Richard Kirwan
| Richard Kirwan | |
|---|---|
Richard Kirwan
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| Born | 1 August 1733 Cloughballymore, County Galway |
| Died |
22 June 1812 (aged 78) Dublin |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Fields | Chemistry |
| Known for | Phlogiston |
Richard Kirwan, LL.D, FRS, FRSE MRIA (1 August 1733 – 22 June 1812) was an Irish geologist and chemist. He was one of the last supporters of the theory of phlogiston.
Kirwan was active in the fields of chemistry, meteorology, and geology. He was widely known in his day, corresponding and meeting with Lavoisier, Black, Priestley, and Cavendish.
Richard Kirwan was born at Cloughballymore, County Galway, the second son of Marty and Martin Kirwan of Cregg (d.1741), and his wife, Mary French (d.1751). He was a descendant of William Ó Ciardhubháin and a member of The Tribes of Galway. Part of his early life was spent abroad, and in 1754 he entered the Jesuit novitiate either at St Omer or at Hesdin, but returned to Ireland in the following year, when he succeeded to the family estates through the death of his brother in a duel. Kirwan married "Miss Blake" in 1757, but his wife only lived eight more years. The couple had two daughters, Maria Theresa and Eliza.
In 1766, having conformed to the established religion two years previously, Kirwan was called to the Irish bar, but in 1768 abandoned practice in favour of scientific pursuits. During the next nineteen years he resided chiefly in London, enjoying the society of the scientific men living there, and corresponding with many savants on the continent of Europe, as his wide knowledge of languages enabled him to do with ease. His experiments on the specific gravities and attractive powers of various saline substances formed a substantial contribution to the methods of analytical chemistry, and in 1782 gained him the Copley medal from the Royal Society, of which he was elected a fellow in 1780; and in 1784 he was engaged in a controversy with Henry Cavendish in regard to the latter's experiments on air. In 1784, he was elected a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
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