Otto Jaffe - Politics

Politics

In 1888 Otto Jaffe had been naturalised as a British citizen and denaturalised as a German citizen. He was a member of the Irish Unionist Party. He represented St Anne's Ward for the Belfast Corporation in 1894 and was elected Lord Mayor of Belfast in 1899. As mayor, he launched an appeal for the dependants of soldiers fighting in the Boer War. £10,000 was raised. In March 1900, he was knighted by Lord Cadogan. In 1901 he was High Sheriff of Belfast, and in 1904 he was again elected Lord Mayor.

The outbreak of war saw anti-German sentiment and when the Lusitania passenger liner was torpedoed by a German submarine of the coast of Cork on 7 May 1915 which resulted in the death of 1,000 people, anti-German feeling in Britain and Ireland rose to breaking point. Even though he was loyal to the Crown, and his eldest son Arthur and his nephew were serving in the British Army, Sir Otto was accused of being a German spy.

In a letter to the Northern Whig newspaper in May 1915, Sir Otto states:

"how anyone who has any knowledge of me and my life would think that I could approve of the horrible and detestable actions of which she (Germany) has been guilty is almost beyond my comprehension.

He also described himself as being "overwhelmed with pain and sorrow".

After twenty-five years of service, he resigned his post on as Alderman of Windsor Ward for Belfast City Council in June 1916 when he was almost 70 years of age and took up residence in London, where he died in 1929. Lady Jaffe was too ill to attend his funeral, and she died a few months later in August of the same year.