Arthur Smyth

For the naval officer and surgeon, see Arthur Bowes Smyth. For those of a similar name, see Arthur Smith (disambiguation).

Arthur Smyth (19 February 1706 – 14 December 1771) was Archbishop of Dublin from 1766 until his death in 1771.^[1]

The Most Reverend Arthur Smyth D.D.
Archbishop of Dublin Primate of Ireland
Church	Church of Ireland
Diocese	Dublin and Glendalough
Appointed	14 April 1766
In office	1766-1771
Predecessor	William Carmichael
Successor	John Cradock
Previous post(s)	Bishop of Clonfert and Kilmacduagh (1752-1753) Bishop of Down and Connor (1753-1765) Bishop of Meath (1765-1766)
Orders
Consecration	5 April 1752 by John Ryder
Personal details
Born	(1706-02-19)19 February 1706 Limerick, County Limerick, Ireland
Died	14 December 1771(1771-12-14) (aged 65) Dublin, County Dublin, Kingdom of Ireland
Buried	St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin
Nationality	Irish
Denomination	Anglican
Parents	Thomas Smyth & Dorothea Burgh
Spouse	Elizabeth Bonfoy

Family

Smyth was the son of Thomas Smyth, Bishop of Limerick, and Dorothea Burgh (daughter of Ulysses Burgh, Bishop of Ardagh). His brothers included Charles Smyth, MP for Limerick, and the lawyer George Smyth.^[2]

Career

Smyth studied at Trinity College, Dublin, and completed his studies in Oxford. He was Dean of Raphoe from 1742 until 1744, then Dean of Derry until 1752. He was then raised to the episcopate as Bishop of Clonfert and Kilmacduagh (1752), Down and Connor (1753) and Meath (1765), prior to his nomination as Archbishop of Dublin. In 1767 he was made a member of the Privy Council of Ireland. He was the first Irish-born Archbishop of Dublin for many years. He was not widely seen as a very spiritual man: critics said that his main interest was the advancement of the careers of his numerous relatives.

Monument dedicated to Arthur Smyth in the south transept of St. Patrick's Cathedral