The family of William Nicholas Keogh, Judge of the Common Pleas in Ireland (1856-78), beautifully depicted by John Joseph Slattery against the backdrop of the Sugar Loaf, Wicklow in 1857.
Keogh, a former M.P. as well as Q.C., suffered greatly from public opprobrium as a result of his decision to accept the position of Solicitor-General for Ireland in 1852, which was seen as a breach of a promise previously made by him to the electorate.
Perhaps because of the family stress caused by this, two of the fine-featured children in this painting had tragic lives – one of the girls, Jessie, died at a young age, sparking her father’s mental collapse and ultimate death in the most controversial of circumstances in 1878.
On a visit to a German spa town for his mental health, Judge Keogh apparently attacked his tipstaff, travelling as his valet, with a razor, saying ‘I’ll do for you.’ He subsequently expired in Bonn a month or so after, though reports of suicide are disputed by his descendants.
Oddly, Keogh had previously stated in a case that to attack someone with a blade without cause was a cowardly act – and he was no coward. But perhaps the balance of his mind was indeed disturbed, or maybe having your effigy burned in the streets and finding death threats under your dinner plate when you go out to dinner (the usual picture of coffin with judge’s name on it) would cause anyone to suspect conspiracies.
Keogh’s son, also William, pictured on the left holding what one hopes is a pet, and not a dead animal, later became a barrister but is more often reported as a defendant in the criminal courts, his last reported appearance involving a claim that his brother-in-law was trying to have him unlawfully committed.
That brother-in-law was barrister James Murphy QC, the husband of Keogh’s other daughter, Mary, and himself later a judge. The Keogh line survives through Mary and James’ descendants of eminence, including Edward Sullivan Murphy, Attorney-General for Northern Ireland and later Lord Justice of Appeal in Northern Ireland.
The background probably depicts the gardens of Keogh’s home, Bushy Park, County Wicklow, more recently owned by the singer Chris de Burgh. Had Mrs Keogh been gifted with foresight, she might have put on a red dress for the portrait!
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