Richard McArthur Burke was born in Windsor Place, Edenderry on 6 May 1865, the first son of Rev William John Burke and his wife Emily. He was named after his maternal grandfather Richard McArthur, keeping the McArthur name alive for another generation. A cruel twist of fate, just like the man he was named after, Richard did not have a long life.

A ruin of an old school in Edenderry , that Emily’s brothers may have attended

As little can be told of the young Burke’s early childhood it can only be guessed at that they may have attended a local primary school before being sent off to complete their education at about ten. Richard and their youngest brother John Jasper would have being sent to an Irish Clergy Son’s School. There was a number of them around the country at the time, chances are they may have attended the one in Lucan, Dublin, as it took in sons of the clergy with limited means, such as their father.

Richard’s old school still stands and is better known as the Lucan Spa Inn. Read more about it’s colourful history:
http://www.lucanspahotel.ie/history.html