Author: STOKES, Whitley
Biography:
STOKES, Whitley (1763-1845: ODNB)
Whitley Stokes was baptised in St. Mark’s church, Great Brunswick Street (now Pearse Street), Dublin, on 3 May 1763. His parents were Gabriel and Sarah Stokes and the baptismal record gives their address as Fleet Street, Dublin. He was admitted to Trinity College Dublin in 1779 (Scholar 1781, BA 1783, Fellow 1788, MA 1789, MB and MD 1793). ODNB dates his marriage to Mary Anne Picknell from 1782 but no record has been located. They had at least three daughters and one son, William, who became a physician. Stokes was a tutor at Trinity and became a senior fellow in 1805 and professor of physic (medicine) in 1830. He was a nationalist and associated with members of the United Irishmen; a particular friend of Wolfe Tone, he also knew Robert Emmet and John Philpott Curran (q.v.). Although he did not support the 1798 rebellion, Trinity suspended him from tutorial duties for three years for his association with the United Irishmen. Stokes became a licentiate of the College of Physicans in 1814 and an honorary fellow in 1816. His wife died on 13 July 1844 and Stokes followed her on 13 Apr. 1845, dying at home at 16 Harcourt Street, Dublin. Both Mary Anne and Whitley were buried in the churchyard of St. Nahi’s church, Dundrum, County Dublin. An obituary describes him as a “venerable and devoted patriot” and “a thorough and devoted nationalist.” Stokes was also a religious man and in 1795 he published A reply to Mr. Paine's Age of Reason, Addressed to the students of Trinity College, Dublin which establishes his objections to Thomas Paine’s (q.v.) book on scriptural grounds. The Satanical Remembrancer (1783) is his only known work to contain verse. Stokes’ grandson, Whitley, was an eminent Celtic scholar and his granddaughter, Margaret, was an archaeologist; both have entries in the ODNB. (ODNB [for William Stokes] 9 Apr. 2025; ancestry.co.uk 9 Apr. 2025; Catalogue of Graduates; The Pilot 21 Apr. 1845; irishgenealogy.ie 9 Apr. 2025) SR