Richard Whately

Richard Whately (1 February 1787 – 8 October 1863) was an English rhetorician, logician, economist, and theologian who also served as the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin.

Life and times

He was born in London, the son of the Rev. Dr. Joseph Whately (17 March 1730 – 13 March 1797). He was educated at a private school near Bristol, and at Oriel College, Oxford. Richard Whately obtained double second-class honours and the prize for the English essay; in 1811 he was elected Fellow of Oriel, and in 1814 took holy orders. He married Elizabeth Pope (third daughter of William born 7 October baptised 22 December 1795 at Hillingdon, Middlesex) at Cheltenham 3 Jul 1821. She later authored some Christian literature herself, dying 25 April 1860. After his marriage he settled in Oxford.

In August 1823 he moved to Halesworth in Suffolk, but in 1825, having been appointed principal of St. Alban Hall, he returned to Oxford. He found much to reform there, and left it a different place. He was initially on friendly terms with John Henry Newman, but they fell out as the divergence in their views became apparent; Newman later spoke of his Catholic University as continuing in Dublin the struggle against Whately which he had commenced at Oxford.