Background
John Dillon was born on September 4, 1851, in Blackrock, Dublin, Ireland. He was the son of John Blake Dillon, who sat in parliament for Tipperary, and was one of the leaders of " Young Ireland. "
John Dillon was born on September 4, 1851, in Blackrock, Dublin, Ireland. He was the son of John Blake Dillon, who sat in parliament for Tipperary, and was one of the leaders of " Young Ireland. "
John Dillon was educated at the Roman Catholic university of Dublin.
He took a degree in medicine and entered politics as a supporter of John Mitchel in 1875.
He entered parliament in 1880 as member for Tipperary, and was at first an ardent supporter of C. S. Parnell.
In August he delivered a speech on the Land League at Kildare which was characterized as " wicked and cowardly " by W. E. Forster; he advocated boycotting, and was arrested in May 1881 under the Coercion Act, and again after two months of freedom in October.
In this instance the jury disagreed, but in June 1888 under the provisions of the new Criminal Law Procedure Bill he was condemned to six months' imprisonment.
On his return to Ireland he was again arrested, but, being allowed bail, sailed to America, and failed to appear at the trial.
He returned to Ireland by way of Boulogne, where he and Mr W. O'Brien held long and indecisive conferences with Parnell.
They surrendered to the police in February, and on their release from Galway gaol in July declared their opposition to Parnell.
After the expulsion of Mr Т.
His early friendship with Mr O'Brien gave place to considerable hostility, but the various sections of the party were ostensibly reconciled in 1900 under the leadership of Mr Redmond.
In the autumn of 1896 he arranged a convention of the Irish race, which included 2000 delegates from various parts of the world.
In 1897 Mr Dillon opposed in the House the Address to Queen Victoria on the occasion of the Diamond Jubilee, on the ground that her reign had not been a blessing to Ireland, and he showed the same uncompromising attitude in 1901 when a grant to Lord Roberts was under discussion, accusing him of " systematized inhumanity. "
John got married in 1895 to Elizabeth (1865–1907), who bore him six children.
