Richard Boyle, 9th Earl Of Cork

Richard Edmund St Lawrence Boyle, the 9th Earl of Cork and 9th Earl of Orrery, was born on April 19, 1829, in Dublin, Ireland. He was the eldest son of Charles Boyle, Viscount Dungarvan, and Lady Catherine St Lawrence, daughter of William St Lawrence, 2nd Earl of Howth. His grandfather was Edmund Boyle, the 8th Earl of Cork.

Boyle was educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford. He became known by the courtesy title Viscount Dungarvan following the early death of his father in 1834. He was a member of the social clubs Brooks's and White's. On July 20, 1850, he was commissioned as a captain in the North Somerset Yeomanry.

In 1854, Boyle was elected Member of Parliament for Frome during a by-election, holding the seat until 1856. That year, he succeeded his grandfather as the 9th Earl of Cork, which resulted in his transition to the House of Lords. In 1860, he was appointed a Knight of the Order of St Patrick.

Boyle's political career included multiple appointments within the British government. In January 1866, he was appointed Master of the Buckhounds under Lord Russell, a position he held until July 1866 when the government fell. He was sworn into the Privy Council in May 1866. Under Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone, Boyle served as Master of the Buckhounds from 1868 to 1874 and again from 1880 to 1885. In 1882, he was appointed one of the speakers of the House of Lords.

In February 1886, during Gladstone's third term as Prime Minister, Boyle was appointed Master of the Horse, though he served until July of that year when the government fell. He was not part of Gladstone’s fourth administration (1892–1894). When Lord Rosebery became Prime Minister in March 1894, Boyle was once again appointed Master of the Horse, serving until June 1895 when the government concluded.

Beyond his political roles, Boyle held several titles and positions: he was Lord Lieutenant of Somerset from 1864 to 1904, Aide-de-Camp to Queen Victoria from 1889 to 1899, and Colonel of the North Somerset Yeomanry.

Regarding his estates, data from 1873 indicated that Lord Cork owned approximately 3,398 acres in Somerset, with an annual value of about 5,094 guineas; 20,195 acres in County Cork, valued at 6,943 guineas annually; 11,531 acres in County Kerry, worth 2,447 guineas per year; and 3,189 acres in County Limerick, valued at 2,859 guineas per annum. He donated land for the Boyle Cross in the town of Frome.

Boyle married Lady Emily Charlotte de Burgh on July 20, 1853; she was the second daughter of Ulick de Burgh, 1st Marquess of Clanricarde. They had nine children:

- Lady Emily Harriet Catherine Boyle (1854–1931)

- Lady Grace Elizabeth Boyle (1856–1935)

- Lady Honora Janet Boyle (1857–1953)

- Lady Dorothy Blanche Boyle (1858–1938)

- Lady Isabel Lettice Theodosia Boyle (1860–1904)

- Charles Spencer Boyle, 10th Earl of Cork (1861–1925)

- Lady Bertha Louise Canning (1861–1862)

- Robert John Lascelles Boyle, 11th Earl of Cork (1864–1934)

- Hon. FitzAdelm Alfred Wentworth Boyle (1866–1890)

The couple celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in 1903. Boyle died on June 22, 1904, at Berkeley Square, Mayfair, London, aged 75. He was succeeded in the earldom by his eldest son, Charles. His wife, Lady Emily, died in October 1912, shortly before her 84th birthday.