Valentine McEntee, 1st Baron McEntee
Encyclopedia
Valentine la Touche McEntee, 1st Baron McEntee (16 January 1871 – 11 February 1953) was an Irish
-born Labour
Member of Parliament
(MP) in the United Kingdom
.
(now Dún Laoghaire) near Dublin, the son of William Charles McEntee, a physician, and Kate, daughter of Valentine Burchell.
by trade. From 1896 to 1899, like Con Lehane
, he was a member of James Connolly
's Irish Socialist Republican Party
. After a brief stay in the United States
he moved to London
and became a member of Social Democratic Federation
(SDF), whence he went on to help found the Socialist Party of Great Britain
in June 1904. So far as is known McEntee was not at all active in the SPGB. He resigned on 4 March 1905 after he was nominated as parliamentary candidate for the Labour Representation Committee (predecessor of the Labour Party).
After leaving the SPGB McEntee joined the Independent Labour Party
. By 1908 he was back in the SDF, being a local election candidate for that organisation in Walthamstow
in that year. In 1909 he published a short pamphlet Socialism Explained, a criticism of capitalism
. The following year he was a delegate at the Social Democratic Party (as the SDF had been renamed) Conference and was elected to its 1910–1911 Executive Committee.
McEntee presumably became a member of the Labour Party via the British Socialist Party
, the successor to the SDF, which affiliated in 1916. During the later part of the First World War he was a member of the relatively large and actively anti-war North London Herald League, as documented in Ken Weller’s Don’t Be a Soldier. (Other ex-SPGBers in the NLHL include R. M. Fox
of Smokey Crusade fame; Les Boyne, an early member who was also in E. J. B. Allen’s Advocates of Industrial Unionism and Industrial League. Harry Young
, first active in the NLHL, was an SPGB member later in life.) In 1920 McEntee became a local councillor for the Labour Party in Walthamstow. He went on to become MP for Walthamstow West
from 1922
to 1924
and again from 1929
to 1950
, and served Parliamentary Private Secretary
(PPS) to the Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Works, George Hicks
, from 1942 to 1945. He was also Mayor of Walthamstow from 1929 to 1930 and 1951 to 1952. He was appointed a Order of the British EmpireCBE in 1948 and in 1951 he was elevated to the peerage as Baron McEntee, of Walthamstow in the County of Essex, in recognition of his "political and public services".
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
-born Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
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,...
(MP) in the United Kingdom
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...
.
Background
McEntee was born in KingstownDún Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire or Dún Laoire , sometimes anglicised as "Dunleary" , is a suburban seaside town in County Dublin, Ireland, about twelve kilometres south of Dublin city centre. It is the county town of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County and a major port of entry from Great Britain...
(now Dún Laoghaire) near Dublin, the son of William Charles McEntee, a physician, and Kate, daughter of Valentine Burchell.
Career
McEntee was a carpenterCarpenter
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
by trade. From 1896 to 1899, like Con Lehane
Con Lehane (socialist)
Cornelius "Con" Lehane was a socialist active in the Irish Socialist Republican Party, the Social Democratic Federation, and the Socialist Party of Great Britain....
, he was a member of James Connolly
James Connolly
James Connolly was an Irish republican and socialist leader. He was born in the Cowgate area of Edinburgh, Scotland, to Irish immigrant parents and spoke with a Scottish accent throughout his life. He left school for working life at the age of 11, but became one of the leading Marxist theorists of...
's Irish Socialist Republican Party
Irish Socialist Republican Party
The Irish Socialist Republican Party was a pivotal Irish political party founded in 1896 by James Connolly. Its aim was to establish an Irish workers' republic...
. After a brief stay in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
he moved to London
London
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...
and became a member of Social Democratic Federation
Social Democratic Federation
The Social Democratic Federation was established as Britain's first organised socialist political party by H. M. Hyndman, and had its first meeting on June 7, 1881. Those joining the SDF included William Morris, George Lansbury and Eleanor Marx. However, Friedrich Engels, Karl Marx's long-term...
(SDF), whence he went on to help found the Socialist Party of Great Britain
Socialist Party of Great Britain
The Socialist Party of Great Britain , is a small Marxist political party within the impossibilist tradition. It is best known for its advocacy of using the ballot box for revolutionary purposes; opposition to reformism; and its early adoption of the theory of state capitalism to describe the...
in June 1904. So far as is known McEntee was not at all active in the SPGB. He resigned on 4 March 1905 after he was nominated as parliamentary candidate for the Labour Representation Committee (predecessor of the Labour Party).
After leaving the SPGB McEntee joined the Independent Labour Party
Independent Labour Party
The Independent Labour Party was a socialist political party in Britain established in 1893. The ILP was affiliated to the Labour Party from 1906 to 1932, when it voted to leave...
. By 1908 he was back in the SDF, being a local election candidate for that organisation in Walthamstow
Walthamstow
Walthamstow is a district of northeast London, England, located in the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It is situated north-east of Charing Cross...
in that year. In 1909 he published a short pamphlet Socialism Explained, a criticism of capitalism
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
. The following year he was a delegate at the Social Democratic Party (as the SDF had been renamed) Conference and was elected to its 1910–1911 Executive Committee.
McEntee presumably became a member of the Labour Party via the British Socialist Party
British Socialist Party
The British Socialist Party was a Marxist political organisation established in Great Britain in 1911. Following a protracted period of factional struggle, in 1916 the party's anti-war forces gained decisive control of the party and saw the defection of its pro-war Right Wing...
, the successor to the SDF, which affiliated in 1916. During the later part of the First World War he was a member of the relatively large and actively anti-war North London Herald League, as documented in Ken Weller’s Don’t Be a Soldier. (Other ex-SPGBers in the NLHL include R. M. Fox
R. M. Fox
Richard Michael Fox , better known as R. M. Fox, was a journalist and historian of the Irish left.Fox was born in Leeds in 1891, the second of four sons to a schoolteacher mother and engineering workman father...
of Smokey Crusade fame; Les Boyne, an early member who was also in E. J. B. Allen’s Advocates of Industrial Unionism and Industrial League. Harry Young
Harry Young
Harry "Cy" Young , a native of Charleston, West Virginia, attended three colleges and participated in the athletic programs of all three....
, first active in the NLHL, was an SPGB member later in life.) In 1920 McEntee became a local councillor for the Labour Party in Walthamstow. He went on to become MP for Walthamstow West
Walthamstow West (UK Parliament constituency)
Walthamstow West was a borough constituency in what is now the London Borough of Waltham Forest, but was until 1965 the Walthamstow Urban District of Essex...
from 1922
United Kingdom general election, 1922
The United Kingdom general election of 1922 was held on 15 November 1922. It was the first election held after most of the Irish counties left the United Kingdom to form the Irish Free State, and was won by Andrew Bonar Law's Conservatives, who gained an overall majority over Labour, led by John...
to 1924
United Kingdom general election, 1924
- Seats summary :- References :* F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* - External links :* * *...
and again from 1929
United Kingdom general election, 1929
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987*-External links:***...
to 1950
United Kingdom general election, 1950
The 1950 United Kingdom general election was the first general election ever after a full term of a Labour government. Despite polling over one and a half million votes more than the Conservatives, the election, held on 23 February 1950 resulted in Labour receiving a slim majority of just five...
, and served Parliamentary Private Secretary
Parliamentary Private Secretary
A Parliamentary Private Secretary is a role given to a United Kingdom Member of Parliament by a senior minister in government or shadow minister to act as their contact for the House of Commons; this role is junior to that of Parliamentary Under-Secretary, which is a ministerial post, salaried by...
(PPS) to the Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Works, George Hicks
George Hicks
Ernest George Hicks was a British trades unionist and Labour Party politician.Hicks was born in 1879 in Venham Dean, Hampshire. Along with fellow bricklayers Jack Fitzgerald and F. K. Cadman, he was one of the founding members of the Socialist Party of Great Britain in June 1904...
, from 1942 to 1945. He was also Mayor of Walthamstow from 1929 to 1930 and 1951 to 1952. He was appointed a Order of the British EmpireCBE in 1948 and in 1951 he was elevated to the peerage as Baron McEntee, of Walthamstow in the County of Essex, in recognition of his "political and public services".