George Stone (bishop)
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The Most Reverend George Stone |
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|---|---|
| Archbishop of Armagh, Primate of All Ireland | |
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| See | Armagh |
| Installed | 1747 |
| Term ended | 1764 |
| Predecessor | John Hoadly |
| Successor | Richard Robinson |
| Other posts |
Dean of Ferns Dean of Derry Bishop of Kildare Bishop of Derry |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1708 |
| Died | 19 December 1764 |
| Nationality | English |
| Denomination | Church of Ireland |
| Education | Westminster School |
| Alma mater | Christ Church, Oxford |
George Stone (1708 – 19 December 1764) was the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh (Primate of All Ireland) from 1747 to his death.
Born in London, the son of Andrew Stone, a London goldsmith. He was educated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford. Having taken holy orders, his advancement in the Church was very rapid, mainly through the influence of his older brother Andrew Stone. Andrew's connections with George II made him able to promote the preferment of his brother George, who went to Ireland as chaplain to Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset when that nobleman became Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1731.
In 1733 Stone was made Dean of Ferns, and in the following year he exchanged this deanery for that of Derry. In 1740 he became Bishop of Ferns and Leighlin, in 1743 Bishop of Kildare, in 1745 Bishop of Derry, and in 1747 Archbishop of Armagh. During the two years that he occupied the See of Kildare he was also Dean of Christ Church, Dublin.
From the moment that he became Primate of All Ireland, Stone proved himself more a politician than an ecclesiastic. "He was said to have been selfish, worldly-minded, ambitious and ostentatious; and he was accused, though very probably falsely, of gross private vice." His aim was to secure political power, a desire which brought him into conflict with Henry Boyle, the Speaker of the Irish House of Commons, who had organized a formidable opposition to the government. The Duke of Dorset's reappointment to the Lord Lieutenancy in 1751, with his son Lord George Sackville as Chief Secretary for Ireland, strengthened the primate's position and enabled him to triumph over the popular party on the constitutional question as to the right of the Irish House of Commons to dispose of surplus Irish revenue, which the government maintained was the property of the Crown.
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