William Wilde - Definition and Overview

Sir William Robert Willis Wilde (1815 - April 19, 1876), today best known for being the father of Oscar Wilde, was a man of prominence in his own day. Wilde was Ireland's leading ear and eye surgeon and wrote books on history, archaeology and folklore, particularly concerning his native Ireland.

William Wilde gained his medical doctorate in 1837. He was awarded a knighthood for his medical contributions involving the British census, and ran his own hospital in Dublin. He served as an oculist to Queen Victoria.

Wilde married poet Jane Francesca Elgee in 1851. The couple had two sons: Willie and Oscar.

Books Published

• The Narrative of a Voyage to Madeira, Teneriffe, and Along the Shores of the Mediterranean 1840.
• The Boyne and the Blackwater 1849
• Lough Corrib, its Shores and Islands, first published in 1867. This book is now out of copyright and is available on the web [1] (http://www.galway.net/galwayguide/history/wrwilde/)