Charles Frederick D'Arcy (2 January 1859 – 1 February 1938) was a Church of Ireland bishop. He was the Bishop of Clogher from 1903 to 1907 when he was translated to become Bishop of Ossory, Ferns and Leighlin before then becoming the Bishop of Down, Connor and Dromore. He was then briefly the Archbishop of Dublin and finally, from 1920 until his death, Archbishop of Armagh. He was also a theologian, author and botanist.Clogher clergy and parishes : being an account of the clergy of the Church of Ireland in the Diocese of Clogher, from the earliest period, with historical notices of the several parishes, churches, etc Leslie, J.B. p26: Enniskille; R. H. Ritchie; 1929
Early life Born in Dublin in 1859, D'Arcy was the son of John Charles D'Arcy of Mount Tallant, County Dublin, and of Henrietta Anna, a daughter of Thomas Brierly of Rehoboth House, Dublin. He was a grandson of John D'Arcy of Hydepark, County Westmeath, and a descendant of The 1st Baron Darcy de Knayth, one of the knights who had fought at the Battle of Crecy (1346).Charles Frederick d'Arcy at belfastcathedral.org'D'ARCY, Most Rev. Charles Frederick', in Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920–2008, online edn, Oxford University Press, December 2007
Charles D'Arcy was educated at The High School, Dublin, and Trinity College, Dublin, where he was elected a Scholar in mathematics and won a gold medal in Moral philosophy. He graduated BA in 1882, with a first-class Divinity Testimonium, and MA in 1892. He was later awarded the degrees of Bachelor of Divinity, 1898, and Doctor of Divinity, 1900.
Career D'Arcy was ordained and became curate of Saint Thomas's, Belfast, in 1884. He became Rector of Billy, County Antrim, in 1890, and of the united parishes of Ballymena and Ballyclug in 1893. From 1895 to 1903, he was chaplain to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, successively The 5th Earl Cadogan and The 2nd Earl of Dudley. In addition, he was Prebendary of Connor in Lisburn Cathedral, from 1898 to 1900. His next living was as Vicar of Belfast, from 1900 to 1903, and while there he was also appointed Dean of St Anne's Cathedral, Belfast, and examining chaplain to Bishop Welland.
In 1903, D'Arcy was elected Bishop of Clogher. In 1907 he was translated to become Bishop of Ossory, Ferns and Leighlin and in 1911 became Bishop of Down, Connor and Dromore, succeeding John Baptist Crozier in both.
He corresponded with Sir Shane Leslie in 1907 about Leslie's decision to convert to Roman Catholicism.SIR SHANE LESLIE PAPERS FOLDER LISTING at library.georgetown.edu
In 1907 he became a member of the Royal Irish Academy and was a Select Preacher at the University of Cambridge (1907–1908 and 1925), Hulsean Preacher at Cambridge (1929 to 1930) as well as a Select Preacher at the University of Oxford (1908–1910), the University of Glasgow (1912) the University of Durham (1923).
In August 1919, D'Arcy was appointed Archbishop of Dublin, Bishop of Glendalough and Kildare and Primate of Ireland. Less than a year later, in June 1920, he was elected as Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, again succeeding Crozier.Desmond, Ray, & Christine Ellwood, Dictionary of British and Irish Botanists and Horticulturists, p. 193 at books.google.com
He was opposed to Irish Home Rule and in 1912 signed the Ulster Covenant.'D'Arcy, Charles Frederick 1859–1938' in Dictionary of Ulster Biography, D surnames online at ulsterbiography.co.uk In 1921 he was appointed a member of the Senate of Southern Ireland, which was abolished with the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922, but did not attend.The Senate of Southern Ireland, 1921, at ark.ac.uk
He was a lifelong friend of the 1st Viscount Craigavon, the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland,Charles Frederick D’Arcy at Ricorso and a member of the Athenaeum Club, London, and the University Club, Dublin. He was also a supporter of the Eugenics movement and chaired the Belfast branch of the Eugenics Education Society.Morris, David, "Bishop Boyd-Carpenter: Sheep or Shepherd in the Eugenics Movement?" at galtoninstitute.org.uk: "Two other prominent supporters of the Eugenics movement were Charles D'Arcy, Archbishop of Armagh and William Inge, Professor of Divinity at Cambridge and later Dean of St Paul's." Inge was a member of the Council of the Society from the early days; D'Arcy and Welldon were respectively chairmen of the Belfast and Manchester branches of the Society."
In 1934 he published his autobiography, The Adventures of a Bishop: a Phase in Irish Life, and in June 1937 announced that he intended to retire because of poor health. However, in the event, he continued as archbishop until he died on 1 February 1938. He was buried at St Patrick's Cathedral, Armagh, where there is a memorial to him in the north aisle."Funary Monuments & Memorials in St Patrick's Cathedral, Armagh" Curl, J.S. pp50-52: Whitstable; Historical Publications; 2013
Marriage and family
In 1889, D'Arcy married Harriet Le Byrtt Lewis, daughter of Richard Lewis of Comrie, County Down, and they had one son and three daughters. Harriet died of a heart attack during a cruise to the West Indies in the summer of 1932. Of their three daughters, one married Charles Mulholland, 3rd Baron Dunleath, and became Lady Dunleath. Their son, John Conyers D'Arcy, Royal Artillery, fought in both World Wars and ended his career as the Commander of British forces in Palestine and Transjordan.D'Arcy of Hyde Park Papers at nli.ie, the National Library of Ireland web site (pdf file) In May 1920, D'Arcy gave his son a special licence to marry Noël Patricia Wakefield.
Between 1900 and 1903, D'Arcy corresponded with his uncle George James Norman D'Arcy about his uncle's petition to the Crown for the abeyant peerage of Darcy de Knayth. However, in 1903 the House of Lords awarded the title to Violet Herbert, Countess of Powis.
Honours Honorary Doctor of Divinity, University of Oxford Honorary Doctor of Divinity, Queen's University, Belfast Honorary Doctor of Divinity, University of Glasgow Honorary Doctor of Letters, University of Dublin Fellow of the British Academy, 1927
Selected publications A Short Study of Ethics (Macmillan, 1895, second edition, 1901) Idealism and Theology: a study of presuppositions (University of Dublin Donnellan Lectures for 1897–1898) Idealism and theology (Hodder, 1899) Ruling Ideas of Our Lord (Christian Study Manuals Series) (Hodder and Stoughton, 1901, second edition 1902) 'Articles on Consciousness, Leading Ideas, and Trinity', in Hastings' Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels Christianity and the Supernatural (Anglican Church Handbooks series) (1909) Christian Ethics and Modern Thought (Anglican Church Handbooks) (Longmans, Green, 1912) What is the Church? (Longmans, Green, 1914) God and Freedom in Human Experience (University of Dublin Donnellan Lectures for 1913–1914) (1915) God and the Struggle for Existence (Charles F. D'Arcy, B.H. Streeter, and Lily Dougall) (Association Press, New York, 1919) Anglican Essays (contributor) (1923) Science and Creation (1925) The Christian Outlook in the Modern World (1929) God in Science (J. Nisbet, 1930) Providence and The World-Order (Robertson Lectures, Glasgow University) (Round Table Press, 1932)Charles Frederick D'Arcy at openlibrary.org The Adventures of a Bishop: a Phase in Irish Life (Hodder and Stoughton, 1934, autobiography) God and the struggle for existence (Association Press, 1996)
References
Obituary of Charles Frederick D'Arcy (1859 – 1938) (in Proceedings of the British Academy, Vol 24; offprint, 19 pages, Oxford University Press, 1938)
External links