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Revision as of 20:23, 27 March 2007 by Damac (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)William Joseph Corbet (December 12, 1824–December 1, 1909) was Irish Nationalist Member of Parliament for Wicklow, 1880-85, and for East Wicklow 1885-92 and 1895-1900. He was also a mental health administrator, author and noted dog breeder.
The son of Robert Corbet of Co. Offaly (Queen’s County), he was educated at Broadwood Academy, Lancashire. He worked for 30 years in the Irish Lunacy Office, as a Clerk in 1847-53 and Chief Clerk, 1853-77. He was elected a member of the Royal Irish Academy (M.R.I.A.) in 1874. In 1880 he was elected as one of two Parnellite Home Rule members for Co. Wicklow. In 1885 he was elected by a much larger majority for the new Wicklow East constituency, and again in 1886. In the enlarged Irish Parliamentary Party, he was much older than most of his fellow MPs, who were typically born around the time of the Famine in the later 1840s.
When the Irish Parliamentary Party split in December 1890 over Parnell’s leadership, Corbet was one of the minority who supported Parnell. At the subsequent general election in 1892, he lost his seat to an Anti-Parnellite Nationalist, John Sweetman, coming third after the Unionist candidate. However, at the general election on 22 July 1895, at the age of 70, he fought back and won the Wicklow East seat by the narrow majority of 87 votes over the Unionist, the Anti-Parnellite this time coming third. This was in spite of the fact that John Sweetman, having changed allegiance, had contested the seat as a Parnellite at a by-election in April 1895 and lost.
Corbet retired from Parliament at the election of 1900.
He was an enthusiastic sportsman from boyhood and owner of a famous breed of Irish red setters.
Writings
The Battle of Fontenoy: A Historical Poem, Dublin, McGlashan & Gill, 1871 (revised ed. 1885)
‘On the statistics of insanity, past and present’, Journal of the Statistical and Social Inquiry Society of Ireland, Vol.VI, Part XLVI, 1873/74, pp.382-94
'On the Increase of Insanity', American Journal of Insanity, 50: 224-38, 1893
'The Increase of Insanity', Fortnightly Review, January 1893, pp.7-19
What is Home Rule?
Parnellism or Healyism – Which?
Sons of My Summer Time
Note: The latter three publications are listed in Who Was Who but no details are given and they do not appear to be available in British or Irish libraries.
Sources
Brian M. Walker (ed.), Parliamentary Election Results in Ireland, 1801-1922, Dublin, Royal Irish Academy, 1978
Who Was Who, 1897-1916