Henry Matthews, 1st Viscount Llandaff
Encyclopedia
Henry Matthews, 1st Viscount Llandaff PC
, QC
(13 January 1826 – 3 April 1913) was a British
lawyer and Conservative
politician. He is best remembered for his role in the 1885 Sir Charles Dilke
divorce trial and for his tenure as Home Secretary
from 1886 to 1892.
family, Matthews was born in Ceylon, where his father, Henry Matthews (1789-1828), was a puisne judge of the Supreme Court. His grandfather John Matthews
had represented Herefordshire
in Parliament in the early years of the 19th century. His mother was Emma (d. 1861), daughter of William Blount. Matthews was educated at the University of Paris
, graduating in 1844, before going on to study at the University of London
, from which he graduated successively BA
and LLB
.
, Lincoln's Inn
, in 1850 and practised on the Oxford
circuit before becoming secretary to the Earl Marshal
in 1864, a position he held for five years. He was made a Queen's Counsel
in 1868. At the bar, Matthews made a good name for himself, being especially noted for examination of witnesses. Most famous was his 1885 cross examination of Sir Charles Dilke
in a famous divorce case, which essentially destroyed Dilke's political career and launched that of Matthews.
for Dungarvan
. He described himself as an 'Independent Liberal
and Conservative'. He was a Roman Catholic and supported the disestablishment of the Church of Ireland
and was vaguely sympathetic to the Home Rule movement, but this could not prevent his defeat by a Home Rule candidate in the 1874 General Election
. He then revised his views on politics and revived his political career as a Conservative in Britain, but in the circumstances of the struggle over Gladstone's
Home Rule Bill, his previous position meant that he was distrusted by strong Unionists.
He returned to Parliament
as Conservative member for Birmingham East
in 1886, and was immediately appointed as Home Secretary
in Lord Salisbury's
second government. Queen Victoria
reportedly demanded his inclusion after his performance in the Sir Charles Dilke divorce trial, which she approved of. He was sworn of the Privy Council at the same time.
Matthews' tenure of the office was notable more for its administrative success than for political achievement. He was thought 'too clever' and his aloof and 'somewhat foreign' manner made it difficult for him to command the House of Commons. In 1887, he gave a seemingly flippant response in the House to a genuine question about the mistaken arrest of Miss Cass
, who was accused of prostitution
, which resulted in the government's defeat on the issue. Despite his personal opposition to capital punishment
Matthews was criticised for allowing Israel Lipski
to hang. He was Home Secretary throughout the Whitechapel Murders of 1888 to 1891
, some of which are attributed to Jack the Ripper
.
Matthews continued as Home Secretary until the Liberals
returned to power in 1892. When the Conservatives took power again in 1895, Victoria was again keen for him to take office but opposition within the Conservative Party prevented it. Instead he was ennobled as Viscount Llandaff of Hereford
in the County of Hereford
. He was closely associated with the campaign which resulted in the building of Westminster Cathedral
.
home and was buried at Clehonger, Herefordshire, near Belmont Abbey
. The viscountcy died with him.
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
, QC
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
(13 January 1826 – 3 April 1913) was a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
lawyer and Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician. He is best remembered for his role in the 1885 Sir Charles Dilke
Sir Charles Dilke, 2nd Baronet
Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke, 2nd Baronet PC was an English Liberal and reformist politician. Touted as a future prime minister, his aspirations to higher political office were effectively terminated in 1885, after a notorious and well-publicised divorce case.-Background and education:Dilke was the...
divorce trial and for his tenure as Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
from 1886 to 1892.
Background and education
The member of an old HerefordshireHerefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
family, Matthews was born in Ceylon, where his father, Henry Matthews (1789-1828), was a puisne judge of the Supreme Court. His grandfather John Matthews
John Matthews (physician)
John Matthews was a versatile English physician and poet, also involved in local affairs and politics in Herefordshire.-Life:Baptised 30 October 1755, he was the only surviving child of William Matthews of Burton, in Linton, Herefordshire, who died 29 August 1799, by his wife Jane, daughter of...
had represented Herefordshire
Herefordshire (UK Parliament constituency)
The county constituency of Herefordshire, in the West Midlands of England bordering on Wales, was abolished when the county was divided for parliamentary purposes in 1885...
in Parliament in the early years of the 19th century. His mother was Emma (d. 1861), daughter of William Blount. Matthews was educated at the University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
, graduating in 1844, before going on to study at the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, from which he graduated successively BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
and LLB
Bachelor of Laws
The Bachelor of Laws is an undergraduate, or bachelor, degree in law originating in England and offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree...
.
Legal career
Matthews was called to the BarCall to the bar
The Call to the Bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party, and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received a "call to the bar"...
, Lincoln's Inn
Lincoln's Inn
The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of 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. Although Lincoln's Inn is able to trace its official records beyond...
, in 1850 and practised on the Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
circuit before becoming secretary to the Earl Marshal
Earl Marshal
Earl Marshal is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England...
in 1864, a position he held for five years. He was made a Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
in 1868. At the bar, Matthews made a good name for himself, being especially noted for examination of witnesses. Most famous was his 1885 cross examination of Sir Charles Dilke
Sir Charles Dilke, 2nd Baronet
Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke, 2nd Baronet PC was an English Liberal and reformist politician. Touted as a future prime minister, his aspirations to higher political office were effectively terminated in 1885, after a notorious and well-publicised divorce case.-Background and education:Dilke was the...
in a famous divorce case, which essentially destroyed Dilke's political career and launched that of Matthews.
Political career
In 1868 Matthews was elected Member of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Dungarvan
Dungarvan (UK Parliament constituency)
Dungarvan was a parliamentary constituency in Ireland, which from 1801 to 1885 returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
. He described himself as an 'Independent Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
and Conservative'. He was a Roman Catholic and supported the disestablishment of the Church of Ireland
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
and was vaguely sympathetic to the Home Rule movement, but this could not prevent his defeat by a Home Rule candidate in the 1874 General Election
United Kingdom general election, 1874
-Seats summary:-References:* F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* British Electoral Facts 1832-1999, compiled and edited by Colin Rallings and Michael Thrasher *...
. He then revised his views on politics and revived his political career as a Conservative in Britain, but in the circumstances of the struggle over Gladstone's
William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times , more than any other person. Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time...
Home Rule Bill, his previous position meant that he was distrusted by strong Unionists.
He returned to Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
as Conservative member for Birmingham East
Birmingham East (UK Parliament constituency)
Birmingham East was a parliamentary constituency in the city of Birmingham, England. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system....
in 1886, and was immediately appointed as Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
in Lord Salisbury's
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury
Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury, KG, GCVO, PC , styled Lord Robert Cecil before 1865 and Viscount Cranborne from June 1865 until April 1868, was a British Conservative statesman and thrice Prime Minister, serving for a total of over 13 years...
second government. Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
reportedly demanded his inclusion after his performance in the Sir Charles Dilke divorce trial, which she approved of. He was sworn of the Privy Council at the same time.
Matthews' tenure of the office was notable more for its administrative success than for political achievement. He was thought 'too clever' and his aloof and 'somewhat foreign' manner made it difficult for him to command the House of Commons. In 1887, he gave a seemingly flippant response in the House to a genuine question about the mistaken arrest of Miss Cass
Elizabeth Cass
Elizabeth Cass, later Elizabeth Langley was a British seamstress and dress designer whose mistaken arrest for prostitution in 1887 became a minor cause célèbre.-Early life:...
, who was accused of prostitution
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
, which resulted in the government's defeat on the issue. Despite his personal opposition to capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
Matthews was criticised for allowing Israel Lipski
Israel Lipski
Israel Lipski born Israel Lobulsk, was a convicted murderer of Polish-Jewish descent living in the East End of London. Lipski worked as an umbrella stick salesman, employing Harry Schmuss and Henry Rosenbloom...
to hang. He was Home Secretary throughout the Whitechapel Murders of 1888 to 1891
The Whitechapel Murders (1888-91)
The Whitechapel murders were committed in or near the impoverished Whitechapel District in the East End of London between 3 April 1888 and 13 February 1891. Eleven women were killed; the crimes remain unsolved...
, some of which are attributed to Jack the Ripper
Jack the Ripper
"Jack the Ripper" is the best-known name given to an unidentified serial killer who was active in the largely impoverished areas in and around the Whitechapel district of London in 1888. The name originated in a letter, written by someone claiming to be the murderer, that was disseminated in the...
.
Matthews continued as Home Secretary until the Liberals
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
returned to power in 1892. When the Conservatives took power again in 1895, Victoria was again keen for him to take office but opposition within the Conservative Party prevented it. Instead he was ennobled as Viscount Llandaff of Hereford
Hereford
Hereford is a cathedral city, civil parish and county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, southwest of Worcester, and northwest of Gloucester...
in the County of Hereford
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
. He was closely associated with the campaign which resulted in the building of Westminster Cathedral
Westminster Cathedral
Westminster Cathedral in London is the mother church of the Catholic community in England and Wales and the Metropolitan Church and Cathedral of the Archbishop of Westminster...
.
Personal life
Matthews inherited property from several relatives, which left him financially independent. Indeed, upon his death his estate was valued at almost £260,000. He died unmarried in 1913 at the age of 87 at his LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
home and was buried at Clehonger, Herefordshire, near Belmont Abbey
Belmont Abbey
Belmont Abbey may be* Belmont Abbey, North Carolina* Belmont Abbey College, North Carolina* Belmont Abbey, Lebanon, Cistercian monastery 1157-1289* Belmont Abbey, Herefordshire* Belmont Abbey, France, in Belmont, Haute-Marne...
. The viscountcy died with him.