Murragh Boyle, 1st Viscount Blesington (c.1645–1718) was an Irish peer and member of the

Irish House of Lords The Irish House of Lords was the upper house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from medieval times until the end of 1800. It was also the final court of appeal of the Kingdom of Ireland. It was modelled on the House of Lords of Englan ...

. Murrough (or Murragh) Boyle was born in

Cork "Cork" or "CORK" may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container *** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine Places Ireland * ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, the only surviving son of Michael Boyle, Archbishop of Armagh and his second wife Mary O'Brien, daughter of Dermod O'Brien, 5th Baron Inchiquin. He

matriculated Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term ''matriculation'' is seldom used now ...

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 Univ ...

on 8 August 1662. He was a Member of Parliament in the Parliament of Ireland for

Kilmallock Kilmallock () is a town in south County Limerick, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, near the border with County Cork, 30 km south of Limerick city. There is a Dominican Priory in the town and King John's Castle (Kilmallock), King's Castle (or K ...

from 1665 to 1666. He was created 1st Viscount Blesington (in the Peerage of Ireland) and 1st Baron Boyle, on 23 August 1673, with a special remainder to the male heirs of his father. He was invested as a

Privy Counsellor The Privy Council, formally His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its members, known as privy counsellors, are mainly senior politicians who are current or former ...

for Ireland in June 1675. He held the office of Constable of King John's Castle in the city of Limerick between 1679 and 1692 and the office of Governor of Limerick between 1679 and 1692. He was awarded the honorary degree of

Doctor of Law A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

s (LL.D.) in 1682. He was appointed a Commissioner of the Great Seal of Ireland on 17 November 1693 and appointed one of the Lord Justices of Ireland in 1696, although he only held this office for a fortnight, and was never elected. Murrough was the author of a tragedy, entitled " The Lost Princess". Baker, a contemporary dramatic

critic A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as Art criticism, art, Literary criticism, literature, Music journalism, music, Film criticism, cinema, Theater criticism, theater, Fas ...

, characterised this production as "truly contemptible", and added that the "genius and abilities of the writer did no credit to the name of Boyle". On his death in Dublin on 26 April 1718 he was buried at

St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin Saint Patrick's Cathedral () in Dublin, Ireland is the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland. Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, Christ Church Cathedral, also a Church of Ireland cathedral in Dublin, is designated as the local cathedral of ...

. He had married twice; firstly Mary Parker, daughter of Dr. John Parker, Archbishop of Dublin and Mary Clarke, and secondly Lady Ann Coote, daughter of Charles Coote, 2nd Earl of Mountrath and Alice Meredyth. By his first wife he had a daughter Mary and by his second a son and heir, Charles and two daughters Alicia and Anne. Alicia married

Pierce Butler, 4th Viscount Ikerrin Pierce Butler, 4th Viscount Ikerrin (c. 1677 – 1711), was an Irish peer, politician and professional soldier who rose to the rank of brigadier general under Queen Anne. He was outlawed as a Jacobite in 1690, when he was probably still in ...

and had one son James who succeeded to his father's title but died young. Anne married

William Stewart, 2nd Viscount Mountjoy William Stewart, 2nd Viscount Mountjoy (1675 – 10 January 1728), was an Anglo-Irish peer. William Stewart was born in 1675, the son of Sir William Stewart, later 1st Viscount Mountjoy. His father was a leader of the Irish Protestants during ...

and was the mother of

William Stewart, 1st Earl of Blessington William is a masculine given name of Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is ...

. His title was inherited by his son

Charles Boyle, 2nd Viscount Blesington Charles Boyle, 2nd Viscount Blesington (died 2 June 1732) was an Irish peer and member of the House of Lords. Charles Boyle was the son of Murrough Boyle, 1st Viscount Blesington and Lady Anne Coote, daughter of Charles Coote, 2nd Earl of Moun ...

. On Charles' death without a male heir, his estates passed to his surviving sister Anne.

References

External links

Boyle Genealogy
1640s births 1718 deaths Viscounts in the Peerage of Ireland Peers of Ireland created by Charles II Murrough Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Limerick constituencies Boyle, Murrough {{Ireland-viscount-stub