Joseph Larmor grew up in Belfast. He entered St John’s College, Cambridge in 1876. He left Cambridge only briefly (1880-85), returning to take up a lectureship in mathematics in 1885. He was Lucasian Professor of Mathematics from 1903 until his retirement in 1932. His chief work was in the area of electromagnetic theory. He was one of the Secretaries of the Cambridge Philosophical Society from 1886-1895, President from 1898-1900, and a generous benefactor to the Society’s Library.