GEMMS IDGEMMS-PERSON-003715
NameJonathan Swift
TitleDr.
Gendermale
Denomination
Livedb. 1667-11-30 - d. 1745-10-19 (new)
Linked Manuscripts
Linked SermonsSermon on 1 Corinthians 15:20 -- preacher (autograph: uncertain)
Linked Reports
Associated PlacesSt Patrick's Cathedral -- DeaneryKilroot -- ParishLaracor -- ParishHart Hall -- Place of StudyTrinity College -- Place of Study
Source of DataODNB (Article: 26833); AO (Foster); Hannah Yip.
Biographical Sources ConsultedODNB (Article: 26833); AO (Foster)
Other NoteJonathan Swift was born on 30 November 1667 in Dublin, Ireland. His father, also Jonathan, died before his birth. From the age of six, he attended Kilkenny School. In 1682, he began his studies at Trinity College Dublin, graduating B.A. ex speciali gratia in February 1686. During the Glorious Revolution, Swift travelled to England, becoming secretary to Sir William Temple, an English diplomat, at Moor Park, Surrey. On 5 July 1692, he was awarded the degree of M.A. from Hart Hall, Oxford. In January 1695, Swift was ordained priest and was instituted to the vicarage of Kilroot, near Belfast. He resigned from Kilroot in January 1698. Between 1696 and 1699, he composed A Tale of a Tub, which was published anonymously in 1704. On 16 February 1700, Swift became vicar of Laracor; exactly two years later, he was awarded the degree of D.D. from Trinity College Dublin. In April 1713, Swift became dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin. Shortly after, he founded the Scriblerus Club with Alexander Pope, John Arbuthnot, and John Gay, among others. In 1726, Gulliver's Travels was published; this was followed by A Modest Proposal in 1729. He died on 19 October 1745, and was buried in St Patrick's Cathedral. For more information, see Christopher Fox, ed., The Cambridge Companion to Jonathan Swift (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003); Leo Damrosch, Jonathan Swift: His Life and His World (New Haven, CT and London: Yale University Press, 2013).
GEMMS record createdNovember 10, 2021
GEMMS record last editedNovember 13, 2021