Marriage, Reorientation
In 1890 he married Sophie Raffalovich, sister of the poet Marc André Sebastian Raffalovich and the economist Arthur Raffalovich, and daughter of the Russian Jewish banker, Hermann Raffalowich, domiciled in Paris. It was to mark a major turning point in O'Brien's personal and political life. His wife brought considerable wealth into the marriage, enabling him to act with political independence and providing finances to establish his own newspapers. His wife (1860–1960) who survived him by over 30 years, gave him considerable moral and emotional support for his political pursuits. Their relationship added an abiding love for France and attachment to Europe to his life, where he often retired to recuperate.
By 1891 he had become disillusioned with Parnell's political leadership, although emotionally loyal to him he tried to persuade him to retire after the O'Shea divorce case. On Parnell's death that year and the ensuing IPP split, he remained aloof from aligning himself with either side of the Party, either the rump pro-Parnellite Irish National League (INL) led by John Redmond MP or with the anti-Parnellite Irish National Federation (INF) group under John Dillon, although he saw the weight of strength in the latter. O'Brien worked hard in the 1893 negotiations leading to Parliament passing Gladstone's Second Home Rule Bill, which the Lords however rejected. (Gladstone's speech on the First Home Rule Bill had beseeched parliament not to reject it).
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