Oliver Goldsmith

Paul Baines (University of Liverpool)
Download PDF Add to Bookshelf Report an Error

Oliver Goldsmith was born about 1730, probably at Pallas, in County Westmeath, the second son of the Reverend Charles Goldsmith. His father became curate of Kilkenny West and the family moved to Lissoy, where Goldsmith grew up. He was educated at local schools from about 1737 to 1745, when he entered Trinity College, Dublin. He graduated in 1750, despite being involved in a student riot in 1747 (the year in which his father died). Having failed to get ordained in the Church of Ireland he became tutor to a family living in County Roscommon. He made journeys to Cork, perhaps with the intention of emigrating to America, and to Dublin, with the intention of studying law in London. These plans came to nothing. In 1752 he entered the University of Edinburgh to study medicine, on money supplied…

1962 words

Citation: Baines, Paul. "Oliver Goldsmith". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 30 June 2002 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5211, accessed 19 March 2024.]

5211 Oliver Goldsmith 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

If you need to create a new bookshelf to save this article in, please make sure that you are logged in, then go to your 'Account' here

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.