Frank O'Beirne | |
|---|---|
| Senator | |
| In office 8 September 1943 – 18 August 1944 | |
| Constituency | Industrial and Commercial Panel |
| Personal details | |
| Born | John Francis O'Beirne 1897 (1897) County Sligo, Ireland |
| Died | 7 February 1978(1978-02-07) (aged 80–81) County Kildare, Ireland |
| Nationality | Fianna Fáil |
| Political party | Sinn Féin |
| Spouse | Kathleen O'Beirne |
John Francis O'Beirne (1897 – 7 February 1978)[1][2][3] was a farmer, businessman,Irish republican activist andFianna Fáil politician inCounty Sligo.[2] He served inSeanad Éireann from 1943 to 1944.[1]
O'Beirne grew up inCollooney, and was an early supporter ofSinn Féin. He was arrested in February 1918 forunlawful assembly relating to commandeering of land for "conacre".[4] He refused to post bail and was sentenced to six months' imprisonment.[4] In February 1919, he was arrested for illegal fundraising in Collooney, again refused to post bail, and served three months.[5] In June, he organised anaeraíocht (outdoor cultural festival) in Collooney.[6]
TheIrish War of Independence was escalating, and O'Beirne wasOfficer Commanding of the Collooney Battalion of theIrish Republican Army (the "Old IRA").[7] Afterthe local elections of May 1920, O'Beirne was chairman ofSligorural district council (RDC), leading the council to accept the authority of theFirst Dáil.[8][9] As RDC chairman, he wasex officio a member ofCounty Sligocounty council, which passed a similar resolution when it met in June.[10][11] When MajorBryan Cooper refused to pay the "IRA rates", O'Beirne took two bullocks in lieu.[12] On 26 June, he helped to springFrank Carty fromSligo Gaol.[13] In July, he was an adjudicator at theDáil Courts which sat atSooey Creamery and later at Sligo Courthouse.[14]
O'Beirne sometimes used Major Heather's Knockadoo House nearCoolaney as asafehouse.[15] He led a raid on theBritish Army barracks inCarrick-on-Shannon.[16] He did not participate in a raid on Collooney RIC barracks in March 1921 as he was sick.[17] He was captured on 27 May 1921[18] andcourt-martialled for involvement in the killing ofRIC constables inBallisodare, but escaped fromSligo Gaol in June 1921 before sentence could be passed.[11][19]
O'Beirne was a close friend ofÉamon de Valera, and took the anti-Treaty side in theIrish Civil War.[2] His Collooney Battalion, now part of the "Irregulars", killed fiveIrish Free State Army soldiers in an ambush and captured two armoured cars.[20] Soon after he was taken prisoner along with forty men afterSeán Mac Eoin launched a surprise attack on the town.[21][20]
In the1925 Leitrim–Sligo by-election two vacancies in theLeitrim–Sligo constituency were to be filled; O'Beirne stood forSinn Féin along withSamuel Holt. Holt received slightly more first preferences than O'Beirne and waselected with his transfers, along withMartin Roddy ofCumann na nGaedheal.[22] In his concession speech, O'Beirne said there were "two things he held narrow views on; one was pride in hisCatholic Faith, and the other was his pride in his Irish Nationality. [...] priests and bishops [...] were not infallible as far as politics were concerned."[23]
The following November, O'Beirne was one of two men convicted in theCentral Criminal Court for 'being concerned in the organisation of an illegal organisation "The Irish Republican Army"'.[24] The jury suggested the men should not be treated as criminals, while the judge said their crime wastreason,punishable by death.[24] In the event, a 12-month sentence was imposed.[25]
O'Beirne spent time in the United States, "reporting" to the New York IRA co-ordinator Connie Neenan in January 1927,[26] and attended prominentClan na Gael functions in 1930–1932.[27]Moss Twomey, theIRA chief of staff, had a low opinion of O'Beirne.[20] Officially he worked as a shipping agent, which was a front for acting illegally as an agent for theIrish Sweepstakes.[2][28] He returned to Ireland in the 1930s, working as a farmer and businessman, and was active inFianna Fáil's industrial policy promoted bySeán Lemass.[2] He was elected to the Seanad in 1943 on theIndustrial and Commercial Panel, but was defeated in the 1944 Seanad election,[1] having also failed to be elected to theDáil forSligo at the1944 general election.[22]
O'Beirne was director of several companies,[2] including Meat Exporters (Sligo) Ltd,[29] and Flemings Fireclays.[30] He was a founding director of the Sligo Industrial Development Corporation in 1953.[31] In 1955, he bought fromMajor Clarence H. Hillas "Sea View", acountry house previously owned by the Atkinson family,[32] near theSligo–Ballina road at Doonecoy, Templeboy.[2][33] He was a member of theRacing Board from 1965 to 1970.[34][35][36] He was killed in a car crash on theN7 nearKill, County Kildare, aged 81.[2] His wife Kathleen had died in 1969.[2][37]