View source for Richard Boyle 1694-1753

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===[[name::Richard]]  [[name::BOYLE]], 3rd [[personal title::Earl of Burlington]] [[date of birth::1694]]-[[date of death::1753]]===
[[file:P1120399(1).JPG|thumb|The smaller of Boyle's bookplates (British Museum Franks Collection *53)]]
====Biographical Note====
Son of [[family::Charles Boyle]], 2nd Earl of Burlington and 3rd Earl of Cork, from whom he inherited the titles and family estates in 1704. He was educated at home. In 1715 he was made [[occupation::Lord Treasurer]] of [[location::Ireland]] (a country he never visited, despite having large landholding there), and thereafter held various administrative offices until he resigned them all in 1733, after a disagreement with George II. He is remembered principally for his interest in architecture, and as a patron of the arts; he designed, and built, numerous houses and gardens, and was a leading exponent of Palladianism in England. He was also a keen musician and supporter of composers and concerts, and had collections of paintings and sculpture. He became a Fellow of the [[organisations::Royal Society]] in 1722, and of the [[organisations::Society of Antiquaries]] in 1724.

====Books====
Boyle also assembled a significant library, noted particularly for its comprehensive coverage of [[subject::architecture]].  This was completed by an outstanding collection of architectural drawings. He was a major literary patron, and particularly friendly with [[associates::Alexander Pope]], whose 1731 poem ''Epistle to Burlington'' testifies to that. His ''ODNB'' entry notes that he regularly subscribed to forthcoming books, sometimes for multiple copies, across a range of subjects. he used an engraved armorial bookplate, in two sizes, dated 1704 (Franks *53/*62). His youngest daughter [[family::Charlotte Cavendish|Charlotte]], who married [[associates::William Cavendish]], 4th Duke of Devonshire, was his main heir and many of his collections were absorbed by the Devonshire library at [[location::Chatsworth]], where much remains today, though some of the architectural drawings were given to the [[organisations::Royal Institution of British Architects]] in 1894.

====Sources====
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*Gambier Howe, E. R. J. ''Franks bequest: catalogue of British and American book plates bequeathed to the ... British Museum''. London, 1903-4.
*Kingsbury, Pamela Denman. [https://doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/3136 "Boyle, Richard, third earl of Burlington and fourth earl of Cork (1694–1753), architect, collector, and patron of the arts."] Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.
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[[Category:Aristocracy]]
[[Category:Earls]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Royal Society]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries]]
[[Category:Bookplates and Labels]]
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