St. George Ashe, D.D. (3 March 1657 – 27 February 1718) was an Irish mathematician who served as the 15th Provost of Trinity College Dublin from 1692 to 1695. In the late 17th and early 18th centuries, he served as Church of Ireland Bishop of Cloyne, Clogher and Derry, in succession. From 1685 to 1692, he was the Donegall Lecturer in Mathematics at Trinity College Dublin. He is remembered now chiefly for his alleged role in performing a secret marriage between Jonathan Swift and Esther Johnson (Stella).
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Early life and education
Ashe was born in Roscommon in 1658, a younger son of Thomas Ashe and his wife Mary St George, daughter of Richard St George of Athlone. Dillon Ashe, Archdeacon of Clogher, was his brother. He was educated at Trinity College, where he earned his B.A. (1676),
Academic career
He became a Fellow of Trinity College in 1679, then Professor of Mathematics in 1685, and ultimately became Provost in 1692, a position he served in until July 1695. He later returned to Trinity College as Vice-Chancellor in 1702. He afterwards acted as secretary and chaplain to the British Embassy at Vienna. Returning to Ireland in 1692, he was made Provost of Trinity College.