John Sadleir
Encyclopedia
John Sadleir was an Irish financier and politician.
He entered the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
in 1847 as a Member of Parliament
for Carlow
. Sadleir co-founded the Catholic Defence Association
in 1851 and was one of the leading figures in the Independent Irish Party
which held the balance of power in the House of Commons when it formed in 1852.
He went on to hold minor office in Lord Aberdeen
's coalition government
from 1852 through 1854. He resigned his ministerial position in 1854 when he was found guilty of being implicated in a plot to imprison a depositor of the Tipperary Bank because the individual in question had refused to vote for him.
By February 1856 the Tipperary Bank was insolvent, owing to Sadleir's overdraft of £288,000. His own financial affairs were ruinous, and in his efforts to solve his problems he milked the London Bank, ruined a small Newcastle upon Tyne bank, sold forged shares of the Swedish Railway Company, raised money on forged deeds, and spent rents of properties he held in receivership and money entrusted to him as a solicitor. In this way he disposed of more than £1.5 million, mainly in disastrous speculations. Unable to face the consequences, he committed suicide near Jack Straw's Tavern on Hampstead Heath
on 17 February 1856 by drinking prussic acid. The Times
reported that "[t]he body of Mr J. Sadleir M.P. was found on Sunday morning, February 17th on Hampstead Heath, at a considerable distance from the public road. A large bottle labelled "Oil of Bitter Almonds" and a jug also containing the poison (prussic acid) lay by his side." The body was identified by Edwin James QC MP and Thomas Wakley MP, editor of The Lancet. His brother James Sadleir
, also an MP
, was found to be deeply implicated in the fraud, having conspired with his younger brother. He was expelled from the House of Commons on 16 February 1857. He fled to the Continent, settling in Zurich
and then Geneva
. He was murdered there in 1881 while being robbed of his gold watch.
John Sadleir was buried in an unmarked grave in Highgate Cemetery
.
supposedly based the character of the great financier Mr. Merdle (who goes bankrupt and commits suicide) in Little Dorrit
(1857) on John Sadleir. The central character of Anthony Trollope
's The Way We Live Now
(1875), Melmotte (also swindling financier who is bankrupt and commits suicide) may have been based on Sadleir, as well. W. S. Gilbert
based part of his 1869 play An Old Score
on the story of Sadleir's suicide. Because the Independent Irish Party were pledged not to take office the decision of Sadleir and his friend William Keogh
to do so was considered an unforgivable betrayal and " to be another Sadleir or Keogh" entered the Irish political vocabulary as synonymous with a political turncoat.
He entered the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
in 1847 as a Member of Parliament
Member 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 Carlow
Carlow Borough (UK Parliament constituency)
Carlow Borough was a Parliamentary constituency in Ireland, represented in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
. Sadleir co-founded the Catholic Defence Association
Catholic Defence Association
The Catholic Defence Association was an organisation founded in 1851 by William Keogh, John Sadleir and George Henry Moore to defend the rights of Irish Roman Catholics and tenant farmers.-Other uses:...
in 1851 and was one of the leading figures in the Independent Irish Party
Independent Irish Party
The Independent Irish Party was an Irish political party founded in July 1852 by 40 Liberal Irish MPs who had been elected to the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is sometimes mentioned as the Irish Independent Opposition Party, and colloquially known as the...
which held the balance of power in the House of Commons when it formed in 1852.
He went on to hold minor office in Lord Aberdeen
George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen
George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen KG, KT, FRS, PC , styled Lord Haddo from 1791 to 1801, was a Scottish politician, successively a Tory, Conservative and Peelite, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1852 until 1855.-Early life:Born in Edinburgh on 28 January 1784, he...
's coalition government
Aberdeen Ministry
-The Cabinet:† After June 1854 office became Secretary of State for War.Notes*Lord John Russell served as Leader of the House of Commons from December 1852 to February 1855.Changes...
from 1852 through 1854. He resigned his ministerial position in 1854 when he was found guilty of being implicated in a plot to imprison a depositor of the Tipperary Bank because the individual in question had refused to vote for him.
By February 1856 the Tipperary Bank was insolvent, owing to Sadleir's overdraft of £288,000. His own financial affairs were ruinous, and in his efforts to solve his problems he milked the London Bank, ruined a small Newcastle upon Tyne bank, sold forged shares of the Swedish Railway Company, raised money on forged deeds, and spent rents of properties he held in receivership and money entrusted to him as a solicitor. In this way he disposed of more than £1.5 million, mainly in disastrous speculations. Unable to face the consequences, he committed suicide near Jack Straw's Tavern on Hampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath is a large, ancient London park, covering . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band of London clay...
on 17 February 1856 by drinking prussic acid. The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
reported that "[t]he body of Mr J. Sadleir M.P. was found on Sunday morning, February 17th on Hampstead Heath, at a considerable distance from the public road. A large bottle labelled "Oil of Bitter Almonds" and a jug also containing the poison (prussic acid) lay by his side." The body was identified by Edwin James QC MP and Thomas Wakley MP, editor of The Lancet. His brother James Sadleir
James Sadleir
James Sadleir was a member of the British House of Commons, chiefly notable for being one of the few members expelled by that body. Sadleir was the son of Clement William Sadleir of Shrone Hill, County Tipperary...
, also an MP
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...
, was found to be deeply implicated in the fraud, having conspired with his younger brother. He was expelled from the House of Commons on 16 February 1857. He fled to the Continent, settling in Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
and then Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. He was murdered there in 1881 while being robbed of his gold watch.
John Sadleir was buried in an unmarked grave in Highgate Cemetery
Highgate Cemetery
Highgate Cemetery is a cemetery located in north London, England. It is designated Grade I on the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England. It is divided into two parts, named the East and West cemetery....
.
Legacy
Charles DickensCharles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
supposedly based the character of the great financier Mr. Merdle (who goes bankrupt and commits suicide) in Little Dorrit
Little Dorrit
Little Dorrit is a serial novel by Charles Dickens published originally between 1855 and 1857. It is a work of satire on the shortcomings of the government and society of the period....
(1857) on John Sadleir. The central character of Anthony Trollope
Anthony Trollope
Anthony Trollope was one of the most successful, prolific and respected English novelists of the Victorian era. Some of his best-loved works, collectively known as the Chronicles of Barsetshire, revolve around the imaginary county of Barsetshire...
's The Way We Live Now
The Way We Live Now
The Way We Live Now is a satirical novel published in London in 1875 by Anthony Trollope, after a popular serialisation. In 1872 Trollope returned to England from abroad and was appalled by the greed which was loose in the land. His scolding rebuke was his longest novel.Containing over a hundred...
(1875), Melmotte (also swindling financier who is bankrupt and commits suicide) may have been based on Sadleir, as well. W. S. Gilbert
W. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen comic operas produced in collaboration with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, of which the most famous include H.M.S...
based part of his 1869 play An Old Score
An Old Score
An Old Score is an 1869 three-act comedy-drama written by English dramatist W. S. Gilbert based partly on his 1867 short story, Diamonds, and partly on episodes in the lives of William Dargan, an Irish engineer and railway contractor, and John Sadleir, a banker who committed suicide. It was...
on the story of Sadleir's suicide. Because the Independent Irish Party were pledged not to take office the decision of Sadleir and his friend William Keogh
William Keogh
William Keogh PC was an unpopular and controversial Irish politician and judge, whose name became a byword for betraying one's political principles.- Background :...
to do so was considered an unforgivable betrayal and " to be another Sadleir or Keogh" entered the Irish political vocabulary as synonymous with a political turncoat.