Theobald Mathew
From Free net encyclopedia
Current revision
Theobald Mathew (1790-1856) was an Irish temperance reformer, popularly known as Father Mathew. He was descended from a branch of the Llandaff family, and was born at Thomas-town, Tipperary, on October 10 1790.
He received his schooling in Kilkenny, then passed for a short time to Maynooth. From 1808 to 1814 he studied in Dublin, where in the latter year he was ordained to the priesthood. Having entered the Capuchin order, he, after a brief time of service at Kilkenny, joined the mission in Cork, which was the scene of his labours for many years. The movement with which his name is associated began in 1838 with the establishment of a total abstinence association, which in less than nine months enrolled no fewer than 150,000 names. It rapidly spread to Limerick and elsewhere, and some idea of its popularity may be formed from the fact that at Nenagh 20,000 persons are said to have taken the pledge in one day, 100,000 at Galway in two days, and 70,000 in Dublin in five days. At its height, his movement enrolled some 3 million people, or more than half of the adult population of Ireland. In 1844 he visited Liverpool, Manchester and London with almost equal success.
The expenses of Father Mathew's enterprise involved him in heavy liabilities, and on one occasion led to his arrest for debt. He was only partially relieved of this debt by a pension of £300 granted by Queen Victoria in 1847. In 1849 he paid a visit to the United States, returning in 1851. He died at Queenstown on December 8, 1856.
See Father Mathew, a Biography, by J. F. Maguire, M.P. (1863).
See also
External link
References
- This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition{{#if:{{{article|}}}| article {{#if:{{{url|}}}|[{{{url|}}}}} "{{{article}}}"{{#if:{{{url|}}}|]}}{{#if:{{{author|}}}| by {{{author}}}}}}}, a publication now in the public domain.