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{{short description|Anglo-Irish writer and politician (1671–1729)}}
{{about|the 18th-century author|others|Richard Steele (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2012}}
{{Infobox person
| honorific_prefix = [[Sir]]
| name        = Richard Steele
| image       = Sir Richard Steele by Jonathan Richardson.jpg
| image_size  = 220
| alt         = Portrait of Sir Richard Steele
| caption     = Portrait by [[Jonathan Richardson]]
| birth_date  = 1671
| birth_place = [[Dublin]], Ireland
| death_date  = {{Death date and age|1729|9|1|1671|||df=y}}
| death_place = [[Carmarthen]], Wales
| alma_mater  = [[Christ Church, Oxford]] <br /> [[Merton College, Oxford]]
| occupation  = Writer, playwright, politician
| known_for   = Founder of ''[[The Spectator (1711)|The Spectator]]''
}}

'''Sir Richard Steele''' ({{circa|1671}} – 1 September 1729) was an Anglo-Irish writer, playwright and politician best known as the co-founder of the magazine ''[[The Spectator (1711)|The Spectator]]'' alongside his close friend [[Joseph Addison]].

[[File:Godfrey Kneller (1646-1723) - Sir Richard Steele - NPG 3227 - National Portrait Gallery.jpg|thumb|A {{circa|1712}} [[Kit-cat Club|Kit-Cat Portrait]] of Steele by [[Godfrey Kneller]]]]

==Early life==
Steele was born in [[Dublin]], [[Ireland]], in 1671 to Richard Steele, a wealthy attorney, and Elinor Symes (''née'' Sheyles); his sister Katherine was born the previous year. He was the grandson of [[William Steele (Lord Chancellor of Ireland)|Sir William Steele]], [[Lord Chancellor of Ireland]] and his first wife Elizabeth Godfrey. His father lived at Mountown House, [[Monkstown, Dublin]]. His mother, of whose family background little is known, was described as "a very beautiful woman, of a noble spirit".{{r|DNB}}

His father died when he was four, and his mother a year later. Steele was largely raised by his uncle and aunt, Henry Gascoigne (secretary to [[James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde]]), and Lady Katherine Mildmay.<ref name=dammers>{{cite book|last1=Dammers|first1=Richard H.|title=Richard Steele|date=1982|publisher=Twayne Publishers|location=Boston|isbn=9780805768374|page=[https://archive.org/details/richardsteele00damm/page/1 1]|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/richardsteele00damm}}</ref>

A member of the Protestant gentry, he was educated at [[Charterhouse School]], where he first met Addison. After starting at [[Christ Church, Oxford]], he went on to [[Merton College, Oxford]], then joined the [[Life Guards (British Army)|Life Guards]] of the [[Household Cavalry]] in order to support King William's [[Nine Years' War|wars against France]]. He was commissioned in 1697, and rose to the rank of captain within two years.<ref>{{Cite ODNB|id=26347|title=Steele, Sir Richard}}</ref>

== Literary life ==
Steele's first published work, ''The Christian Hero'' (1701), attempted to point out the differences between perceived and actual masculinity. Written while Steele served in the army, it expressed his idea of a pamphlet of moral instruction. ''The Christian Hero'' was ultimately ridiculed for what some thought was hypocrisy because Steele did not necessarily follow his own preaching. He was criticized for publishing a booklet about morals when he himself enjoyed drinking, occasional duelling, and debauchery around town.

Steele wrote a comedy that same year titled ''The Funeral''. This play met with wide success and was performed at Drury Lane, bringing him to the attention of the King and the Whig party. Next, Steele wrote ''[[The Lying Lover]]'' (1703), one of the first sentimental comedies, but a failure on stage.

Steele was a member of the Whig [[Kit-Kat Club]]. Both Steele and Addison became closely associated with Child's Coffee-house in [[St Paul's Churchyard]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Michael North |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9sFEdVbQ1MUC&pg=PA154 |title='Material Delight and the Joy of Living': Cultural Consumption in the Age of Enlightenment in Germany |publisher=Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7546-5842-9 |page=154}}</ref>

Steele left the army in 1705, perhaps due to the death of the 34th Foot's commanding officer, [[Robert Lucas, 3rd Baron Lucas of Shenfield|Lord Lucas]], which limited his opportunities of promotion.

Also in 1705, Steele married a widow, Margaret Stretch, who died in the following year. After Margaret's death, a [[slave plantation]] she owned in [[Barbados]] came into the ownership of Steele.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gcBkAwAAQBAJ&dq=richard+steele+plantation&pg=PA132 |title=The Epistolary Correspondence of Sir Richard Steele |date=22 May 2014 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=9781108074018}}</ref> At her funeral he met his second wife, [[Mary Steele|Mary Scurlock]], whom he nicknamed "Prue" and married in 1707. In the course of their courtship and marriage, he wrote over 400 letters to her.

Steele wrote ''The Tender Husband'' (1705) with contributions from Addison, and later that year wrote the prologue to ''The Mistake'', by [[John Vanbrugh]], also an important member of the Kit-Kat Club.

In 1706 Steele was appointed to a position in the household of [[Prince George of Denmark]], consort of [[Anne, Queen of Great Britain]]. He also gained the favour of [[Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer|Robert Harley]], [[Earl of Oxford]].

''[[Tatler (1709)|The Tatler]]'', Steele's first public journal, first came out on 12 April 1709, and appeared three times a week: on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Steele edited this periodical under the pseudonym [[Isaac Bickerstaff]] and gave the Bickerstaff character an entire, fully developed personality. "Bickerstaff's" best Tatler columns were published by Steele as the book ''Isaac Bickerstaff, Physician and Astrologer'' later that year''.''

Steele described his motive in writing ''The Tatler'' as "to expose the false arts of life, to pull off the disguises of cunning, vanity, and affectation, and to recommend a general simplicity in our dress, our discourse, and our behaviour".<ref name="Herrig1869">{{cite book |author=Ludwig Christian Friedrich Herrig |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f_BLAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA138 |title=The British Classical Authors: Select Specimens of the National Literature of England with Biographical and Critical Sketches. Poetry and Prose |publisher=George Westermann |year=1869 |page=138}}</ref> Steele founded the magazine, and although he and Addison collaborated, Steele wrote the majority of the essays; Steele wrote roughly 188 of the 271 total and Addison 42, with 36 representing the pair's collaborative works. While Addison contributed to ''The Tatler'', it is widely regarded as Steele's work.<ref name="MAURER1991">{{cite book |author=Shawn Lisa Maurer |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=olkeAQAAMAAJ |title=Reforming Men: Gender, Sexuality, and Class in the Early English Periodical |publisher=University of Michigan |year=1991 |page=116}}</ref>

''The Tatler'' was closed down in early 1711 to avoid the complications of running a Whig publication that had come under Tory attack.<ref>{{cite book |author=Ross Eaman |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e98aMyleL-cC&pg=PA271 |title=The A to Z of Journalism |publisher=Scarecrow Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-8108-7067-3 |pages=271–2}}</ref> Addison and Steele then founded ''[[The Spectator (1711)|The Spectator]]'' in 1711 and also ''[[The Guardian (1713)|The Guardian]]'' in 1713.

Steele had an illegitimate child, Elizabeth Ousley, whom he later adopted.{{citation needed|date=December 2024}}

== Parliamentary and late literary life ==
Steele became a [[British Whig Party|Whig]] Member of Parliament in 1713, for [[Stockbridge (UK Parliament constituency)|Stockbridge]].<ref>{{HistoryofParliament |1690|url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/member/steele-richard-1672-1729|last=Hanham|first=Andrew A.|title=Steele, Richard (1672-1729), of Bloomsbury Square, London, and Llangunnor, Carm.}}</ref> He was soon expelled for issuing a pamphlet in favour of the [[Hanoverian succession]]. When the Hanoverian [[George I of Great Britain]] came to the throne in the following year, Steele was knighted and given responsibility for the [[Theatre Royal, Drury Lane]], London. He returned to parliament in 1715, for [[Boroughbridge (UK Parliament constituency)|Boroughbridge]].<ref>{{HistoryofParliament |1715|last=Lea|first=R. S.|url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1715-1754/member/steele-richard-1672-1729|title=Steele, Richard (1672-1729), of Llangunnor, Carm.}}</ref>

He wrote a [[preface]] to Addison's 1716 comedy play ''[[The Drummer (play)|The Drummer]]''.

His wife Mary died in 1718, at a time when she was considering separation. Their daughter, Elizabeth (Steele's only surviving legitimate child), married John Trevor, 3rd [[Baron Trevor]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Elizabeth (Steele), Lady Trevor |url=http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw06401/Elizabeth-Steele-Lady-Trevor#sitter |publisher=[[National Portrait Gallery, London]]}}</ref>

Steele ended his parliamentary career in March 1722.

While at Drury Lane, Steele wrote and directed the [[sentimental comedy]] ''[[The Conscious Lovers]]'', which was an immediate hit on stage in November 1722.

== Retirement ==
Steele fell out with Addison and with the government administration over the [[Peerage Bill]] (1719), and in 1724 he retired to his second wife's homeland of [[Wales]], where he spent the remainder of his life.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Life of Sir Richard Steele|url=http://www.luminarium.org/eightlit/steele/steelebio.htm|website=Luminarium: Anthology of English Literature}}</ref>[[File:Sir Richard Steele's House at Llangunnor.jpeg|thumb|Sir Richard Steele's House at Llangunnor near Carmarthen, 1797]]
Steele died in 1729. He was buried in Carmathen at [[St Peter's Church, Carmarthen|St Peter's Church]]. During the restoration of the church in 2000, his skull was discovered in a lead casket, having previously been accidentally disinterred during the 1870s.

[[File:Joseph Addison and Richard Steele.jpg|thumb|Of the 271 essays published in ''[[Tatler (1709)|The Tatler]]'', Joseph Addison (left) wrote 42, Richard Steele (right) wrote roughly 188, and the rest were collaborations between the two writers.]]

==In literature==
Steele plays a minor role in the novel ''[[The History of Henry Esmond]]'' by [[William Makepeace Thackeray]]. It is during his time with the Life Guards, where he is mostly referred to as Dick the Scholar and makes mention of his friend "Joe Addison". Thackeray depicts Steele in glowing terms as a warm, generous, talented mentor who befriends the title character in his youth and remains loyal to him for years despite their political differences.

==See also==

*[[List of abolitionist forerunners]]

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DNB>{{cite DNB |wstitle=Steele, Richard (1672-1729) |last=Dobson |first=Austin |authorlink=Henry Austin Dobson|volume=54 |pages=130–137 |quote= |vb= |supplement= |no-icon= |title= |url= |display= |access-date=}}</ref>
}}

==External links==
{{wikisource|works=or}}
{{commons category}}
{{wikiquote}}
* {{FadedPage|id=Steele, Richard|name=Richard Steele|author=yes}}
* {{StandardEbooks|Standard Ebooks URL=https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/richard-steele}}
* {{Librivox author |id=13619}}
* {{cite book | first=George Atherton|last=Aitken |authorlink=George Atherton Aitken| title=The Life of Richard Steele | year=1889 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-ubqvcp2yN8C}}
* {{Gutenberg author |id=984| name=Richard Steele}}
* {{Internet Archive author |sname=Richard Steele}}
* [http://essays.quotidiana.org/steele/ Essays by Steele at Quotidiana.org]
* {{cite book |author=Dobson, Austin |title=Richard Steele |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A8NpAAAAMAAJ |place=New York|publisher=D. Appleton & Co |year=1886 }}
* [http://www.luminarium.org/eightlit/steele/steelebio.htm Biography], luminarium.org
* [http://www.libraryireland.com/biography/SirRichardSteele.php Profile], libraryireland.com

{{s-start}}
{{s-par|gb}}
{{succession box
 | title  = [[Member of Parliament]] for [[Stockbridge (UK Parliament constituency)|Stockbridge]]
 | years  = 1713–1714
 | with   = [[Thomas Brodrick (1654–1730)|Thomas Brodrick]]
 | before = [[James Barry, 4th Earl of Barrymore|The Earl of Barrymore]] | before2=[[George Dashwood (1680–1758)|George Dashwood]]
 | after  = [[Thomas Brodrick (1654–1730)|Thomas Brodrick]] | after2=[[James Barry, 4th Earl of Barrymore|The Earl of Barrymore]]
}}
{{succession box
 | title  = [[Member of Parliament]] for [[Boroughbridge (UK Parliament constituency)|Boroughbridge]]
 | years  = 1715–1722
 | with   = [[Thomas Wilkinson (MP)|Thomas Wilkinson]] 1715–1718
 | with2  = [[Sir Wilfrid Lawson, 3rd Baronet, of Isell|Sir Wilfrid Lawson, Bt]] 1718–1722
 | before = [[Sir Brian Stapylton, 2nd Baronet|Sir Brian Stapylton, Bt]] | before2=[[Edmund Dunch (Whig)|Edmund Dunch]]
 | after  = [[Conyers Darcy]] | after2=[[James Tyrrell (British Army officer)|James Tyrrell]]
}}
{{succession box
 | title  = [[Member of Parliament]] for [[Wendover (UK Parliament constituency)|Wendover]]
 | years  = 1722–1727
 | with   = [[Richard Hampden (1674–1728)|Richard Hampden]]
 | before = [[Roger Hill (Denham)|Sir Roger Hill]] | before2=[[Richard Grenville (1678–1727)|Richard Grenville]]
 | after  = [[Richard Hampden (1674–1728)|Richard Hampden]] | after2=[[James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Clanbrassill (second creation)|The Viscount of Limerick]]
}}
{{s-end}}

{{Restoration comedy}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Steele, Richard}}
[[Category:1670s births]]
[[Category:1729 deaths]]
[[Category:17th-century Anglo-Irish people]]
[[Category:18th-century Anglo-Irish people]]
[[Category:18th-century Irish dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:18th-century Irish male writers]]
[[Category:Politicians from County Dublin]]
[[Category:British magazine founders]]
[[Category:British magazine publishers (people)]]
[[Category:Irish male dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies]]
[[Category:People educated at Charterhouse School]]
[[Category:Alumni of Merton College, Oxford]]
[[Category:British MPs 1713–1715]]
[[Category:British MPs 1715–1722]]
[[Category:British MPs 1722–1727]]
[[Category:Irish magazine editors]]
[[Category:Irish slave owners]]
[[Category:Expelled members of the Parliament of Great Britain]]
[[Category:Knights Bachelor]]