Egan, John (1755–1810), politician and lawyer, was born at Charleville, Co. Cork, the second son of Dr Carbery Egan, a Church of Ireland clergyman, and his wife, Jane Egan (née Markham). He was educated at Newmarket, Co. Cork, and then at the Charleville Endowed School, which was run by his father, before entering TCD in 1769, where he graduated BA in 1773 and LLB in 1776. He entered Middle Temple, supporting himself in London by working as a private tutor and newspaper correspondent, and was called to the Irish bar in 1778. He quickly established a reputation as a combative barrister, acting chiefly in cases of contested elections, and earned the sobriquet ‘Bully ’ Egan because of his large, imposing physique and his tendency to browbeat and intimidate opponents; often his speeches relied more on declamation than legal argument. One of his closest friends was Barry Yelverton (qv), who, as chief baron of the exchequer, acted as Egan's patron. It was owing to his influence that, in 1787, Egan became a KC and was elected a bencher of the King's Inns. In 1790 he received an honorary LLD from TCD. A hot-tempered man, he fought at least five duels, boasting that he had taken part in more than anyone else in his profession. A famous anecdote concerns his encounter with his fellow barrister and friend John Philpot Curran (qv); when Egan complained about the unfairness of their relative sizes, Curran suggested chalking out the outline of his body on Egan's and discounting any shots outside the chalk line.
In mid-career Egan took up politics and became MP for Ballynakill, Queen's Co. (1789–90), and then Tallow, Co. Waterford (1791–1800). He was one of the leading whig politicians, though his extravagant speaking style often led to ridicule. In 1792 he presented two pro-catholic petitions in parliament. He broke with Henry Grattan (qv) in 1795, and suffered humiliation at his hands during a debate on the conduct of Earl Fitzwilliam (qv). This resulted in a gradual shift away from opposition politics, which was reinforced by strong opposition to the French revolution and his support for the war against France. Always eager for a good fight, during one court case he provoked the laughter of Jonah Barrington (qv) because of his frequent use of the word ‘obdurate’; angered, Egan enquired if his colleague was laughing because of his mispronunciation, whereat Barrington replied that on the contrary he was laughing because Egan had pronounced the word correctly. As a result of damaging encounters such as this, and his quarrel with Grattan, his legal practice declined in the latter part of the 1790s. He had no regard for money, and struggled with debts throughout his life.
By 1799 Egan was recorder of Dublin, with a court at Kilmainham and the lucrative office of chairman of Kilmainham. This was his only real source of income, and when the union was discussed in 1799 he was threatened with dismissal unless he supported the government. There are various accounts of his struggle with this issue; one portrays Egan in deep thought, probably during the first union debate, before rising finally to exclaim: ‘Ireland! Ireland for ever! And damn Kilmainham!’. He spoke against the measure on 23 January 1799 and made sure he was the last opposition member to vote. To add to the drama, he waved a large stick over his head and shouted that he was casting the deciding vote, then he sat down and burst into loud and prolonged laughter. On 15 January 1800 he cut short a speech he was making to allow Grattan to make his dramatic return to the house of commons.
After the passing of the union his political career ended. Although he retained his office he continued to struggle financially and cut an increasingly forlorn figure. He died in May 1810, almost literally penniless, having, it is said, only three shillings on his mantle-piece. He had married, in 1779, a rich widow by the name of Holmes; they had one son, James, who became a landowner in Germany.
Barrington recorded that Egan was ‘one of the roughest looking persons possible’ who in no way looked like a member of parliament should: his ‘manners were naturally gross, and it was curious to see him . . . endeavour to affect good breeding’ (Personal sketches, i, 352, 441). But although he was unpolished, Egan was respected for his personal integrity and principles and especially his courage in always speaking loudly on an issue no matter how unpopular or foolish it made him appear.