Samuel Henry Butcher DCL LLD (; 16 April 1850 – 29 December 1910) was an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...

classical scholar Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

, Professor of Greek at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, and politician.

Life

Samuel Henry Butcher was born in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

to Samuel Butcher,

Bishop of Meath The Bishop of Meath is an episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient Kingdom of Meath. In the Catholic Church it remains as a separate title, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with another bishopric. History Until the ...

and Mary Leahy. He was educated at

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...

in Wiltshire and then received a place at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

, attending between 1869 and 1873 where he was Senior Classic and Chancellor's medalist. Elected fellow of Trinity in 1874, he left the college on his marriage, in 1876, to the daughter of Archbishop Trench. From 1876 to 1882 he was a fellow of

University College, Oxford University College, formally The Master and Fellows of the College of the Great Hall of the University commonly called University College in the University of Oxford and colloquially referred to as "Univ", is a Colleges of the University of Oxf ...

, and tutored there. From 1882 to 1903 he was Professor of Greek at the

succeeding Prof

John Stuart Blackie John Stuart Blackie FRSE (28 July 1809 – 2 March 1895) was a Scottish scholar, Professor of Greek at the University of Edinburgh, Professor of Humanity at the University of Aberdeen, and a man of letters. Biography He was born in Glasgow ...

. During this period he lived at 27 Palmerston Place in Edinburgh's West End. He was succeeded at the University of Edinburgh by Prof

Alexander William Mair Alexander William Mair (9 June 1875–13 November 1928) was a 20th century Scottish scholar who was the Professor of Greek at the University of Edinburgh. He was an authority on the works of the Greek poet Hesiod. Life Mair was born in Edin ...

. He was one of the two Members of Parliament for

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, between 1906 and his death, representing the Conservative Party. He was President of the

British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...

, 1909–1910. He died in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

on 29 December 1910, and his body was returned to Scotland and interred at the

Dean Cemetery The Dean Cemetery is a historically important Victorian cemetery north of the Dean Village, west of Edinburgh city centre, in Scotland. It lies between Queensferry Road and the Water of Leith, bounded on its east side by Dean Path and o ...

in Edinburgh with his wife, Rose Julia Butcher (1840-1902). His grave has a pale granite Celtic cross and is located near the northern path of the north section in the original cemetery.

Family

John Butcher, 1st Baron Danesfort John George Butcher, 1st Baron Danesfort, KC (15 November 1853 – 30 June 1935), known as Sir John Butcher, Bt, between 1918 and 1924, was a British barrister and Conservative Party politician. Background and education Butcher was the second ...

was his younger brother. He married Rose Julia Trench (1840-1902) in 1876. They had no children.

Publications

His many publications included, in collaboration with

Andrew Lang Andrew Lang (31 March 1844 – 20 July 1912) was a Scottish poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a folkloristics, collector of folklore, folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectur ...

, a prose translation of

Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Despite doubts about his autho ...

's ''

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; ) is one of two major epics of ancient Greek literature attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest surviving works of literature and remains popular with modern audiences. Like the ''Iliad'', the ''Odyssey'' is divi ...

'' which appeared in 1879 and the OCT edition of

Demosthenes Demosthenes (; ; ; 384 – 12 October 322 BC) was a Greek statesman and orator in ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowess and provide insight into the politics and cu ...

, ''Orationes,'' vol. I (Or. 1–19, Oxford, 1903), II.i (Or. 20–26, Oxford, 1907).

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Butcher, Samuel Henry 1850 births 1910 deaths Politicians from Dublin (city) Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Academics of the University of Edinburgh Burials at the Dean Cemetery Samuel Henry Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Scholars of Greek language English classical scholars Irish classical scholars Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the University of Cambridge UK MPs 1906–1910 UK MPs 1910 UK MPs 1910–1918 Fellows of the British Academy Irish people of English descent People educated at Marlborough College Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Irish translators English translators Presidents of the British Academy Classical scholars of the University of Cambridge Classical scholars of the University of Oxford Classical scholars of the University of Edinburgh 20th-century British translators 19th-century British translators Translators of Homer Writers from Dublin (city)