Richard Tenison (1642 – 29 July 1705) was an Irish bishop of Killala, Clogher and Meath.

Biography

He was born the eldest son of Thomas Tenison of

Carrickfergus Carrickfergus ( , meaning " Fergus' rock") is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It sits on the north shore of Belfast Lough, from Belfast. The town had a population of 28,141 at the 2021 census. It is County Antrim's oldest t ...

and matriculated from

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

in 1659.

Thomas Tenison Thomas Tenison (29 September 163614 December 1715) was an English church leader, Archbishop of Canterbury from 1694 until his death. During his primacy, he crowned two British monarchs. Life He was born at Cottenham, Cambridgeshire, the son a ...

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

, was a cousin, and supported Richard in his career; in his

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the Archbishop left

bequests A devise is the act of giving real property by will, traditionally referring to real property. A bequest is the act of giving property by will, usually referring to personal property. Today, the two words are often used interchangeably due to thei ...

to Richard's sons. He was made headmaster of the Diocesan School at

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. In 1669 he was presented as Rector and

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of the nearby parish of Laracor and in 1675 he was appointed Rector of

Louth Louth may refer to: Australia *Hundred of Louth, a cadastral unit in South Australia * Louth, New South Wales, a town * Louth Bay, a bay in South Australia ** Louth Bay, South Australia, a town and locality Canada * Louth, Ontario Ireland * Cou ...

and

Dean of Clogher The Dean of Clogher is a dignitary of the Diocese of Clogher within the Church of Ireland. The title may be held by any licensed incumbent in the diocese, not necessarily the rector of one of the cathedral parishes of Clogher. The Dean, with the ...

. At Clogher, he was renowned for his skill in converting Nonconformists to the

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland (, ; , ) is a Christian church in Ireland, and an autonomy, autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the Christianity in Ireland, second-largest Christian church on the ...

. He owed his advancement largely to the

Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the K ...

Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex (13 July 1683), also spelt Capel, of Cassiobury House, Watford, Hertfordshire, was an English statesman. Early life He was the son of Arthur Capell, 1st Baron Capell of Hadham (executed in 1649) by his wif ...

, whose private

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he became in 1672. On 19 February 1682 he was consecrated

Bishop of Killala and Achonry The Bishop of Killala and Achonry was the Ordinary of the Church of Ireland diocese of Killala and Achonry in the Ecclesiastical Province of Tuam. The diocese comprised part of Counties Mayo and Sligo in Ireland. The Episcopal see was a union ...

, a position he held until he was translated to

Clogher Clogher (; , ) is a village and civil parish in the border area of south County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Blackwater, 5.8 miles from the border crossing to County Monaghan. It stands on the townlands of Clogher Demesne ...

on 28 February 1691. He strongly opposed the pro-

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policy of James II and, despite being summoned to the 1689

Patriot Parliament Patriot Parliament is the name commonly used for the Irish Parliament session called by King James II during the Williamite War in Ireland which lasted from 1688 to 1691. The first since 1666, it held only one session, which lasted from 7 May ...

, ultimately left Ireland in protest. He took up a living in London, from which he returned to Ireland in 1690. From Clogher he was translated a second time on 25 June 1697 to

Meath County Meath ( ; or simply , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is bordered by County Dublin to the southeast, County ...

, where he remained until his death in 1705. He was made a

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in 1697 and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Dublin in 1698. By his wife Ann, he had eight children, six sons and two daughters. His eldest son,

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(1667–1709), became MP for

County Monaghan County Monaghan ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of Border Region, Border strategic planning area of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town ...

. Henry was a friend of

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...

and

Esther Johnson Esther Johnson (13 March 1681 – 28 January 1728) was an Englishwoman known to have been a close friend of Jonathan Swift, known as "Stella". Whether or not she and Swift were secretly married, and if so why the marriage was never made public ...

("Stella"), and father of Thomas Tennison, judge of the

Court of Common Pleas A court of common pleas is a common kind of court structure found in various common law jurisdictions. The form originated with the Court of Common Pleas at Westminster, which was created to permit individuals to press civil grievances against one ...

. The Bishop's second son, Richard junior, was MP for

Dunleer Dunleer () is a town and townland in County Louth, Ireland. Dunleer is situated midway between Dundalk and Drogheda and is located on the junction of the R132, R169 and R170 regional roads that intersect the town. As of the 2022 census, th ...

. Richard is said to have been a respected and conscientious bishop, but without much political influence, or any desire to play a role in high politics.Ehrenpreis, Irving ''Swift: The Man, His Works and The Age'',

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou. The pres ...

1983 Volume 2 p.95

References

* *Pollard, Albert Frederick "Richard Tennison" ''Dictionary of National Biography 1885-1900'' Vol. 56 p. 57 {{DEFAULTSORT:Tennison, Richard 1642 births 1705 deaths Deans of Clogher Bishops of Killala and Achonry Bishops of Clogher (Church of Ireland) Anglican bishops of Meath 17th-century Anglican bishops in Ireland 18th-century Anglican bishops in Ireland Members of the Irish House of Lords People from Carrickfergus Christian clergy from County Antrim Members of the Privy Council of Ireland Alumni of Trinity College Dublin