range of documentary materials. It has been reprinted several times (most recently in 1987), and represents an accessible and comprehensive analysis of its subject. Like the Marjoribanks and Colvin volumes, it was written as an act of piety. A.T.Q. Stewart's Edward Carson (Dublin, 1981) is an elegant synthesis of earlier work, with some additional reflections based on archives not available to Montgomery Hyde. There are fine essays on Carson by R.B. McDowell, in Conor Cruise O'Brien (ed.), The Shaping of Modern Ireland (London, 1960); by J.C. Beckett, in his Confrontations: Studies in Irish History (London, 1972); and by George Boyce, in Ciaran Brady (ed.), Worsted in the Game: Losers in Irish History (Dublin, 1989).

The contemporary, or ephemeral, literature on Carson merits a monograph. There are numerous highly celebratory accounts written during his lifetime and designed for popular consumption by Irish loyalists. These include: Jean V. Bates, Sir Edward Carson (London, 1921) and T.H. Moles, Lord Carson of Duncairn (Belfast, 1925). In commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of Carson's death, which fell in 1985, Jim Allister and Peter Robinson resurrected this genre with their Carson: Man of Action (Belfast, 1985). Liberals and Nationalists sought to offer correctives: George Peel, The Reign of King Carson (London, 1914) and St John Ervine, Sir Edward Carson and the Ulster Movement (Dublin, 1915). The latter is a curiosity - a highly critical portrayal by a leading Irish author who would later celebrate James Craig and damn 'Éire' in Craigavon: Ulsterman (London, 1949). ...'

Some references to Carson's legal career do survive in the archive, and also reflect the persona of the man. In a postcard collection entitled 'Straight Line Caricatures', the reverse of the card (D/1507/F/1/5) describes him as 'A fighter with a bludgeon rather than a rapier. He can terrify a plaintiff and subdue a judge. His large hatchet face, heavy nose, scornful eyes, and obstinate lower lip all reveal a man who knows his own mind and will let nothing stand in his way.' James O'Connor, former Lord Justice of Appeal in Ireland, described Carson as having 'a knowledge of human nature, an instinct in the detection of falsehood and a tenacity in following up a clue that made him a master in the art of cross-examination'.

The major runs of letters in the Irish section are from Richard Dawson Bates, Secretary to the Ulster Unionist Council (and later first Minister of Home Affairs in the Northern Ireland Government), and from Alexander (later Sir Alexander) McDowell of Carson & McDowell, Royal Avenue, Belfast, the solicitor who acted for Carson and for the UUC. A small proportion of the letters are anonymous and threatening; some, later, deal with appeals from Irish ex-servicemen and indigent Protestants in the Irish Free State. But, generally, the letters relate to aspects of Carson's political career or contain advice from friends and well-wishers. Highlights and/or curiosities of the Irish section include several letters from a former Nationalist MP, Dr Edward C. Thompson of Omagh, with suggested alterations in the Home Rule Bill. In January 1914, a Miss C.S. Williams, 'private secretary to one of the Undersecretaries', reveals a plan by members of the government, Asquith, McKenna and Pease, to 'procrastinate until the patience of the hooligan element in Belfast is exhausted and they begin to riot. This is the moment when troops (they have decided which regiments are to be sent) will step in and crush the riots and, incidentally, a few of the Loyalists ...' There are also papers about the Irish situation in 1917, after the release of the Easter Rising prisoners.

Much of the Irish material is composed of memoranda by various people on possible variations of Home Rule or alternatives to it. Several documents relate to the position of Unionist minorities in the South of Ireland under a Home Rule Parliament and are concerned to safeguard their position. A further small section deals with the 1919 dispute in the East Antrim constituency Unionist party, and there are also copies of Ulster Unionist Council circulars to Unionist MPs. Both Nationalist and Unionist attitudes to such matters as conscription, recruiting, the government attitude to Ireland, and the progress of the Home Rule Bill, are well documented in press cuttings from journals such as The Irish Volunteer, Notes from Ireland and Irish Freedom, as well as from British national newspapers. There is a small section of letters and papers relating to General Sir George Richardson and the Ulster Volunteer Force, including his negotiations with the War Office at the outbreak of war. Other UVF correspondents include General C.H. Powell and Colonel G. Hacket Pain. There are also notes for speeches made by Carson on the exclusion of Ireland from the Compulsory Services Act, on conscription, on taking office in 1915 and on the Irish Settlement proposals of 1921.

A small, but important, group of letters deals with the reaction of the Monaghan and Cavan delegates in the Ulster Unionist Council to the news in 1916 that they had been omitted from the Excluded Area. In contrast to the 11th Lord Farnham and Major Somerset Saunderson, representing Co. Cavan, the Monaghan delegates pledged their 'absolute loyalty' to Carson on this highly emotive issue.

They include Carson's' papers as a Cabinet Minister from 25 September 1915 to 20 November 1917. There is no proper series of Cabinet Papers, except for Imperial War Cabinet Papers dealing with the inauguration of a definite peace policy. These latter include: 'The Suggested Basis of a Territorial Settlement'; 'The Possible Terms of Peace'; a memorandum on the German peace proposals by Field-Marshal Sir William Robertson; a memorandum on the effect of an indemnity by J.M. Keynes; and the report of the Committee on Territorial Changes. A smaller group of documents are the reports on the Russian situation in 1917 from Lt-Colonel Blair in Petrograd. Other Cabinet Papers deal with such topics as: the American attitude to the War; the problem of Serbia and the Near East in 1915; the food situation in March 1917 due to the sinking of supply ships by German submarines; the ship-building programme to 1917; the strategic value of Heligoland; and several reports on the changes in the French Command, especially the substitution of Pétain for Nivelle, and their possible effect upon the French offensive.

Papers of January 1917 include a printed memo. by Carson marked 'Private and confidential' and entitled 'The Battle Fleets and the Air Service'. This argues that the Germans' supremacy at sea is dependent upon their supremacy in the air owing to their Zeppelins, which could only be completely operational in calm weather conditions. It was proposed by a 'distinguished admiral' that the menace of the Zeppelins could only be properly countered by the use of 'small fast aeroplanes, carried by our Battle Fleet' (in effect the creation of aircraft carriers). The Admiralty was 'insistent on the fact that even if the aeroplane were lost and the man interned, it would be a cheap investment, if it succeeded in destroying or driving the Zeppelins back to their base and so deprive the German fleet of its eyes'. An important Allied policy document, marked 'secret' is also included; it states that 'before the Allies can hope to secure any real success against the Central Powers they must adopt a definite common policy and carry it out under a single direction. This can only be achieved if one power in the Alliance makes it its business to find that policy and to enforce that direction. On the side of our opponents that power is Germany'.

In February 1917, Carson received numerous letters from representatives of the British Merchant Fleet regarding the perilous conditions under which they were having to operate, especially in the North Sea and 'around Iceland and Faroe, where if the Germans attack, it will be like a fox getting into a hen roost'. Also included is a report marked 'confidential' and entitled 'The Economic Situation in Germany and Austria - Hungary'. Carson's letters and papers for March 1917 include a letter from Lord Northcliffe insisting that an enemy air raid on Broadstairs, Kent, was conducted for photographic reconnaissance purposes. It also severely criticises press censorship of the raid. In reply, Carson contradicts Northcliffe's supposition and states that the raid was in retaliation for a 'successful attack that had been made from Dunkirk on Zeebrugge'. Also present is a memorandum from Carson regarding the establishment of Shipyard Workers Battalions in the armed forces.

The entry for 11 February is interesting in that Lady Carson talks of impending personnel changes within the Army; 'Lloyd George is going to kick Gen. Robertson out and put Sir Henry Wilson in his place or in Haig's, as I suppose he will have to go too. Really one despairs of the poor country with such dreadful, dishonest politicians running things. Gen. Wilson is only an intriguer and all for himself, which is despicable. The Army at the front except a few of his admirers, and I believe they are very few, call him "Blackleg" - how loathsome it all is, but I suppose having a Prime Minister who distrusts everyone but himself does lead to these things'. Lloyd George increasingly becomes an object of hate for Lady Carson, who describes him as 'cowardly', 'a liar' and the 'scum of the earth'.

On 20 January 1922, 'James Craig came early to see Edward, Col. Spender came with him. Col. S and I agreed that we were longing to see de Valera's party and Collin's party at each others throats and a real row. I am sure we shall'. The following day James Craig returned at tea time. 'He had had 3 hours interview with Michael Collins and they had made out a document of agreement and they both signed it. Edward didn't like it much and said he would never have been a party to it, nor would he have met Collins. He didn't say this to James as he says he has many difficulties in Ulster and I expect he will find this document will make more'. The February 12th entry mentions that 'Edward went on to [Sir John] Lavery who is painting him, to give to Belfast. I would like to see the picture but I cannot go as Lady Lavery had de Valera to tea and wants to get Michael Collins and is a dreadful Sinn Feiner and I don't want to meet her'.

A naïve entry is made on 23 June 1924, when 'Mr Healy came to tea with a Lady Gregory from Galway. She is a regular Sinner and talked about Michael Collins. They want the Lane pictures for Dublin'. Equally naïve (but perhaps representative of her class and generation) are her comments of 31 May 1929 on the British election results. 'London and all the industrial centres have gone clear mad Red. The Socialist won't have a clear majority over us and the Liberals - so it will be just stalemate. I am sure its all those horrible girls in the factories. Baldwin must have been mad when he gave them the vote'. On 5 June, Lord and Lady Carson attended an 'Ark' dinner party at the Londonderrys, noted in her diary as 'a most magnificent affair, diamonds and jewels galore. Everyone seemed cheerful. I think probably because the Socialists aren't strong enough to do much - how thankful I am that I am not one of them'. The entry for 7 June, notes the formation of the new Labour ministry: 'the Socialist Cabinet came out, what dirty dogs there are in the world'.

The only advantage of the old calendars is that they run to lengthy, though not always accurate, transcription. In the new arrangement, there has been detailed calendaring of D/1507/A1-27 (the first 27 sub-sections of the Irish section); thereafter, the detail is reduced to summary listing.

A.P.W. Malcomson
Steven Corr