Richard Southwell Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo, (; ; 21 February 1822 – 8 February 1872) styled Lord Naas (; ) from 1842 to 1867 and Lord Mayo in India, was a British statesman and prominent member of the British Conservative Party who served as Chief Secretary for Ireland (1852, 1858–9, 1866–8) and

Viceroy of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...

(1869–72).

Background and education

Mayo was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, the eldest son of Robert Bourke, 5th Earl of Mayo (the son of Hon. Richard Burke, Bishop of Waterford and Lismore), and his wife, Anne Charlotte, daughter of the Hon. John Jocelyn. His younger brother the Hon. Robert Bourke was also a successful politician. He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He and his brothers were accomplished horsemen and enjoyed fox hunting.

Political career

After travelling in Russia, Mayo was elected MP for

Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional ce ...

(1847–52), Coleraine (1852–7) and

Cockermouth Cockermouth is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Allerdale in Cumbria, England, so named because it is at the confluence of the River Cocker as it flows into the River Derwent. The mid-2010 census estimates state that Cocke ...

(1857–68). He was thrice appointed Chief Secretary for Ireland – in 1852, 1858 and 1866 – and in 1869 he became the fourth

where he was locally often referred to as "Lord Mayo". He consolidated the frontiers of

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and reorganised the country's finances; he also did much to promote irrigation, railways, forests and other useful public works. To solve local problems he established local boards. During his tenure the first census took place in 1872. He founded

Mayo College Mayo College (informally Mayo) is a boys-only independent boarding school in Ajmer, Rajasthan, India. It was founded in 1875 by Richard Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo, who was the Viceroy of India from 1869 to 1872. This makes it one of the oldest pu ...

Ajmer Ajmer is one of the major and oldest cities in the Indian state of Rajasthan and the centre of the eponymous Ajmer District. It is located at the centre of Rajasthan. It is also known as heart of Rajasthan. The city was established as "' ...

for the education of young Indian chiefs, with £70,000 being subscribed by the chiefs themselves.

Assassination

While visiting the convict settlement at

Port Blair Port Blair () is the capital city of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a union territory of India in the Bay of Bengal. It is also the local administrative sub-division (''tehsil'') of the islands, the headquarters for the district of South An ...

in the Andaman Islands in 1872 for the purpose of inspection, he was assassinated by Sher Ali Afridi, a former Afghan soldier who was later convicted of murdering a relative in an argument who had become disgruntled. He vowed to kill a senior official in revenge. Mayo's body was brought home to Ireland and buried at the medieval ruined church in Johnstown, County Kildare, near his home at Palmerstown House. Afridi was hanged on March 11, 1872.

Memorials

Lord Mayo March

The traditional Irish

march March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March ...

"Lord Mayo" (''Tiagharna Mhaighe-eo'') was named after him; according to tradition, it was composed by his harper David Murphy to appease Mayo after Murphy angered him.

''Papilio mayo'' Butterfly

In 1873, the newly discovered swallowtail butterfly '' Papilio mayo'' from the Andaman Islands was named in his honour.

St Paul's Cathedral

A Memorial to Lord Mayo is in the third recess of the South Wall at St Paul's Cathedral, London.

Statue in Cockermouth, Cumbria

On 19 August 1875, a statue of Lord Mayo was unveiled in the centre of the main street in the town of

. The 800-guinea cost of the statue (made by Messrs. Willis of London) had been raised by public subscription. The unveiling was attended by Mayo's son, the 7th Earl; Lord Napier and Ettrick;

Harvey Goodwin Harvey Goodwin (9 October 1818 – 25 November 1891) was an English academic and Anglican clergyman, Bishop of Carlisle from 1869 until his death. Life Born at King's Lynn, he was a son of Charles Goodwin, a solicitor there; his mother was Fra ...

, Bishop of Carlisle; and the Earl of Lonsdale. The statue, carved in Sicilian marble, depicts Lord Mayo in his viceregal garb, and still stands today.

Mayo Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan

Mayo Hospital Mayo Hospital is one of the oldest and biggest hospitals in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. King Edward Medical University, one of the oldest and most prestigious medical institutions in South Asia, is attached to Mayo Hospital. Mayo Hospital is locat ...

is one of the oldest and biggest hospitals in

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

. The hospital is named after then

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning " ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

, "Richard Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo" also locally known as Lord Mayo.

Statue at Albert Hall Museum, Jaipur, India

A statue of Lord Mayo had been installed in the premises of

(currently known as the Mahilya Chikatsalya, Jaipur). The cast-iron statue, weighing around 3 tons, was ordered sculpted by the Maharaja Ram Singh ji of Jaipur, as a tribute to Lord Mayo after his assassination. The sculptors were J. Forsyth and R. Monti. The company's name as inscribed on the statue was R. Masefield & Co., London. This statue of Lord Mayo had been buried in the premises of the Albert Hall Museum of Jaipur at the time of the independence of India in 1947 to prevent

vandalism Vandalism is the action involving deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property. The term includes property damage, such as graffiti and defacement directed towards any property without permission of the owner. The term ...

. After six decades, this statue was unearthed by the Jaipur Mayo Alumni Chapter on 29 May 2007. It was later removed from the Albert Hall Museum in Jaipur and sent to

, in

, where it is now installed.

Mayo College, Ajmer, India

, was founded after the death of Lord Mayo in 1875. The College, named in honour of Lord Mayo, already had a full life-size statue of him sculpted in white marble installed in front of its famous main building since inception and a marble sculpted bust of him in its school museum. The College accepted the statue of Lord Mayo which was unearthed at Mayo Hospital, Jaipur in 2007.

Family

Lord Mayo married Blanche Julia, daughter of George Wyndham, 1st Baron Leconfield, in 1848. He was succeeded in the earldom by his eldest son, Dermot. Lady Mayo died in 1918.

Arms

Notes

References

* * *Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990,
Encyclopædia Britannica Article on Richard Southwell Bourke, 6th earl of MayoObituary & Photo at the Mayo College, Ajmer, India website

External links

* *
The assassination of Lord Mayo: The 'first' jihad?
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayo, Richard Bourke, 6th Earl Of Viceroys of India 1860s in British India 1870s in British India Founders of Indian schools and colleges 1822 births 1872 deaths Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Assassinated British politicians British people murdered abroad Cumbria MPs Irish Anglicans Knights of St Patrick Irish knights Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Londonderry constituencies (1801–1922) Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Kildare constituencies (1801–1922) Politicians from County Dublin People murdered in India UK MPs 1847–1852 UK MPs 1852–1857 UK MPs 1857–1859 UK MPs 1859–1865 UK MPs 1865–1868 UK MPs who inherited peerages Deaths by stabbing in India Richard Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Members of the Privy Council of Ireland Chief Secretaries for Ireland Earls of Mayo 1872 murders in India