Born: 15 August 1713, Ireland
Entered: 17 October 1731, Liège, Belgium (ANG)
Ordained: 22 July 1740,
Final Vows: 22 February 1749, Maryland, USA
Died post 1755

Left Society of Jesus: 16 March 1755

◆ Henry Foley - Records of the English province of The Society of Jesus Vol VII
ARCHBOLD, RICHARD, bom in Ireland 1713 ; entered the Society October 15, 1731, and was professed of the four vows July 22, 1748-9 in Maryland. He was a missioner in Maryland 1740-1749. He also served the missions in the Derby and Suffolk Districts. Becoming heir to & con. siderable estate, the unhappy man, to secure its possession, publicly apostatized in St. Andrew's Church, Dublin, on Sunday, March 16, 1755.

◆ Catholic Record Society, Volume 70, 1981

The English Jesuits, 1650-1829: A Biographical Dictionary

by Geoffrey Holt

Archbold, Richard. Priest.
b. 1713, Ireland.
s. of Robert and Mary.
e. St Omers College c.1725-31.
S.J. October 18th, 1731-1754 or 1755.
Liège (phil) 1733-5.
Liège (theol) 1736-9.
Ordained priest c. 1739.
Maryland 1740-9.
College of Ignatius 1750.
Belhouse 1751-3.
Spinkhill 1753.

(Fo.7; CRS.69; 113; 91; 111; 150 III (2) 7/2/39; 64 pp.354, 472, 520; 65; 68 p.31; 92; 51 f.311v).

Apostasised in Ireland 1754/55

https://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000143269

◆ Fr Edmund Hogan SJ “Catalogica Chronologica” :
DOB 17/08/1713 Ireland; Ent 15/10/1731; FV 22/07/1740 Maryland; APOSTASIZED 16/03/1755 Dublin

He was Apostasized in order to hold possession of an estate.

There was a Richard Archbold a cornet, and one a quartermaster in Dongan’s Dragoons (temp James II)

◆ MacErlean Cat Miss HIB SJ 1670-1770
1737 ANG Cat
Collegium Liège
“Richardus Archbold”
Born 15/04/1713 Irish
Entered 17/10/1731
Studying Theology 2

1740 ANG Cat
On Maryland Mission
“Richardus Archbold”
Born 15/04/1713 Irish
Entered 17/10/1731
Travelling to Maryland Mission

1743 ANG Cat
On Maryland Mission
“Richardus Archbold”
Born 15/04/1713 Irish
Entered 17/10/1731
Studied Philosophy 3, Theology 4; Missionarius

1746 ANG Cat
On Maryland Mission
“Richardus Archbold”
Born 15/04/1713 Irish
Entered 07/09/1731
Studied Philosophy 3, Theology 3 (sed ex indulto RAPN); Missionarius

1749 ANG Cat
On Maryland Mission
“Richardus Archbold”
Born 15/04/1713 Irish
Entered 17/10/1731
Professed Four Vows 02/02/1749
Studied Philosophy 3, Theology; Missionarius 9

1754 ANG Cat
Collegium Immaculate Conception
“Richardus Archbold”
Born 15/04/1713 Irish
Entered 17/10/1731
Professed Four Vows 02/02/1749
Studied Philosophy 3, Theology; Missionarius 9

◆ American Catholic Historical Society

The American Catholic Historical Researches, Vol. 19, No. 2 (APRIL, 1902), pp. 61-62

Rev. Richard Archbold, Apostate Jesuit.

The Pennsylvania Gazette of June 19th, 1755, tells of the conversion to Protestantism of this priest by being received into the Church of Ireland at Dublin on the Sunday prior to March 15th 1755, and states he was ten years a missionary in Maryland.

Rev. E. I. Devitt, S. J., supplies The Researches with this information :

January 16, 1902.

Dear Mr Griffin :

I regret that there has been so long a delay in answering your last letter of enquiry. But I was away from home, during the Christmas holidays, and since my return, I have been quite busy. Besides, you wrote: “No hurry”.

Rev. Richard Archbold.

I copy from a letter of Fr George Fenwick, dated at Georgetown, 1856.

“Oliver says: Born August 15, 1713 ; entered the Society, 17 Oct., 1731; for several years, he was employed on the Maryland Mission where he made the Profession of the four Vows, the 22nd of July, 1749. Three years later he was certainly in the Midland District”.

N. B. Fr. Archbold apostatized in Ireland in 1754 (1755.)

This apostacy was to secure the possession of an estate. It was public, in St Andrew's Church, Dublin, on Sunday, 16 March, 1755; but he does not appear to have exercised any ecclesiastical functions for the remainder of his life.

He was in Maryland, in the Catalogue for 1740; mentioned in 1745, at St Thomas; again in 1746 and 1749, when he is marked as having returned to Ireland, or England. He has left behind him many books, with his name written in them, which are still to be seen at Georgetown College, at St. Thomas and Newtown”.

So far, Father George Fenwick; he was far and away, the best equipped man in the Province for his knowledge of the early colonial and ecclesiastical History of Maryland. He had gathered together all the papers that he could find in our houses, and, although frequently importuned to write, he could never be induced to put his recollections into form. It has been an incalculable loss. Some of the Scholastics, notably the late Father Provincial, Robert Fulton, when a young man, offered to act as scribe - to let him walk up and down the room, talking, and they would jot down, what he had to say - but, he was too indifferent. - At least he refers to documents, evidently of Jesuit origin and treating of Jesuit affairs, which he used, and which cannot be found now. I have found the want of papers many a time; Father John Sumner, complained of the same thing, when he was writing the History of Georgetown College for the “College Journal”.

Now, the Campbell papers were kept for some time, after his death, at Ellicotts City, Maryland, where he resided; afterwards, they were placed in charge of George Miles the Poet, and Professor of St. Mary's College. He went to New York - died there - papers, where are they? Try to find them - and the Cath. Hist. Soc. will owe a debt of gratitude - or, when I come into the possession of the bequest to G T C for Historical Research into Maryland Colonial affairs, I will be able to make a handsome offer for them.

The points that Father Fenwick gives relating to Archbold, are about the same as I have collected from independent sources. The date 1754 is manifestly an error, as he quotes 1755 from Oliver, shortly after, and this agrees with the date of your Pennsylvania Gazette. - The “Midland Distrist” was in England.

I know nothing further of Archbold. The laws of Ireland at that time were such as to prevent a Catholic from succeeding to landed estates, unless he conformed to the Protestant Church - the next of kin, being a Protestant, could bar the real heir out, and take possession of his property. It may be that Archbold - in conforming - had no worse motive, - than to prevent some scoundrelly relation from taking advantage of the iniquitous law - Let us hope, that he had the grace to repent of his sin, before he was called to his account.

Perhaps, some Irish book of pedigree, or the landed gentry, such as O'Hart, could furnish more information about him and his family-

Yours Faithfully,

E. I. DEVITT, S. J.