PRESS RELEASE

Eccentric Archbishop : Richard Whately of Redesdale

by Bryan MacMahon

Oxford Professor of Political Economy, Richard Whately was appointed as Church of Ireland Archbishop in 1831, and remained in office until 1863.

He had a profound influence on the development of the National School system, acting in effect as chairman of the board which administered the system. He also wrote many of the texts which were used in the schools in Ireland, and later adopted for schools in England and elsewhere. His influence was so significant that he has been termed “the head schoolmaster of the Irish people” His best known textbook, an introduction to economics called Easy Lessons in Money Matters for Young People, was translated into Japanese, Maori and Armenian. Whately was also known as the founding father of economics in Ireland. If the government had followed the advice of Whately’s Commission of Inquiry into Irish Poverty in 1836, there would have been no Poor Law and no workhouses in Ireland.

Whately’s life was dogged by controversy. Regarded as an uncouth buffoon by Anglo-Irish society, his eccentricities and gruff manners were notorious. At the dinner table, he had a habit of contorting his legs so much that his foot could often end up in the lap of the unfortunate person sitting beside him – usually another dignitary.

He antagonised fellow Protestants by supporting Catholic Emancipation, condemning all forms of proselytising, advocating a government grant for Maynooth seminary and supporting the National Schools. He was seen by many Protestants as the enemy within, yet Catholics came to regard him as a devious proselytiser. Catholic Archbishop Paul Cullen carried out a sustained campaign against Whately, and ultimately all his schemes turned to ashes and his great spirit was broken.

Richard Whately lived in Redesdale House, Kilmacud, Co Dublin, for almost thirty years, rejecting the lavish comforts of Archbishop’s Palace in St. Stephen’s Green. He loved to walk in the secluded gardens of Redesdale, and to experiment with grafting plants. In 1857, Whately entertained the celebrated explorer, Dr. David Livingstone in Redesdale. Both men shared a passionate commitment to ending slavery.

He wrote over two million words in his lifetime and the National Library lists one hundred and thirty publications by him. His work as an academic, an educator and an Archbishop should have earned him a special place in Irish history, but he is largely forgotten.

Bryan MacMahon, whose main research interest is in North Kerry history, lives in Kilmacud and is the author of Eccentric Archbishop: Richard Whately of Redesdale.

Published by Kilmacud-Stillorgan Local History Society, it was launched on Wednesday, 16^th March 2005 in St. Brigid’s Parish Centre, Stillorgan.

The book is available by post from Kilmacud Stillorgan Local History Society, 9 Marsham Court, Stillorgan, Co Dublin at €7.00 plus €2.00 P&P.