Edward Henry Cooper

The Right Honourable Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Henry Cooper (1827 – 26 February 1902) was an Irish officer in the British Army, a landlord in County Sligo, and a Conservative politician.

At the age of 36 the Dublin-born soldier inherited Markree Castle in County Sligo from his uncle, and left the army to manage his country estate. As one of the major landlords in the county, he assumed many of the roles which still accompanied that status. He promptly became a local magistrate, and in 1865 was returned unopposed by the county to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.

Having followed five previous Cooper landlords of Markree to serve as Member of Parliament (MP) for Sligo, his unpopularity as a landlord led to his defeat in 1868, after one term. He then reactivated his uncle's Markree Observatory, and commissioned archaeological drawings of County Sligo. He served as the Lord Lieutenant of Sligo for the 25 years until his death, and for the last three as a Privy Councillor.

Cooper was the oldest of seven children of Richard Wordsworth Cooper (1801–1850) of Longford Lodge in Kingstown (now Dún Laoghaire), County Dublin; their home later became Glengara Park School. His father was the third-born (and second surviving) son of Edward Synge Cooper MP of Markree Castle in County Sligo. His mother was Emilia Eleanor, daughter of the 1st Viscount Frankfort de Montmorency.

Cooper was educated at Eton, before joining the British Army in 1845.

In May 1845, the 18-year-old Cooper purchased an army commission as a cornet in the 7th Light Dragoons. He was promoted in 1846 to lieutenant, and bought a further promotion to captain in 1848. He transferred in 1851 to the 72nd Foot, then in 1852 to the Grenadier Guards.

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