HACKETT, FELIX 1882-1975

Felix Hackett was born in Omagh, County Tyrone, and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and in America. From 1905 to 1909 he was a Junior Fellow of the Royal University of Ireland. For twelve years after that he was a physics lecturer at the Royal College of Science, Dublin. He served as Professor of Physics until the College of Science amalgamated with University College, Dublin. From 1930 to 1962 he was Treasurer of the Royal Irish Academy, and for twenty years he was Honorary Secretary of the Royal Dublin Society and served as its President from 1953 to 1956. From 1951 he was chairman of the governing board of the School of Theoretical Physics, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies.

HACKETT, FLORENCE 1884-1963

Florence Hackett was born in Omagh, County Tyrone. She was a writer. Her plays were broadcast by Radio Eireann, and some of her stories were published in the Dublin Magazine. She wrote a novel, With Benefit of Clergy, which was published in New York in 1922.

HALIDAY, ALEXANDER HENRY 1728-1802

Alexander Haliday was born in Belfast and was educated in Glasgow. He practised as a doctor in Belfast, was prominent in the Volunteer movement and active in the Hearts of Steel secret society. He was a friend of Lord Charlemont, with whom he founded the Belfast Whig Club in 1790.

HALIDAY, SAMUEL 1685-1739

It is likely that Samuel Haliday was born in Omagh, County Tyrone. He was educated in Glasgow and Leiden and ordained a Presbyterian minister at Geneva in 1708. He became an army chaplain and was subsequently posted to Belfast in 1719. He refused to subscribe to the Westminster Confession of Faith, which issue caused a split in the Presbyterian Church. He was the author of many pamphlets on this subject.

HALL, JOHN 1829-1898

John Hall was born in Ballygorman, County Armagh, and was educated in Belfast. He was ordained and became a Presbyterian minister in Armagh and later in Dublin. As well as contributing prose and poetry to local papers, he edited the Evangelical Witness. He went as minister to Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church, New York, in 1867, and had a doctorate conferred on him by Trinity College, Dublin in 1891. He returned to Ireland and died in Bangor, County Down. [Biography by his son].

HALL, JOHN CAREY b.1844

John Hall was born in Coleraine, County Londonderry, and educated at Coleraine Academical Institution and Queen's College, Belfast. He became British Consul General at Yokohama, Japan.

HALL-THOMPSON, ROBERT LLOYD 1922-1992

Lloyd Hall-Thompson was born in Belfast and was educated at Campbell College, Belfast, and worked for a time in the family business before joining the Royal Regiment of Artillery, in which he served in the Second World War. He was a major in the Territorial Army from 1946 to 1956 and was awarded the Emergency Reserve Decoration and the Territorial Decoration. He was a member of the Not Forgotten Association and was elected its vice-president. He stood as Unionist candidate for North Belfast in 1969 and held this seat until 1975. He was Chief Whip of the Northern Ireland Executive in 1974. He was a member of the Samaritan Hospital Management Committee from 1957 to 1973, member of the Belfast Newsboys' Club, member of the Northern Ireland Nurses' Housing Association, and President of the North Belfast Working Men's Club. He founded, with his wife Alison, the Half-Bred Horse Breeders' Society; they were both involved in the Down Royal Corporation of horse breeders, and he was Chairman of the Irish Horse Draft Society. He was also appointed Deputy Governor of the Maze racecourse.

HAMILL, MICHAEL b. 1889

Mickey Hamill was born off the Falls Road in Belfast and was an international soccer player. He played for St Paul's Swifts, Belfast Rangers, Belfast Celtic, Manchester united, Manchester City, Glasgow Celtic and the Forth River team in Boston. He was capped seven times for Northern Ireland between 1912 and 1921 and scored an international goal. He was captain of the Home International Championship side of 1911914 . He later managed Distillery

HAMILTON, ANDREW d.1691

Andrew Hamilton was probably born in County Tyrone. He was ordained in 1661, went to Kilskerry as rector in 1689, and organised his parishioners so that they could defend themselves. He was agent to William and Mary for the Enniskilleners. The parliament of James II accused him of treason. He published True Relations of the Actions of Inniskilling Men in 1690.

HAMILTON, ANTHONY 1645-1720

Anthony Hamilton may have been born in County Tyrone. He served in France. He was the brother of Elizabeth Hamilton, Countess of Grammont. Under James II he was Governor of Limerick and he led the retreat of the Irish cavalry from the Battle of the Boyne. He retired to France, where he wrote Memoirs of Count Grammont as well as a volume of fairy tales and other works. He died in Saint-Germains. [Biography by Ruth Clarke, 1921]

HAMILTON, CHARLES 1753-1792

Charles Hamilton was born in Belfast and was a captain in the service of the East India Company. He studied oriental languages and was one of the founding members of the Asiatic Society of Calcutta. He was chosen by the Governor-General to translate Muslim law, which he did in four volumes in 1791. He was regarded extremely highly by Sir William Jones. He was buried in London. He was a brother of Elizabeth Hamilton.

HAMILTON, ELIZABETH 1641-1708

Elizabeth Hamilton was probably born in County Tyrone and was known as 'La Belle Hamilton', one of the most brilliant and beautiful women at the court of Charles II. Her portrait was painted by Lely, and she married Philibert, Comte de Grammont, in 1663 and went with him to France.

HAMILTON, ELIZABETH (pseud. ALMERIA) 1758-1816

Elizabeth Hamilton was born in Belfast and, when her parents died, went to live with an aunt in Scotland. There is no doubt that her brother, Charles Hamilton, influenced her book Letters of a Hindu Rajah. She wrote many essays under the pseudonym 'Almeria', in one of which she warned women that they could expect 'an inexhaustable source of delight' in learning, but that they would not thereby attract men. Her second novel, Memoirs of Modern Philosophers, was a parody of the Godwin circle. She was very radical in what she wrote about education and she spent much of her life in philanthropic work. Her The Cottagers of Glenburnie was her most popular novel. When she died in Harrogate her writings received praise in the Edinburgh Review, and she was mentioned by Jane Austen and Maria Edgeworth.

HAMILTON, GEORGE 1783-1830

George Hamilton was born in Armagh and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. In 1809 he became a Church of Ireland minister. He was a biblical scholar and wrote, along with many other works, Introduction to Hebrew Scriptures and Codex Criticus of the Hebrew Bible.

HAMILTON, GEORGE 1797-1883

George Hamilton, 3rd Marquis of Donegall, was educated at Eton and Oxford and joined the 18th Light Dragoons in 1818, moving to the 7th Hussars in 1819. In 1891 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant, and eight years later, he retired as captain of the same regiment. He served as captain of the Yeomen of the Guard and was colonel of the 4th Battalion of the Irish Rifle Volunteers from 1848 to 1852. He was member of parliament for Carrickfergus, and for Belfast from 1820 to 1830. He served as member of parliament for County Antrim from 1830 to 1837, and for Belfast in 1837-38. He was Vice-Chamberlain of the Household from 1830 to 1834, and from 1838 to 1841. He was appointed to the Privy Council in 1830. He was Lord Lieutenant of County Antrim from 1841 to 1883 and militia ADC to the Queen, from 1847 to 1883. In 1841 he was created Baron Ennishowen and Carrickfergus. He died in Brighton.

HAMILTON, GEORGE ALEXANDER 1802-1871

George Hamilton was born in Tyrella, County Down and was educated at Rugby and Oxford. He stood for election to parliament, on five occasions, on the last of which he was successful. From 1843 to 1859 he was member of parliament for Dublin University and a prominent Conservative leader. He was made a Privy Councillor in 1869 and died in Kingstown.

HAMILTON, GUSTAVUS 1639-1723

Gustavus Hamilton is thought to have been born in County Fermanagh. He entered the army and was appointed to defend the town of Coleraine in the war of 1689-1691. He was forced to retreat towards Enniskillen and was later appointed governor there. He organised regiments known as 'the Enniskilleners', the predecessors of the Inniskilling regiments, which had a reputation for being extremely fierce in battle. Gustavus Hamilton commanded a regiment at the Battle of the Boyne, and was afterwards made Governor of Athlone. He served as member of parliament for Donegal and was created Baron Hamilton in 1715. After the war he was made Privy Councillor and brigadier general. He was presented with a gift by Queen Anne, and George I bestowed on him a peerage as Viscount Boyne.

HAMILTON, HENRY 1851-1932

Henry Hamilton was born in Coolaghey, County Donegal, and was educated at Raphoe and Queen's College, Belfast. He became a Doctor of Medicine in 1875 and entered the Indian military service a year later. In 1878 he took part in the march to Gandahar and was appointed Senior Medical Officer on the Chitral expedition. He served as Principal Medical Officer on the Chinese expedition of 1900-1901. He was knighted and died in Mentone.

HAMILTON, HUGH d.1679

Hugh Hamilton was born in County Fermanagh and entered the Swedish army, where he became a general. By 1648 he had become a naturalised Swedish noble and was created a baron. Charles II gave him an Irish peerage, as baron of Glenawley. He settled at Ballygawley, County Tyrone, and eventually died there. He was the uncle of Hugh Hamilton.

HAMILTON, HUGH d.1724

Hugh Hamilton was born in Ballygawley, County Tyrone. He served in the Swedish army from 1680, was given a title and became a general after distinguishing himself in the wars of Charles XII.

HAMILTON, JAMES ARCHIBALD 1747-1815

James Hamilton was born in Athlone, County Dublin, and was educated in Armagh and at Trinity College, Dublin. He was a rector and had an observatory in Cookstown where he made detailed observations of the planet Mercury, and in 1791 he was appointed the first astronomer of Armagh Observatory. In 1804 he was appointed Dean of Cloyne. He published several papers in Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy.

HAMILTON, JAMES 1811-1885

James Hamilton succeeded his grandfather as 2nd Marquis of Abercorn in 1818, thereby inheriting the estates in Counties Tyrone and Donegal. He was groom of the stole to Prince Albert from 1846 to 1859. From 1866 to 1868 and from 1874 to 1876, he was Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. In 1868 he was created a duke by Disraeli.

HAMILTON, JOHN 1755-1835

John Hamilton was born in Woodbrook, Strabane, County Tyrone. He joined the army and was enlisted in the Bengal Infantry. After eighteen years he was transferred to the king's service and was active at the Cape and in the Penninsular War. He was appointed a general and in 1814 became governor of Duncannon fort. He had a baronetcy bestowed on him in 1815 and was subsequently knighted.

HAMILTON, M. see CHURCHILL-LUCK, MRS.

HAMILTON, MALCOLM 1635-1699

Malcolm Hamilton was born in Ballygawley, County Tyrone. He went to Sweden to join his uncle Hugh and became a naturalised Swedish noble in 1664. He rose to the rank of general and by 1698 was Governor of Wester-Howland. He died in Stockholm.

HAMILTON, ROBERT 1749-1830

Robert Hamilton was born in Coleraine, County Londonderry, and was educated in Edinburgh where he became a doctor. After he had joined the army he wrote Duties of a Regimental Surgeon and also a paper on Influenza. He practised in Ipswich for ten years and died there.

HAMILTON, THOMAS 1842-1926

Thomas Hamilton was born in Belfast and educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution and Queen's College, Belfast. He was ordained as a Presbyterian minister and served from 1865 to 1889, when he was appointed President of Queen's College, Belfast. He gained Doctorates of Divinity and Laws and established a newspaper, The Witness. He was Vice-Chancellor of Queen's University, Belfast, from 1908 to 1923, and in 1921 was appointed a Privy Councillor. He published among other works a History of the Presbyterian Church and Irish Worthies.

HAMILTON, WILLIAM d.1729

William Hamilton was probably born in County Antrim and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He took Holy Orders and was appointed Archdeacon of Armagh in 1700. Among his many published works was The Exemplary Life of James Bonnell, which appeared in numerous editions. He died in Carnteel, County Tyrone.

HAMILTON, WILLIAM c.1755-1797

William Hamilton was born in County Londonderry. He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and became a fellow there in 1779. He was Rector of Clondevaddock on the Fanad peninsula in County Donegal, and he did much to improve the area, though it is said by some that he abused his power. He was appointed magistrate and murdered on the shores of Lough Swilly. He was renowned for his Letters on the Coast of the County of Antrim, a geological treatise which was translated into German, and Letters on the Principles of the French Democracy and their Influence on Britain and Ireland. He often contributed to the Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy.

HAMMERSCHLAG, ALICE BERGER 1917-1969

Alice Berger Hammerschlag was born in Vienna and educated by Professor Cizek, The Kunstgewerbeschule, and Vienna Academy of Arts. In 1938 she came to Belfast and worked as a publisher's designer and on stage sets, both in Belfast and Dublin. She held many exhibitions in Belfast, London, Manchester, New York, Rome, Derry, Florida and Paris. Her work is in the collections of Queen's University, Belfast, the Ulster Museum, the Arts Council for Northern Ireland and An Chomhairle Ealaion as well as many others.

HANCOCK, THOMAS 1783-1849

Thomas Hancock was born in Lisburn, County Antrim and was educated in Edinburgh, where he studied medicine. He practised in Liverpool and London and returned to Lisburn in 1838. He published many works including The Principles of Peace in 1825 which contained eye-witness accounts of the rebellion of 1798.

HANCOCK, WILLIAM NEILSON 1820-1888

William Hancock was born in Lisburn. He was educated at Dungannon and at Trinity College, Dublin. He attained a Doctorate in Laws, was called to the Bar in 1844, and became Queen's Counsel in 1880. He was Professor of Political Economy at Queen's College, Belfast, from 1849 to 1851, and he served as secretary on many Royal Commissions. He was President of the Statistical Society and published many pamphlets and reports.

HANGER, GEORGE 1751-1824

George Hanger was born in County Londonderry and was educated at Reading and Eton. In 1771 he joined the army as an ensign in the Foot Guards and fought as a colonel in the American war with the German Hessian Corps. He was wounded at the siege of Charlestown and retired on half pay. He was a friend of the Prince of Wales, one of those described as 'creatures with whom a man of morality or even common decency could not associate'. George Hanger tried to live as lavishly as his royal friend, and he had a weakness for gambling and a preference for bright pink, turquoise blue and orange clothing. He was caricatured by Gilray and was sent to a debtor's prison where he wrote his autobiography, The Life and Adventures and Opinions of Colonel Hanger. On his release he was given money by a friend and set up as a coal merchant. He inherited his father's Irish estates and the title of Lord Coleraine, but refused the latter. He died of convulsions, and his obituary in the Gentleman's Magazine referred to him as 'one of the most prominent features of his time'.

HANNA, HENRY 1871-1946

Henry Hanna was educated at Belfast Royal Academy, Queen's University, Belfast, and London University. He was called to the Bar and became King's Counsel in 1911. He served as a member of the Executive Committee of the International Academy of Comparative Law at the Hague. He was a High Court judge from 1925 to 1943.

HANNA, HUGH 1824-1892

Hugh Hanna was born in Dromara, County Down. He was educated in Belfast and ordained there and in 1885 became Doctor of Divinity. A former schoolteacher and prominent educationalist, he was made a Commissioner of National Education in 1880. In 1872 he built St Enoch's, the largest Presbyterian church in Belfast. He gained a reputation as a street preacher, and his meetings gave rise to sectarian disturbances in the streets of the city. He was known as 'Roaring Hanna', and he published many pamphlets.

HANNA, SAMUEL 1771-1852

Samuel Hanna was born in Kellswater, County Antrim, and was educated in Glasgow. He was ordained a Presbyterian minister in the parish of Drumbo and moved to Belfast in 1799. He was leader of an evangelical revival in Ulster. He was appointed Professor of Divinity in 1817 and Doctor of Divinity the following year. He was Moderator of the first General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in 1840. His publications include sermons and pamphlets.

HANNA, WILLIAM 1808-1882

William Hanna was born in Belfast, and was educated in Glasgow and Edinburgh and ordained in Scotland in 1835. He edited the North British Review and published, among other works in four-volume Life of Dr Chalmers. In 1852 he became Doctor of Laws and later Doctor of Divinity. He settled in Edinburgh and died in London.

HANNAY, JAMES OWEN (pseud. BIRMINGHAM, GEORGE A.)1865-1950

James Hannay was born in Belfast and educated at Haileybury and Trinity College, Dublin. He was rector of Delgany, Westport, County Mayo from 1892 to 1913. From 1892 he was a member of the General Synod of the Church of Ireland. His works, which he produced almost annually, include Spanish Gold; The Seething Pot and The Bad Times. His play, General John Regan, upset the local people when produced in Westport, especially when they discovered the identity of the pseudonym under which he wrote. Consequently he left to serve first as chaplain to the British Embassy in Budapest and then in France as army chaplain during the First World War. By 1924 he was a clergyman in Somerset and later in London. As well as fiction he published other writings , which appeared under his own name, such as A Padre in France, A Wayfarer in Hungary, and biographies of Isaiah and Jeremiah. His autobiography, Pleasant Places, was published in 1934.

HANSARD, RICHARD fl.1600-1619

Richard Hansard came from England and was a military engineer and builder. He was granted the town of Lifford, County Donegal, in 1610, and he designed and built a new fort there. In his will he made provision for the building of a church and a free school at Lifford, County Donegal.

HARDEBECK, CARL GILBERT 1869-1945

Carl Hardebeck was born in London. His father was German and his mother Welsh. Despite being blind from birth, in 1892 he gained a diploma as an organist, pianist and music teacher. A year later he left London for Belfast and began his collection of Irish music. He was awarded eleven first prizes for compositions he had submitted to the Feis Ceoil in Dublin between 1897 and 1908. He went to Donegal to take down the songs of the native speakers, and devised a Braille alphabet for this purpose which was later adopted by the National Institute for the Blind. He became the best-known musical adjudicator of his day and his choral works were often performed. He lived in Cork from 1919 to 1923 and returned to Belfast until 1932. He published Gems of Irish Melody.

HARDING, MORRIS 1874-1964

Morris Harding was born in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England. He trained as an artist in the studio of his uncle, and worked under J. M. Swan. He taught sculpture and life drawing at the London County Council Technical Institute. He was a member of the Royal Society of British Sculptors and the Society of Animal Painters. He exhibited at the Royal Academy and the Glasgow Institute. In 1925 he came to Belfast, to work on his major achievement, on St Anne's Cathedral. He settled in Holywood, County Down, and for the next twelve years worked on the nave columns and corbels of St Anne's. He also provided the portraits of dignitaries in corbels above the pillars. He also carved the font in St Peter's Church, Antrim Road, the coats of arms of the old government house, Hillsborough, and work at Queen's University. In 1932 he became a member of the Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin, and was President of the Royal Ulster Academy for several years. In 1953, his work was represented at an exhibition of sculpture, held at the Belfast Museum. He was awarded the OBE in 1950.

HARDY, EDWARD JOHN 1849-1920

Edward Hardy was born in County Armagh and was educated at Portora Royal School, Enniskillen, and at Trinity College, Dublin. He was awarded a gold medal for his studies and was ordained in 1874. As an army chaplain from 1878 to 1908 he served in many countries. His first book was translated into various languages and though he wrote many works, How To Be Happy Though Married is the only one for which he is remembered. He died in Blackrock, County Dublin.

HARKIN, HUGH 1791-1854

Hugh Harkin was born at Magilligan, County Londonderry. He practised as a doctor at Coleraine and was a prolific poet and writer. He composed Sacred Songs of the People, which were adapted to popular airs. His book The Quarter Clift, or The Life and Adventures of Hudy M'Guigan was serialised in 1840, but had a court injunction placed upon it because it was said to refer to persons in the Randalstown and Draperstown districts.

HARLAND, EDWARD JAMES 1831-1895

Edward Harland was born in Scarborough, Yorkshire was educated there, and was apprenticed to the firm of Robert Stephenson & Co., Newcastle-upon-Tyne. He became a draughtsman in Glasgow, and in 1853 he was appointed manager of a shipyard on the Tyne. In 1854 he came to Belfast as manager of a Belfast shipyard. He and his associates bought the business in 1859 and developed it so that it became one of the most important shipyards in the world. In 1862 G. W. Wolff became his business partner. From 1875 to 1886 he was Chairman of Belfast Harbour Commission. A baronetcy was conferred upon him and he served as Mayor of Belfast. In 1887 he was High Sheriff of County Down, and from 1889 to 1895 he was member of parliament for the North Belfast constituency.

HARREL, DAVID 1841-1939

David Harrel was born in Mountpleasant, County Down. From 1859 to 1879 he served in the Royal Irish Constabulary and after some years as a Resident Magistrate was appointed Chief Commissioner of the Dublin Metropolitan Police. He was Under-Secretary for Ireland from 1893 to 1902. He was knighted in 1893.

HARRIS, JAMES THOMAS (or FRANK) c.1855-1931

Frank Harris was born in Galway and was educated at the Royal School, Armagh and at an English grammar school. He ran away to America when he was fifteen years old, where he attended the State University of Kansas after having worked as a bootblack, a hotel clerk and a cowpunch. When he returned to Europe he studied at Heidelberg and at the age of twenty-seven came to London, where he became editor of the Evening News and the Fortnightly Review and proprietor of the Saturday Review, a leading literary and political paper, between 1894 and 1899. He founded Candia Friend and, as well as short stories and novels, wrote several plays of which Mr and Mrs Daventry was the most successful. He went to jail for contempt of court, and on his release in 1914 he emigrated to America, where he bought Pearson's Magazine. At this time he began a series of books published between 1915 and 1920 as Contemporary Portraits, and he also wrote biographies of Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw. His autobiography in five volumes, The Life and Loves of Frank Harris, was written between 1923 and 1927 and was banned in England. He died at Nice. It is said that Bernard Shaw remarked of Frank Harris: 'He is neither first-rate nor second-rate nor tenth-rate. He is just his horrible unique self'. [Biography by H. Kingsmill, 1932]

HARRIS, WALTER 1686-1761

Walter Harris was born in Queen's County (Leix) and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He was called to the Bar in 1713, and in the same year received an honorary doctorate. Through marriage he inherited Sir James Ware's manuscripts. The manuscripts, many of which he translated and expanded, were edited and published by him. They were eventually divided between the National Library and Armagh Library. Among his publications were Life and Reign of William III; History of Dublin, and, in 1744, The Ancient and Present State of the County of Dublin.

HARRISON, HENRY 1867-1954

Henry Harrison was born in Holywood, County Down, and was educated at Westminster School and Balliol College, Oxford, and he became secretary of the Oxford Union Home Rule Group. He was elected Nationalist member of parliament for Mid-Tipperary in 1890, but in his support of Parnell, lost his seat in 1892. In 1915 he joined the Royal Irish Regiment and won the Military Cross. He became known as Captain Harrison and later became Irish correspondent of The Economist. He defended Parnell at all times and in 1931 published Parnell Vindicated: The Lifting of the Veil. A second book Parnell, Joseph Chamberlain and Mr Garvin and a further book, Parnell, Joseph Chamberlain and 'The Times' followed. Trinity College, Dublin gave him an honorary doctorate in 1953.

HARRISON, SARAH CECILIA 1863-1941

Celia Harrison was born in Holywood, County Down. She spent her early life in London and from 1878 until 1885 she attednded the Slade School of Art where she won many awards. Despite living in London, she maintained her links with Belfast by exhibiting with the Ladies' Sketching Club of Belfast in 1879. In 1880 she moved to Dublin and during the 1890s, spent time painting in Brittany. She was a regular exhibitor at thr Royal Hibernian Academy and was a member of the Ulster Academy of Arts and the Royal Ulster Academy. During 1912 she becmae involved with the quest for a location for Hugh Lane's pictures, and became the first woman to serve on Dublin City Council. She was devoted to the task of getting poor relief extended to include the able-bodied unemployed. She ran an advice centre from a room in her home, and she worked tirelessly for women's rights and was an ardent nationalist. She was 6ft. 2" tall, was well known in Dail Eireann, and was a great grand neice of Henry Joy McCracken. Examples of her work are in the National Gallery of Ireland, the Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery, Dublin, and the Ulster Museum, Belfast.

HART, ALICE mid 19th century

Alice Hart and her husband Ernest, who was a surgeon and editor of the British Medical Journal, visited Donegal in 1883. The county had suffered severely from bad harvests, and a Donegal Famine Fund was set up by the Harts. Alice Hart felt that a possible short-term solution to the economic distress was the revival of cottage industries and in 1883, the Donegal Industrial Fund was started. After a successful showing of woven tweeds from Donegal at the Health Exhibition in London, Alice Hart opened a small shop in London to sell Donegal products. She personally experimented with the dying properties of the wild plants of Donegal: the heathers, mosses, roots and leaves, as well as soot and bog-ore. The hosiery made in Donegal and dyed with these dyes won the medal of the Sanitary Institute of Great Britain for 'inocuous vegetable dying'. She instigated a scheme whereby Irish women were encouraged to teach embroidery, later known as 'Kells Embroidery'. The designs were taken from early Irish manuscripts, and worked on linen with dyed and polished threads of flax. In 1885 'Kells Embroidery' won the gold medal at the Inventions Exhibition in London. In 1886 the Donegal Industrial Fund moved to a larger shop which became known as Donegal House. In addition, Alice Hart brought specialist teachers specifically to Donegal and wood-carving and carpentry were revived. The work was exhibited at Edinburgh, Liverpool, Paris, Dublin, Chicago and Olympia, where a model Donegal Industrial Village was built. The venture, though a resounding success, lacked the motivation to survive after the Harts retired in 1896.

HART, GEORGE VAUGHAN 1752-1832

George Hart was born in County Donegal. He joined the army and served with the 46th Regiment during the War of American Independence. He saw action in Long Island, Brandywine and Monmouth. He moved to India, where he took part in the battles of Seringa, Patan and Bangalore. In 1811 he became a lieutenant-general. From 1812 to 1831 he served as member of parliament for County Donegal.

HART, ROBERT 1835-1911

Robert Hart was born in Milltown, County Armagh, and was educated at Queen's College, Belfast. He joined the British consular service and became a commissioner of customs in Shanghai. He met General Gordon and that he reconciled him to Li Hung Chang. By 1863 he had been promoted to inspector general of Chinese Maritime Customs, a Chinese government appointment, not a British Foreign Office one. The post, which he held for the next forty-three years, led to the conferral of the rank of mandarin. He was instrumental in restoring the Manchu dynasty and had both a knighthood and a baronetcy bestowed upon him. [Biography by Julia Bredon 1909]

HARTY, HAMILTON (or HERBERT) 1880-1941

Hamilton Harty was born in Hillsborough, County Down, and was educated by his father. He became an organist, first in Belfast and then in Dublin. In 1900 he left for London and was soon known as an accompanist and composer, as well as being able to play the violin, cello and piano. He performed on many occasions with the soprano, Agnes Nicholls who was his wife. He was conductor with the London Symphony Orchestra, and from 1920 to 1933 was conductor of the Halle Orchestra, Manchester, with which he toured. He was knighted in 1925. Among his compositions are With the Wild Geese; An Irish Symphony; The Mystic Trumpeter and Violin Concerto in D minor. He also wrote songs and and orchestral arrangements. He died at Hove, Sussex.

HARTY, WILLIAM 1859-1941

William Harty was, from 1878 to 1918, organist at St Malachy's Church Belfast. He was a composer and conductor and he was the father of Hamilton Harty.

HARVEY, CHARLES W. 1895-1970

Charles Harvey was born in London. His father was a map-maker with the Ordnance Survey, and his family moved to Belfast in 1906, and lived on the Antrim Road. Charles studied at the Belfast School of Art and won a gold medal in the National Competition for Design. For a short time in 1914 he attended the Metropolitan School of Art, Dublin. He trained as a damask designer and was alo knowledgeable about antique furniture. From 1932 to 1960 he taught in St Mary's Training College, Belfast, and retired as head of the art department. He often exhibited in the Ulster Arts Club. His landscape painting was generally of Ireland: Connemara, Donegal and County Down. In the 1930s he went to paint in Brittany. In 1976, a retrospective exhibition was held at the Arts Council Gallery.

HASTINGS, FRANCIS RAWDON 1754-1826

Francis Rawdon-Hastings was educated at Harrow and University College, Oxford. In 1775 he distinguished himself at Bunker's Hill and a year later fought in the Battles of Brooklyn and White Plains. In 1778 he was Adjutant General to the forces in America and two years later fought at Camden. In 1781 he defeated Greene at Hobkirk's Hill, and was captured by the French on his voyage home. In 1783 he was created Baron Rawdon, and in 1790 assumed the additional name of Hastings. Three years later he succeeded as Irish Earl of Moira. The same year he commanded an expedition to Brittany, and a year later brought reinforcements for the Duke of York in Flanders. In 1799 he spoke against Irish Union. In 1803 he became a general and Commander-in-Chief in Scotland. From 1806 to 1807 he was Master of the Ordnance, and from 1813 to 1822 served as Governor-General of Bengal. In 1817 he was created Marquis of Hastings and estab-lished British supremacy in central India. He died at sea in Baia Bay. A summary of his Indian administration was published in 1824. His statue is at the Dalhousie Institute, Calcutta.

HAWKSETT, SAMUEL 1776-1851

Samuel Hawksett was the principal portrait painter of his time in Belfast. He painted portraits of, among others, Robert Langtry,Thomas Mulholland and the Marchioness of Donegall. He exhibited portraits in the Royal Hibernian Academy, Dublin, from 1826 to 1834. He was commissioned by the Royal Belfast Academical Institution to paint a portrait of King William IV. He was first Treasurer of the Belfast Association of Artists.

HAYES, EDMUND 1804-1867

Edmund Hayes was born in County Down, and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He was called to the Bar in 1827 and attained a Doctorate in Laws by 1832. Twenty years later he was made Queen's Counsel and became law adviser to Dublin Castle. He was raised to the Bench in 1859. He is the author of several legal works.

HAYWARD, RICHARD 1898-1964

Richard Hayward was born in Belfast and began his career as a dramatist there. He specialised in works in dialect and became an expert on Ulster dialect. He published a travel series on Ireland in four volumes This is Ireland: Leinster 1949; Ulster 1950; Connacht 1952 and Mayo, Sligo, Leitrim and Roscommon 1955. He also wrote The Story of the Irish Harp.

HEAD, RICHARD c.1637-c.1686

Richard Head is thought to have been born in Carrickfergus, County Antrim, and educated was at Oxford University. He is author of The English Rogue; The Canting Academy; Life of Mother Shipton and The Humours of Dublin. He was for a time a bookseller in London. He died in a drowning accident.

HEALY, CAHIR 1877-1970

Cahir Healy was born in Mountcharles, County Donegal, but at an early age moved to Enniskillen, County Fermanagh. He worked as a journalist with the Fermanagh News. He joined Sinn Fein in 1905 and in May 1922 was arrested and interned in Belfast Lough on board the prison ship Argenta. He was later moved to Larne workhouse and published articles about the appalling conditions there in the Sunday Express. The Westminster constituency of Fermanagh and Tyrone elected him Sinn Fein member of parliament in 1922, but he was not released to take up his office until 1924. In 1925 he was elected Nationalist member of parliament at Stormont for Fermanagh, and he held the seat for forty years. From 1950 to 1955 he again became a member of the Westminster parliament. Cahir Healy was a prolific writer and had many of his articles and letters published in newspapers. He produced a volume of poems, The Lane of the Thrushes, with Cathal O'Byrne, and also a novel and a children's story.

HEARN, WILLIAM EDWARD 1826-1888

William Hearn was born in Belturbet, County Cavan, and educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He was Professor of Greek at Queen's College, Galway from 1849 to 1854, and Professor of History and Literature at Melbourne University from 1854 to 1872. He became Dean of that university and a member of the Legislative Council of Victoria. He published many works and died in Melbourne in 1888.

HEFFERNAN, JAMES 1785-1845

James Heffernan was born in Derry. He went to Cork, and became a sculptor. The monument of Bishop Florence MacCarthy in the South Chapel, Cork and the monument to Bishop Bennet in the Protestant cathedral, Cloyne, are examples of his work.

HEMPHILL, CHARLES HARE 1822-1908

Charles Hemphill was born in Cashel, County Tipperary, and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. Having been called to the Bar and made a Queen's Counsel he served as a county court judge from 1863 to 1877. In 1895 he was elected member of parliament for North Tyrone after having served as Solicitor-General for the three previous years. He was created a peer in 1906, and he died in Dublin.

HEMPSON, DENIS see O'HEMPSEY, DENIS

HENDERSON, HENRY 1820-1879

Henry Henderson was born in Belfast and installed as a Presbyterian minister in Holywood in 1844. From 1869 to 1878 he was a contributor on current affairs to the Belfast Weekly News, where he used the pseudonym of 'Ulster Scot'. He also published sermons. Among his works are The True Heir of Ballymore (1859) and The Dark Monk of Feola (1859).

HENDERSON, JAMES 1848-1914

James Henderson was born in Belfast and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He was called to the Bar in 1872 and from 1873 for the next ten years was editor of the Newry Telegraph. From 1883 to 1914 he was managing proprietor of the Belfast Weekly News and the Belfast Newsletter. In 1898 he was appointed the first Lord Mayor of Greater Belfast, and in 1900 was the first High Sheriff of Belfast.

HENRY, AUGUSTINE 1857-1930

Augustine Henry was probably born in Cookstown, County Tyrone and was educated at Cookstown Academy and in Galway and Belfast, graduating in medicine in 1879. Having acquired a working knowledge of the Chinese language while employed in the imperial Chinese customs service, he travelled into the interior of the country to collect plants and seeds unknown in Europe. A thousand plants, regarded as constituting one of the most important collections to come out of inland China, were sent to Kew Gardens. In the journal of the Chinese Royal Asiatic Society he published a list of Chinese plants, and in 1888 was elected a Fellow of the Linnaen Society of London. He was the first to publish an account of the flora of Formosa (Taiwan), and while he was there he studied law and became a member of the Middle Temple. He compiled a dictionary of the Lolos language, the language of a minority people in south-west China whose existence had been unknown to Europeans. He returned to Europe in 1900 and studied at the National School of Forestry in France and began his collaboration with H.G.Elwes on The Trees of Great Britain and Ireland in seven volumes. He was appointed Reader in Forestry at Cambridge in 1908, and is said to have developed the university's School of Forestry and he was later appointed Professor of Forestry at the College of Science in Dublin. He was a member of the forestry institutions of many countries, and of the Royal Horticultural Society. In 1908 Cambridge University awarded him an honorary Master of Arts. He also published Forests, Woods and Trees in Relation to Hygene in 1919. His collection of trees and plants were bequeathed to the National Botanical Gardens and a catalogue, The Augustine Henry Forestry Herbarium at the National Botanic Gardens Glasnevin, a Catalogue of the Specimens, was published in Dublin in 1957. He died in Dublin.

HENRY, DENIS STANISLAUS 1864-1925

Denis Henry was born in Draperstown, County Londonderry, and was educated at Dundalk, Chesterfield and Queen's College, Belfast. He was called to the Bar in 1885 and became a Queen's Counsel in 1896. He became Unionist member of parliament for South Londonderry in 1916. In 1918 he was appointed Solicitor-General, and in 1919 Attorney-General and a Privy Councillor. In 1921 he became first Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland and was created a baronet in 1922.

HENRY, PAUL 1877-1958

Paul Henry was born in Belfast, and was educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution, where he met Robert Lynd. He was an apprentice designer with the Broadway Damask Company in Belfast before entering the Belfast School of Art. He studied at the Academie Julien in Paris and in Whistler's studio. When he moved to London, he shared rooms with Robert Lynd for eleven years until 1912. He contributed illustrations to magazines such as The Graphic; The Lady and Black and White. He visited Achill, County Mayo, for a holidayand stayed for seven years. Instead of using charcoal, he began to use oils for his West of Ireland pictures, those for which he is best known. He held many exhibitions when he moved to Dublin in 1920 and was elected to the Royal Hibernian Academy in 1929. He was a founder member of the Dublin Painters. He designed posters for the Irish Tourist Board and the London, Midland & Scottish Railway. His biography, An Irish Portrait, was published in 1951. He exhibited in London, Paris, Belfast, Brussels, Boston, New York and Toronto. From 1920 onwards, he had red/green colour blindness, and he lost his sight in 1945. He died in Enniskerry, County Wicklow. He is represented in all the principal Irish collections, and in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

HENRY, ROBERT MITCHEL 1873-1950

Robert Henry was born in Belfast. He was educated at the Royal University, Dublin, and London University in 1895. For thirty years he was Professor of Latin at Queen's University, Belfast, and in 1938 became Pro-Vice-Chancellor. In 1939 St Andrews University appointed him Professor of Humanities. He was a member of the Royal Irish Academy, and in 1920 he was appointed President of the Classical Association of Ireland. Among his publications are The Evolution of Sinn Fein and editions of Livy, Cicero, Vergil and a study of the Roman epic.

HENRY, SAMUEL d.1952

Sam Henry was a customs man, a pension officer, a traditional fiddle player, and a popular lecturer. He wrote extnsively for the local papers, and went into the country-side to collect the songs he printed in his series of ballads and songs which, from 1923 until 1939, appeared in the Northern Constitution, Coleraine. These songs were collected into Songs of the People. He presented an unpublished manuscript to the Belfast Free Library, to the National Library of Ireland in Dublin, and to the Library of Congress in Washington. They remained unpublished. Sam Hanna Bell, when he was producer with the BBC in Belfast, commissioned Sean O'Boyle to examine the Sam Henry collection, and to prepare an index to be used by the BBC. John Moulden published in 1979, Songs of the People: selections from the Sam Henry Collection, Vol. I, but it was not until 1990 that the collection was finally published in entirety by the University of Georgia Press. It is the largest single collection of songs from Ulster between the world wars.

HENTY, GEORGE ALFRED 1832-1902

G. A. Henty was born in Canbridgeshire. As Purveyor to the Forces he spent some time in Belfast. He published more than eighty-six books for boys, which cover almost all countries and every period in history. Among his works are Friends Though Divided (1883); In the Irish Brigade (1901) and Orange and Green (1907).

HERBISON, DAVID 1800-1880

David Herbison was born in Ballymena, County Antrim. He went blind when he was three years old, but four years later regained the sight of his left eye. After helping on his father's farm, aty the age of fourteen, he was apprenticed to hand-loom weaving. In 1827 he emigrated to Canada and after being shipwrecked in St Laurence, returned home and after a few months became a weaver. Later he was a local agent for a Belfast linen firm. He published many poems in newspapers in Belfast, Dublin and London, written in Ulster Scots, using some dialect words. He published three volumes of poems, Midnight Musings; or Thought from the Loom (1848); Children of the Year (1876) and The Snow Wreath (1869). He wrote poetry up until the time of his death, but had to adopt standard English in order to get published. A monument was erected to him in 1883.

HERON, ARCHIBALD 1894-1971

Archie Heron was born in Portadown, County Armagh, and was educated locally. In 1912 he went to Dublin as an organiser with the Irish Republican Brotherhood. He was one of the first organisers of the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union, and was in close association with James Connolly. He was briefly Labour member of the Dail for Dublin North-West from 1937 to 1938. He served as General Secretary of the Local Government Officers' Union. He worked as Labour Relations Officer in various departments of local government. He died in Dublin.

HERON, HILARY 1923-1977

Hilary Heron was born in Dublin and spent her childhood in New Ross, County Wexford, and Coleraine, County Londonderry. She was educated at a single-teacher school and the National College of Art, Dublin, where she won three Taylor Prizes. For sculpture in wood, limestone and marble she was awarded the first Mainie Jellett Memorial Travelling Scholarship in 1947. In the same year, she went to Italy and France to study Romanesque carving. She was instrumental in founding the Irish Exhibition of Living Art, and first exhibited there in 1943. With Louis Le Brocquy, she represented Ireland at the Venice Biennale in 1956. In 1950 and 1953 she held one-woman shows in Dublin. In the 1950s she began to work in metal. She travelled in Asia, America and Europe, and her works are in many countries in both private and public collections.

HERON, MATILDA 1830-1877

Matilda Heron was born in County Londonderry and was an actress.

HERRON, THOMAS 1949-1979

Tommy Herron was born in Newcastle, County Down. He was a motor cycle racer and when he was twenty-one years old he won the North-West 200. He raced in Europe at most of the Grand Prix and in-ternational events in the 1970s. He won the 1976 Senior and 250cc races and the 1978 Senior T.T. race in the Isle of Man. In 1978 he set the then fastest ever lap of a road race circuit with 127.63 miles per hour. He joined the Suzuki team in 1979 but was killed in an accident in the North-West 200 the same year.

HERVEY, FREDERICK AUGUSTUS 1730-1803

Frederick Hervey was born in Surrey and his christening took place in the distinguished presence of the Duchess of Marlborough, the Duke of Richmond and the Prince of Wales. He was educated at Winchester and Westminster School and Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and became a chaplain to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, who was his brother. In 1767 he was appointed Bishop of Cloyne and in the following year was translated to Derry. He built houses at Downhill and Ballyscullion, County Londonderry, in which he stored his vast art collection. He was in favour of Catholic emancipation and was renowned for his support of the Volunteer movement, which was uncommon for an English aristocrat (in 1779 he succeeded as 4th Earl of Bristol). He provided the money which built the spire of Derry Cathedral and was made a freeman of Derry and Dublin. He is remembered as a colourful and unorthodox cleric. The end of his life was spent in Italy, and he is buried at Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, where the inhabitants of Derry erected an obelisk to his memory.

HEWITT, JOHN HAROLD 1907-1987

John Hewitt was born in Belfast and was educated at Methodist College and the Queen's University, Belfast. He was Keeper of Art at the Ulster Museum, Belfast, from 1930 to 1957, and was Director of the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry, from 1957 to 1972. He returned to Belfast on his retirement. He was a director of the Lyric Theatre and poetry editor of Threshold. For a period he was writer-in-residence at Queen's University, Belfast, and he was a member of the Irish Academy of Letters. He published many volumes of poetry, including No Rebel Word; Collected Poems 1932-1967; Out of My Time and Time Enough, which won a Poetry Book Society award. He also published The Rain Dance; The Selected John Hewitt and Mosaic. His books of art criticism include Art in Ulster 1 and a monograph on Colin Middleton. He edited the Rhyming Weavers and other Country Poets of Antrim and Down as well as the poems of William Allingham. Seamus Heaney said of him that he was 'the discoverer of the nugget of harmony in the language and ourselves', and Michael Longley's tribute maintains that 'John Hewitt the poet made himself heard in a land of bellowers without raising his voice. He held out the creative hand rather than the clenched fist'. The Collected Poems of John Hewitt, edited by Frank Ormsby and published by the Blackstaff Press in Belfast in November 1991, were given special commendation by the Poetry Book Society.

HEZLET, OWEN 1891-1965

Charles Hezlet was a major in the army and an amateur international golfer. He played for the Royal Portrush Golf Club. In 1920 he won the Irish Close title and in 1926 and 1929 he won the Irish Open Ama-teur title. He played thirteen international matches for Ireland between 1923 and 1931 and was Ireland's first player to win Walker Cup honours. In 1927 he also played for Ireland against South Africa and in 1952 captained a British team to Africa. He was Irish team captain ten times before 1932 and six times after 1948. From 1947 to 1953 he was a selector for Ireland. He is the brother of Mary, Florence and Violet.

HEZLET, MARY LINZEE (MAY) 1882-1969

May Hezlet was born in Gibraltar, and played golf for the Royal Portrush Golf Club. She was an amateur international golfer and won three British Ladies' Open Amateur Championships in 1899, 1902 and 1907. She won the Irish Championship five times. In the 1905 British Ladies' team she played with her two sisters. Florence and Violet.

HIGGINS, FRANCIS 1746-1802

Francis Higgins was born in Downpatrick, County Down, and became an attorney's clerk in Dublin. He married, leading his wife to believe that he was a country gentleman, for which offence he was imprisoned and became known as 'the Sham Squire'. He was the owner of gaming houses. He bought the Freeman's Journal and in its pages frequently denounced opponents of the government, in particular the United Irishmen. He was rewarded £1,000 for revealing the hiding place of Lord Edward FitzGerald in 1798. He died in Dublin. [Biography, The Sham Squire by W. J. Fitzpatrick]

HIGGINS, HENRY BOURNES 1851-1929

Henry Higgins was born in Newtownards, County Down, and was educated at Newry and Dublin. Before he went to Australia he was in business in Belfast. From 1871 to 1875 he studied at Melbourne University and was called to the Bar in 1876 and the Inner Temple in 1886. He served as member of parliament for North Melbourne from 1901 to 1906 and during that period was appointed Attorney-General for the Commonwealth. From 1907 to 1921 he was President of the Court of Conciliation and Arbitration. He died in Melbourne and bequeathed a legacy of £25,000 to the Royal Irish Academy. (Memoir by N. Palmer, 1931)

HIGGINS, JOHN PATRICK BASIL (EOIN) 1927-1993

Eoin Higgins was born in Magherafelt, County Londonderry. He was educted at St Columb's College, the Christian Brothers' School, Derry and at Queen's University, Belfast. In 1948 he was called to the Bar and in 1967 became Queen's Counsel, having served in the county courts of Armagh, Fermanagh and Antrim. In 1982 he became recorder of Belfast. He became a judge of the High Court of Northern Ireland in 1984, and was in charge of the Family Division. He was the target of several assassination attempts, and his home was attacked in 1987. As a Puisne Judge, he had heard a number of controversial appeals, such as those of the UDR Four, and the Supergrasses Case. He first came into prominence at the Bar with the Scarman Tribunal, which inquired into the causes of the riots in 1969. He was President of the Welfare Society of St Vincent de Paul, and was governor for St Joseph's College, Belfast and the Dominican Convent in Portstewart. He was knighted in 1988 and he served from 1989 to 1993 as Deputy Chairman of the Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland.

HILL, GEORGE 1810-1900

George Hill was born in Moyarget, near Ballycastle, County Antrim. He was educated in Belfast and ordained in Ballymoney and in 1837 was minister of a parish in Crumlin. From 1850 to 1880 he was Librarian of Queen's College, Belfast. His verse appeared in various periodicals, including the Nation. He published The Stewarts of Ballintoy, 1865; The Montgomery Manuscripts; The MacDonalds of Antrim, 1873 and The Plantation in Ulster, 1877. He retired to Ramoan, County Antrim.

HILL, GEORGE FITZGERALD 1763-1839

George Hill was born in Derry and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He became member of parliament for Derry and later Lord of the Treasury and a Privy Councillor. In 1798, he betrayed Wolfe Tone, whom he recognised from their time at Trinity College. He was Governor of St Vincent's and Trinidad, where he died.

HILL, ROWLEY 1836-1887

Rowley Hill was born in Derry and was educated in London and at Cambridge University. He was ordained in 1860 and worked in London and in Sheffield. In 1877 he was appointed Bishop of Sodor and Man. He died in London.

HILL, WILLS 1718-1793

Wills Hill was the first Marquis of Downshire and owned large estates in County Down. He was an absentee landlord. He was pro-Union.

HILLHOUSE, JAMES A. 1789-1841

James Hillhouse's family had emigrated to America from Ballykelly, County Londonderry, in 1720. James was considered an American poet of eminence.

HINCKS, EDWARD 1792-1866

Edward Hincks was born in Cork, and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, where he became a fellow in 1813. In 1819 he was appointed Rector of Ardtrea, County Armagh, and in 1826 moved to the parish of Killyleagh, County Down where he remained until his death. He was an oriental scholar and published a Hebrew grammar, but it was in the field of Egyptian and Assyrian translation that he excelled. His contribution to the deciphering of cuneiform writing was extremely valuable, and he discovered the Persian cuneiform vowel system at the same time as Rawlinson discovered it in Baghdad. Many of his papers were published in the Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy. In 1854 he published a Report to the Trustees of the British Museum respecting certain Cylinders and Terracotta Tablets with Cuneiform Inscriptions and a Letter on the Polyphony of the Assyrio-Babylonian Cuneiform Writing in 1863. There is a bust of him in the entrance of Cairo Museum as one of the pioneers of Egyptology.

HINCKS, FRANCIS 19th century

Francis Hincks was educated in Belfast and apprenticed to a firm of shipowners. He emigrated to Canada, where he entered politics and eventually became Prime Minister in 1851. He was knighted and was later appointed Governor of Barbados.

HINCKS, THOMAS DIX 1767-1857

Thomas Hincks was born in Dublin, was educated at the Crumlin Academy, Trinity College, Dublin, and London, and was ordained a Presbysterian minister in Cork. He was a member of the Royal Irish Academy and after teaching in the Cork Institution, which he founded, taught in Fermoy, County Cork. In 1821 he was appointed classics master at the Belfast Academical Institution, and in 1822 he was there appointed Professor of Oriental Languages. He gained a Doctorate in Laws from Glasgow in 1834 and, as well as writing many educational works, edited the Munster Agricultural Magazine in Cork. He was father of Edward and Francis Hincks. He died in Belfast.

HIND (or HINE), GERTRUDE ELIZABETH HERON (pseud. SHANE, ELIZABETH) 1877-1951

Gertrude Hind was born in Glassdrummond, Annalong, County Down. She was a poet, musician and dramatist, and one of her plays, The Warming Pan, a comedy, was performed in Belfast in 1933. She lived in Carrickfergus for a time and sailed her boat on Belfast Lough. She was first violinist in the Belfast Philharmonic Orchestra, and judged original poems by young people at Larne Music Festival. She published three volumes of poems, Tales of the Donegal Coast and Islands; By Bog and Sea in Donegal and Piper's Tunes and Later poems. Some of her poems were set to music.

HOBART, HENRY 1858-1938

Henry Hobart was born at Lagan Lodge, Dromore, County Down. He was educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution and was then articled to William Lynn to train as an architect. In 1890 he began to design buildings, and four years later went into partnership with Samuel Heron. In 1905 the firm moved to Belfast. He designed buildings all over Ulster, such as Gardenmore Presbyterian Church, County Antrim, Mill Street, Tandragee, County Armagh, the Ulster Bank, Irvinestown, County Fermanagh, and the Technical School, Magherafelt, County Londonderry. In Dromore, he designed Holm Terrace on the Lurgan Road, the Gate Lodge at the Cowan Heron Hospital, and the parochial house.

HOBHOUSE, VIOLET (nee McNEILL) 1864-1902

Violet Hobhouse was born in County Antrim and was extremely interested in Irish folklore and culture. She was a fluent speaker of Irish, and a keen Unionist, and she toured England, where she spoke publically against Home Rule. She published poetry and novels, among which were An Unknown Quantity (1898) and Warp and Weft (1899).

HOBSON, BULMER 1883-1969

Bulmer Hobson was born in Holywood, County Down, and being a Quaker was educated at the Friends' School, Lisburn. He was an ardent admirer of Wolfe Tone and was to publish The Life of Wolfe Tone in 1919. He worked in the printing business in Belfast and began a club for boys which evolved into the Protestant National Society and was used to recruit young Protestants into the Nationalist Movement. He was secretary of the first Antrim County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association but resigned and established Na Fianna Eireann. Constance Markievicz and he in 1909 expanded this club to a national scout organisation. The Ulster Literary Theatre had Hobson as one of its founding members, and he wrote a poetic drama, Brian of Banba. He was dissatisfied with Cumann na nGaedheal and began a club for which he wrote To the Whole People of Ireland: The Manifesto of the Dungannon Club in 1905. His weekly newspaper, the Republic, merged with the Peasant after six months. He was invited to America to introduce the Sinn Fein movement, and when he returned to Ireland Hobson amalgamated the Dungannon Clubs and Cumann na nGaedheal. He became Vice-President of Sinn Fein. He collaborated with F. J. Bigger and produced William Orr, which was one of a projected series of studies of prominent northern United Irishmen. In 1909 he published Defence of Warfare: A Handbook for Irish Nationalists. Because of policy disagreements in 1910, he left Sinn Fein and gave his time to the Irish Republican Brotherhood, for whom he started a newspaper, Irish Freedom. Bulmer Hobson was a founder member of the Irish Volunteers, and he published A Short History of the Irish Volunteers. He resigned in 1914 from the Supreme Council of the Irish Republican Brotherhood because of opposition from militant members. In 1916 he opposed the Easter Rising and his own Irish Republican Brotherhood colleagues arrested him and released him only when the rising had started. He withdrew from the revolutionary movement after the Rising and became involved in the Dublin Gate Theatre, in afforestation projects, and in writing of a non-political nature. When the Free State was established in 1922 he was appointed chief of the Revenue Commissioners' Stamp Department in Dublin Castle. Among his later writings are A National Forests Policy and Ireland Yesterday and Tomorrow.

HOBSON, FLORENCE b.1881

Florence Hobson was born in Monasterevan, County Kildare. She had her mind set on becoming an architect, but at the turn of the century there were no women with architects' professional qualifications in Ireland, Wales or Scotland, though two women had been articled in England. Florence Hobson went to London where her proposal to become an architect met with 'if you were a little less good looking, you'd have a better chance'. She was eventually accepted by James Phillips, the leading Methodist Church architect. By 1893 she had passed two qualifying examinations held under the Royal Institute of British Architects. In 1905 she was appointed to assist the Royal Commission on the City of Belfast's Health and Housing, and spent the next fifteen years making a thorough report. She travelled to Germany and Switzerland to ascertain how these countries dealt with similar problems. She was a member of the Belfast Naturalists' Field Club and delivered a lecture on town planning at the library in Royal Avenue in 1913. She was Bulmer Hobson's sister and Ireland's first woman architect.

HODGES, JOHN FREDERICK 1815-1899

John Hodges was born in Downpatrick, County Down, and was educated in Dublin, Glasgow and finally in Giessen University where he studied chemistry. In Downpatrick he founded the Mechanics' Institute in 1847. He became Professor of Chemistry in the Royal Belfast Academical Institution and Professor of Agricultural Chemistry and Lecturer in Medical Jurisprudence in Queen's College, Belfast. He was Chemical Director of the Chemico-Agricultural Society of Ulster, whose journal he edited. He was one of the founders of the Royal College of Chemistry in London and was employed by the government as an analyst. He had honours conferred on him by Russia, Stockholm, Turin, Germany, France and Amsterdam.

HOGG, DAVID JAMES 1870-1939

James Hogg was born in Tullywest, near Ballynahinch, County Down. He lived in Belfast and was a joiner by trade. In 1905 he became a member of the Ulster Amateur Photographic Society, and won prizes for his photographs. Subsequently he became a professional photographer. All that has survived of his work is an album of photographs taken in 1909, all of which relate to the temperance issue. He was one of the leading photgraphers in Belfast.

HOGG, JAMES WEIR 1790-1876

James Hogg was born in County Antrim, and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He was called to the Bar and practised in Calcutta, and was subsequently Registrar of the Supreme Court and a director of the East India Company. From 1835 to 1857 he was member of parliament for Beverley and Honiton. In 1846 he was created a baron and in 1872 a Privy Councillor.

HOLDEN, JOHN SINCLAIR 1837-1923

John Sinclair Holden studied medicine at Queen's College, Belfast. He had a medical practice at Glenarm, County Antrim. As a founder member of the Belfast Naturalists' Field Club he took many photographs between 1867 and 1870, showing the antiquities, harbours and geology of the east Antrim coast. He went to live in Sudburn in southern England, where he remained for the rest of his life.

HOLMES, HUGH 1840-1919

Hugh Holmes was born in Dungannon, County Tyrone, and was educated there and at Trinity College, Dublin. In 1865 he was called to the Bar and was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1877. He served as Solicitor-General from 1878 to 1880 and Attorney-General from 1885 to 1886. He was member of parliament for Queen's University from 1885 to 1887, in which year he became a judge. In 1897 he was appointed Lord Justice of Appeal. His autobiography is in manuscript.

HOLLAND, MARGARET 1872-1950

Margaret Holland was born in Belfast. Her great wish was to become a doctor, and though her father did not object to education for women - providing they did not take jobs away from men - the era dictated that she 'learned domestic arts and waited for a good husband'. At the age of twenty she accompanied her mother to the Canary Islands, where she kept a journal. She was actively involved in the temperance movement, the Working Men's Sunday School attached to Rosemary Street Presbyterian Church, and charitable work such as food distribution in East Belfast, especially during the depression in the 1920s. She was a member of the Belfast Field Club and of the Presbyterian Women's Missionary Association, and a year after her mother's death in 1921 she embarked for India on a visit to the Presbyterian Zenana Mission. The mission provided medical and educational welfare for Indian women and orphaned children and trained Indian women in the medical profession. Her book My Winter of Content follows her journey across northern India and is illustrated by her own photographs and Frank McKelvey's paintings.

HOLLAND, NAN late 19th, early 20th century

Nan Holland was born and educated in Ulster and around 1910 moved to Dublin where she was a student at the Dublin School of Art. Her painted enamel plaque, 'Blue Bird', was exhibited at the Arts and Crafts Society in 1917, though for the rest of her life she concentrated on making fine jewellery.

HOLYWOOD, JOHN d.1250

John Holywood was probably born in Holywood, County Down, at the end of the twelfth century. He was a mathematician and author of Tractatus de Sphaera, which was printed in Ferrara in 1472, and Algorisms, which was edited by Halliwell-Phillips in 1838. John Holywood was known as Sacro Bosco. He died in Paris.

HOMES, WILLIAM 1663-1746

William Homes was born in the north of Ireland and went to New England, where he was a school teacher for three years. When he returned to Ireland in 1692 he was ordained a Presbyterian minister at Strabane. In 1714 he once again went to New England and had a parish in Chilmark. He published his sermons, Sabbath, Secret Prayer and Church Government.

HONNER, MARIA (nee McCARTHY) 1812-1870

Maria McCarthy was born in Enniskillen. She married Robert Honner who was manager of the Surrey Theatre. She was an actress and performed with Edmund Keane.

HOOD, JOHN 1720-1772

John Hood was born in Moyle, County Donegal. He was a surveyor and inventor, and he invented a surveying instrument known as Hood's Compass Theodolite. He published Treatise on Land Surveying in 1772.

HOOKE, RICHARD 1822-1887

Richard Hooke was born in County Down, and was a carpenter. He showed a gift for painting, and this was encouraged by Samuel Fergusson, manager of the Sion flax-spinning mills. Fergusson taught him photography, which Richard Hooke used in his portrait painting. He moved to Belfast, and painted the portraits of many people, including those of Samuel McCausland and John Browne. He exhibited at the Royal Hibernian Academy from 1850 to 1856, and from 1873 until his death. He painted a protrait of the Marquis of Downshire, his patron, and this was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1872.

HOPE, JAMES (JEMMY) 1764-1846

Jemmy Hope was born in Templepatrick, County Antrim. He worked as a labourer, and was taught to read and write by the various farmers who employed him. He was a weaver from the age of ten, then a journeyman, and continued his education at night classes. In 1795 he joined the Society of United Irishman. In 1796 he went to Dublin to enlist members for the society and during this period he worked as a cotton weaver. He was the friend of McCracken, Russell and Emmet. He led the 'Spartan Band' in the Battle of Antrim in 1798 and after its defeat fled to Dublin. In 1806 he returned to Belfast and resumed work as a linen weaver after the political amnesty. He wrote poetry and his memoirs were published.

HORNER, JOHN 1858-1919

John Horner was born in Belfast. He became an engineer and an industrialist, but was also a linguist, a scientist and a botanist, accumulating a rich collection of books, art and scientific specimens. He helped initiate the University Extension Lectures, which brought international scientists to Belfast, and in 1895 he was one of the main organisers of the Industrial Exhibition. He was a member of the Belfast Natural History and Philosophical Society and acted as its treasurer and secretary. He is best known as the author of The Linen Trade of Europe during the Spinning-Wheel Period (1920). His unique collection of spinning wheels was bequeathed to the Ulster Museum.

HOUSTON, JOHN 1802-1845

John Houston was born in Ulster, and was educated in Dublin and Edinburgh, where he became a doctor in 1826. He was Curator of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, where he compiled a catalogue. He lectured on surgery and was a physician in the City of Dublin Hospital and contributed to many medical journals.

HOUSTON, MARGARET J. (nee SINCLAIR) d.1895

Maggie Houston was born at Moneymore, County Londonderry and lived at Portglenone, County Antrim. She wrote novels in which she used Donegal and Palestine as her scenarios.

HOUSTON, MARY GALWAY b.1871

Mary Houston came from Coleraine, County Londonderry and in 1890 went to study at the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art. In 1894 and 1895 she exhibited lace and crochet at the Royal Dublin Society and black and white drawings at the Arts and Crafts Society of Ireland. The following year she won prizes for leather-work and repousse metal-work. In 1896 she moved to London to study at South Kensington where she became extremely successful. She began to exhibit with the English Arts and Crafts Society, and won a gold medal for a modelled leather book cover. In 1901 she exhibited with the Royal Academy. Her book bindings, including the Rubiayat of Omar Kayam were very popular and she also embossed and modelled leather panels. She was also a fine metal-worker, working in silver, copper and pure tin and in 1900, her toilet set in beaten silver was sent to the Paris exhibition as an example of work from British Art Schools. She often used designs inspired by Irish myth and legend. She was commissioned by the Studio to design two silver trophies. Later in her career she turned to Celtic style designs. Although an international artist, she continued to exhibit at the Royal Dublin Society and at the Irish Decorative Art Association Exhibitions held in Portrush, County Antrim. She joined the staff of Camberwell School of Art and became interested in costume design, and wrote three books on the subject: Ancient Egyptian, Assyrian and Persian Costumes (with Florence Hornblower); Medieval Costume in England and France and Ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine Costume.

HOUSTON, THOMAS 1803-1882

Thomas Houston was born in County Antrim but settled in Knockbracken, County Down. He was a Doctor of Divinity, and a Covenanting Presbyterian, and he edited The Covenanter and published many theological works. He was a professor at Belfast Theological Hall.

HOUSTON, THOMAS b.1879

Thomas Houston was born in Coleraine, County Londonderry, and was educated at Coleraine Academical Institution, Queen's College, Belfast, and the Royal University of Ireland, where he graduated with a degree in medicine. He became an authority on clinical pathology and was a pioneer in bacteriological research.

HOUSTON, THOMAS GALWAY b.1843

Thomas Houston was born at Mountpottinger, Belfast, and was educated at Cookstown Academy, Royal Belfast Academical Institution and Queen's College, Belfast. He was Principal of Coleraine Academical Institution from 1870 to 1915. He was a distinguished educationalist.

HOWARD, GEORGE EDMUND 1715-1786

George Howard was born in Coleraine, and was educated in Dublin. He was a solicitor , a land agent and later an architect. He supported Catholic Emancipation. Among his publications are many legal works and some plays, Almeyda, or The Rival Kings and The Female Gamester. His Miscellaneous Works in Prose and Verse was published in 1782. He was a Freeman of the City of Dublin, and he died there.

HUDDLESTON, ROBERT c.1817-1868

Robert Huddleston was born in Moneyrea, County Antrim, and became known as the bard of Moneyrea. In 1844 he published A Collection of Poems and Songs on Rural Subjects, (2 vols). He used Ulster Scots dialect in his poems and in 1950 began to write a novel, The Adventures of Hughey Funny or The Many Tales of Love, though it was never published. He died lamenting his lack of fame.

HUGHES, FREDERICK DESMOND 1919-1992

Desmond Hughes was born in Belfast and was educated at Campbell College, Belfast, and Pembroke College, Cambridge. In 1939 he joined the Royal Air Force and fought in the Battle of Britain, rising to the rank of wing commander during the Sec-ond World War. He received numerous military decorations for his ability as a night-fighter. In 1968 he became Commander of No.18 Group, Coastal Command. From 1970 to 1972 he was appointed Commandant of the Royal Air Force College at Cranwell and from 1972 to 1974 was Deputy Commander of British Forces in Cyprus. He was awarded the CBE. He died near Lincoln.

HUGHES, HERBERT 1882-1937

Herbert Hughes was born in Belfast and became the first organist at St Peter's Church, Antrim Road, when he was still a boy. He made his first of many trips to Donegal in 1899 to collect traditional songs. He met Padraic Colum on one of these expeditions and Colum translated from the Irish many of the songs which Hughes collected. He studied at the Royal College of Music in London. 'The Star of the County Down', 'I Know Where I'm Going', 'The Next Market Day' and 'She Moved Through the Fair' were all songs collected and adapted by Colum and set to airs collected and arranged by Hughes. Herbert Hughes lived in England for some years and died in Brighton. His collection of folk-song arrangements is famous.

HUGHES, JOHN 1797-1864

John Hughes was born in Annaloghlan, County Tyrone, and emigrated to America in 1817. He worked as a gardener before being accepted as a student at the Emmitsburg Seminary, Maryland. He was ordained in 1826 and built St Joseph's Church in Philadelphia. He was consecrated Bishop of New York in 1842 and in 1850 became the first archbishop of the diocese. He lectured before Congress and was thanked by President Lincoln for his support of the Union in the Civil War. He was chosen to represent America on a mission to Napoleon III. He founded a college at Fordham which is now the Jesuit University, and before his death he laid the foundation stone of St Patrick's Cathedral, Fifth Avenue, New York. [Biographies by Hassard and Braun]

HULL, EDWARD 1829-1917

Edward Hull was born in County Antrim, and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He joined the Geological Survey, and in his capacity as geologist worked in Ireland, Scotland and Palestine, where he met Lord Kitchener. He was secretary to the Victoria Institute and published many papers in scientific journals. His autobiography, Reminiscences, was published in 1910.

HULL, ELEANOR HENRIETTA 1860-1935

Eleanor Hull was born in England of a County Down family and was educated at Alexandra College, Dublin. She was a student of Irish Studies under Kuno Meyer and Standish Hayes O'Grady. She was a journalist and scholar of Old Irish and in 1899 was co-founder of the Irish Texts Society for the publication of early manuscripts, remaining its honorary secretary for nearly thirty years. Her published works include The Cuchulain Saga in Irish Literature (1898); Pagan Ireland; Early Christian Ireland; A Textbook of Irish Literature, in 2 vols.; The Poem-Book of the Gael; The Northmen in Britain, Folklore of the British Isles and A History of Ireland in 2 vols. She was president of the Irish Literary Society. She died in Wimbeldon.

HULL, FRED W. 1867-1953

Fred Hull was born in Drogheda, County Meath. He came to Belfast and established a business. When he was thirty years old he took up painting as a hobby, attending evening classes at the Government School of Design. In 1902 he was elected a member of the Belfast Art Society, and exhibited in the Ulster Arts Club of which he was a foundation member and later its president. From about 1904 he exhibited in the Royal Hibernian Academy, Dublin, and in 1924 his work was on view at the British Empire exhibition, London. His favourite painting area was the Lagan Valley, and he painted many scenes of Barnett's Park and Shaw's Bridge. His work is in the Ulster Museum.

HUME, ABRAHAM 1814-1884

Abraham Hume was born near Hillsborough, County Down, and was educated in Belfast and at Trinity College, Dublin. Before he became Vicar of Vauxhall in 1847 he was a teacher in the Liverpool Institution. He explored Chile and Peru, and was a Fellow of both the Royal Society and the Society of Antiquaries. He became a Doctor of Laws and of Civil Law and was Canon of Chester Cathedral. He published over a hundred pamphlets dealing with topics such as Irish dialect and folklore, as well as several volumes dealing with antiquities. He died in Liverpool. [Biography by J. C. Morley].

HUME, ALEXANDER HAMILTON 1797-1843

Alexander Hume was born in Australia, the son of Andrew Hamilton Hume. He became a famous explorer and is said to have made the first overland journey from Sydney to Port Phillip, discovering five rivers. He accompanied Sturt on the MacQuarie expedition.

HUME, ANDREW HAMILTON 1762-1849

Andrew Hume was born near Hillsborough, County Down. He emigrated to Australia and was known as the 'Father of New South Wales', having lived and prospered there longer than any other settler. He died there.

HUNTER, JOHN F. 1893-1951

John Hunter was born in Manchuria, where his father was an Irish Presbyterian church missionary. He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and the Royal College of Art. He became inspector of art to the Ministry of Education in 1923. In 1934 he completed, with W. R. Gordon, the large mural, 'The Bronze Age in Belfast', at the Ulster Museum. He was President of the Ulster Academy of Arts. He served in both world wars, and was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was awarded the OBE. His wood engravings and landscape pictures are in the Ulster Museum and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. He was the brother of Mercy Hunter.

HUNTER, MERCY 1910-1989

Mercy Hunter was born in Belfast. When she was four years old, she travelled on the Trans-Siberian Railway, to China, where she spent her childhood in Manchuria. She was educated in Toronto and the Belfast Royal Academy. From 1927 to 1929 she studies art at the Belfast College of Art, and at the Royal College of Art. London from 1930 to 1933. Her special interest was calligraphy, and in London she met other Ulster artists including William Scott and F. E. McWilliams. She returned to Belfast in 1937 and married George MacCann, the sculptor. She taught art in Dungannon High School for Girls, County Tyrone, Banbridge Academy, County Down, Armagh High School and Victoria College, Belfast, where she was head of the art department from 1947 until her retirement in 1970. As well as illuminated addresses and other calligraphic commissions, she lectured and broadcast extensively on art. She also designed costumes for the theatre, opera and ballet, and illustrated books. She was a member of the Royal Ulster Academy, and served as its president, and was founder member of the Ulster Society of Women Artists. She was awarded the MBE in 1970. Her work is in the Ulster Museum collection.

HUNTER, ROBERT c.1715-1803

Robert Hunter was born in Ulster, but worked as a portrait painter in Dublin from 1750 to 1780. The principal portrait painter in Ireland, he painted portraits of, among others, John Wesley, Lord Harcourt and Lord Naas. He helped found the Society of Artists in Dublin, and often exhibited there. Many of his portraits were engraved. Five of his paintings are in the National Gallery of Ireland.

HUTCHESON, FRANCIS 1694-1746

Francis Hutcheson was born near Saintfield, County Down, and was educated at James McAlpine's Academy, Killyleagh, County Down, and at Glasgow where he studied theology in order to become a Presbyterian minister. He opened an academy in Dublin. He published Inquiry into the Original of Our Ideas on Beauty and Virtue. He later published The Passions and Affections, and as a consequence of this became Professor of Moral Philosophy in Glasgow. One of his students was Adam Smith. He became known as 'the father of the Scottish school of philosophy'. It was not until after his death in Glasgow that his System of Moral Philosophy, his best-known work, appeared. He coined the phrase 'the greatest happiness of the greatest number', usually attributed to Jeremy Bentham. [Biography by W. R. Scott].

HUTTON, HENRY TOMMASCO 1874-1952

Henry Hutton spent most of his life in Donaghadee, County Down. A series of photographs from the 1890s depict a number of subjects, including Ballynahinch, County Down, on market day. In addition to his photography, he invented anearly foot pump for pneumatic car tyres. He eventually became a full-time market gardner.

HUTTON, MARY A. (nee DRUMMOND) 1862-1953

Mary Hutton was born in Manchester, and was educated at University College, London. When she was forty-nine she became a convert to Roman Catholicism. She was a Celtic scholar and in 1909 was the Margaret Stokes Memorial Lecturer and a member of the Senate of Queen's University, Belfast. Among her publications are an edition of Tain Bo Cuailgne, which she spent ten years translating into English. To this she attached appendices which explained place-names, the names of people, tribes and animals and Gaelic terms:

HYNDMAN, GEORGE CRAWFORD 1796-1867

George Hyndman was educated at the Belfast Academy, and when he was fourteen entered his father's auctioneering business; in 1825 he inherited this business. He was a founder member of the Belfast Natural History and Philosophical Society and of the Botanical and Horticultural Association which established the Botanic Gardens. He was a keen conchologist and bequeathed his unique collection of shells to the Belfast Natural History and Philosphical Society.