William John Fitzpatrick | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 31 August 1830  |
| Died | 24 December 1895 (aged 65) |
| Occupation | Writer |
William John Fitzpatrick (31 August 1830 – 24 December 1895) was anIrish historian.
He was born atThomas Street,Dublin. His father, John FitzPatrick, was a successful merchant or trader who left his son a competence. FitzPatrick was educated first at a Protestant school, and later atClongowes Wood College, County Kildare, the well-knownJesuit School. He early displayed a taste for recondite and somewhat morbid investigation into the secret history of eminent personages. In 1855 his first book appeared,The Life, Times, and Contemporaries of Lord Cloncurry. The style of the latter was 'puerile, involved, and turgid,' revealing a defect which the author never overcame. But his next book,The Life and Times of Bishop Doyle (1861), was much more successful, and, besides giving a vivid picture of a powerful personality, it provides a useful contribution to Irish nineteenth-century history.[1]
On 3 November 1855, FitzPatrick commenced a series of letters toNotes and Queries, 'Who wrote the Waverley Novels ?' It was a weak attempt to foster a charge of unacknowledged plagiarism on SirWalter Scott, and to claim for the novelist's brother, Thomas Scott, the chief credit for a large part of the famous Waverley series; but after four letters had appeared, the editor declined to publish any more. FitzPatrick continued to pursue his theory with pertinacity and in 1856 published his material as a pamphlet. It reached a second edition in the same year. His hopeless claim on behalf of Thomas Scott was repudiated in a letter to theTimes of 5 June 1857 by the three daughters of that gentleman. In 1859, FitzPatrick publishedThe Friends, Foes, and Adventures of Lady Morgan, and in 1860Lady Morgan, her Career, Literary and Personal; these were followed byAnecdotal Memoirs of Archbishop Whately (1864).[1]
In hisLord Edward Fitzgerald, or Notes on the Cornwallis Papers (1859), FitzPatrick first hit upon the vein of inquiry which he afterwards worked with conspicuous success of investigating the inner history of Ireland before the union. In 1866, inThe Sham Squire, he followed up the story ofLord Edward FitzGerald's betrayal. Upwards of sixteen thousand copies were sold. In 1867, inIreland before the Union, he pursued the same subject; but this volume was much less successful than its predecessor. It contains, however, some curious extracts from the privately printed diary ofJohn Scott, 1st Earl of Clonmell.[1]
For some years after 1867, FitzPatrick's productiveness was checked, thoughThe Life and Times of Dr. Lanigan (1873) andThe Life of Father Tom Burke (1885) proved that he had not abandoned his interest in ecclesiastical biography. ALife of Charles Lever, which appeared in 1879, was not felicitous. In 1888, however, he publishedThe Correspondence of Daniel O'Connell, with his Life and Times, a work of exceptional value and importance. It was reviewed by Gladstone in theNineteenth Century.[1]
Equally valuable as a contribution to history was hisSecret Service underPitt (1892), a work involving infinite labour among the Irish State Papers of the period, and displaying, even more fully thanThe Sham Squire, FitzPatrick's detective skill in piecing together scattered items of evidence. This was FitzPatrick's last work of importance. In 1895, shortly before his death, he published anonymouslyMemories of Father [James] Healy, the well-known wit; but the book was quite unworthy of its subject, partly from the difficulty of communicating the subtle charm of Healy's personality to the printed page, and partly from the writer's defective sense of humour.A History of the Dublin Catholic Cemeteries, which he did not live to complete, was published after his death by the catholic cemeteries committee in 1900.[1]
FitzPatrick was long actively interested in the work of theRoyal Irish Academy and theRoyal Dublin Society. In 1870, he was appointed honorary professor of history at theRoyal Hibernian Academy of Arts. His book on O'Connell won recognition in Rome, and he received fromPope Leo XIII the insignia of the order of St. Gregory the Great. He was also accorded the honorary degree of LL.D. by theRoyal University of Ireland. He served twice as high sheriff for County Longford. FitzPatrick died at his residence, 48 Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin, after a short illness.[1]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Falkiner, Cæsar Litton (1901). "FitzPatrick, William John". InLee, Sidney (ed.).Dictionary of National Biography (1st supplement). London: Smith, Elder & Co. This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "William John Fitzpatrick".Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
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Obituary: William John FitzPatrick.Works by William John FitzPatrick.