Frank Flood
Encyclopedia
Francis Xavier Flood known as Frank, was a 1st Lieutenant in the Dublin Active Service Brigade during the Irish War of Independence
. He was executed by the British authorities in Mountjoy Jail and was one of the men commonly referred to as The Forgotten Ten
.
s, Dublin and won a scholarship to study engineering at University College Dublin
where he was an active member of UCD's famous debating forum, the Literary and Historical Society. He passed his first and second year engineering exams with distinction. At the time of his arrest he was living with his family at 30 Summerhill Parade, Dublin.
, Patrick Doyle
, Bernard Ryan
and Dermot O'Sullivan while attacking a lorry-load of Dublin Metropolitan Police
at Drumcondra
on January 21, 1921.; see also. All of the men were found in possession of arms and a grenade was discovered in Flood's pocket. On February 24, 1921, Flood was charged by Court-martial
, with high treason/levying war against the King, and was one of six men executed by hanging on March 14, 1921 in Mountjoy Jail, Dublin. At nineteen years of age, he was the youngest of the six.
Flood was a close personal friend of Kevin Barry
, and asked that he be buried as close as possible to him. He had taken part in the September 1920 ambush during which Barry had been arrested and had been involved in the planning of several aborted attempts to rescue him. Flood would remain buried at Mountjoy Prison
, together with nine other executed members of the Irish Republican Army
known as The Forgotten Ten
, until he was given a state funeral and reburied at Glasnevin Cemetery
on October 14, 2001 after an intense campaign led by the National Graves Association
.
Students of University College Dublin established the Frank Flood Shield, an annual debating competition, in his memory. Flood and the other five men executed on 14 March 1921 are commemorated in Thomas MacGreevy
's poem "The Six who were Hanged".
Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence , Anglo-Irish War, Black and Tan War, or Tan War was a guerrilla war mounted by the Irish Republican Army against the British government and its forces in Ireland. It began in January 1919, following the Irish Republic's declaration of independence. Both sides agreed...
. He was executed by the British authorities in Mountjoy Jail and was one of the men commonly referred to as The Forgotten Ten
The Forgotten Ten
The Forgotten Ten is the term applied to ten members of the Irish Republican Army who were executed in Mountjoy Prison, Dublin by British forces following courts martial from 1920-1921 during the Irish War of Independence. Based upon military law at the time, they were buried within the prison...
.
Background
Flood was the son of a policeman and the 1911 census lists the family living at 15 Emmet Street. He was one of eight brothers, most of whom were heavily involved in the Independence movement. He attended secondary school in O'Connell SchoolO'Connell School
The O’Connell School is a secondary school for boys located on North Richmond Street in Dublin, Republic of Ireland. The school, named in honour of the leader of Catholic Emancipation, Daniel O’Connell, has the distinction of being the oldest surviving Christian Brothers school in Dublin, having...
s, Dublin and won a scholarship to study engineering at University College Dublin
University College Dublin
University College Dublin ) - formally known as University College Dublin - National University of Ireland, Dublin is the Republic of Ireland's largest, and Ireland's second largest, university, with over 1,300 faculty and 17,000 students...
where he was an active member of UCD's famous debating forum, the Literary and Historical Society. He passed his first and second year engineering exams with distinction. At the time of his arrest he was living with his family at 30 Summerhill Parade, Dublin.
Trial and Execution
He was captured, together with Thomas BryanThomas Bryan (Irish Republican)
Thomas Bryan was member of the Irish Republican Army hanged in Mountjoy Prison on 14 March 1921 along with six other men.-Background:...
, Patrick Doyle
Patrick Doyle (Irish Republican)
Patrick Doyle was one of six men hanged in Mountjoy Prison on the morning of the 14 of March 1921. He was aged 29 and lived at St. Mary's Place, Dublin. He was one of The Forgotten Ten.-Background:...
, Bernard Ryan
Bernard Ryan
Bernard Ryan was one of six men hanged in Mountjoy Prison, Dublin on the 14 March 1921. He was a member of the Irish Republican Army and part of the Dublin Brigade's Active Service Unit...
and Dermot O'Sullivan while attacking a lorry-load of Dublin Metropolitan Police
Dublin Metropolitan Police
The Dublin Metropolitan Police was the police force of Dublin, Ireland, from 1836 to 1925, when it amalgamated into the new Garda Síochána.-19th century:...
at Drumcondra
Drumcondra, Dublin
Drumcondra is a residential area and inner suburb on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is administered by Dublin City Council.The River Tolka and the Royal Canal flow through the area.-History:...
on January 21, 1921.; see also. All of the men were found in possession of arms and a grenade was discovered in Flood's pocket. On February 24, 1921, Flood was charged by Court-martial
Court-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
, with high treason/levying war against the King, and was one of six men executed by hanging on March 14, 1921 in Mountjoy Jail, Dublin. At nineteen years of age, he was the youngest of the six.
Legacy and Reinterrment
Kevin Barry
Kevin Gerard Barry was the first Irish republican to be executed by the British since the leaders of the Easter Rising. Barry was sentenced to death for his part in an IRA operation which resulted in the deaths of three British soldiers.Barry's death is considered a watershed moment in the Irish...
, and asked that he be buried as close as possible to him. He had taken part in the September 1920 ambush during which Barry had been arrested and had been involved in the planning of several aborted attempts to rescue him. Flood would remain buried at Mountjoy Prison
Mountjoy Prison
Mountjoy Prison , founded as Mountjoy Gaol, nicknamed The Joy, is a medium security prison located in Phibsboro in the centre of Dublin, Ireland. It has the largest prison population in Ireland.The current prison governor is Mr...
, together with nine other executed members of the Irish Republican Army
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
known as The Forgotten Ten
The Forgotten Ten
The Forgotten Ten is the term applied to ten members of the Irish Republican Army who were executed in Mountjoy Prison, Dublin by British forces following courts martial from 1920-1921 during the Irish War of Independence. Based upon military law at the time, they were buried within the prison...
, until he was given a state funeral and reburied at Glasnevin Cemetery
Glasnevin Cemetery
Glasnevin Cemetery , officially known as Prospect Cemetery, is the largest non-denominational cemetery in Ireland with an estimated 1.5 million burials...
on October 14, 2001 after an intense campaign led by the National Graves Association
National Graves Association
The National Graves Association is an Irish non-governmental organisation which seeks to maintain the graves of Irish republicans who died in the pursuit of a united Ireland...
.
Students of University College Dublin established the Frank Flood Shield, an annual debating competition, in his memory. Flood and the other five men executed on 14 March 1921 are commemorated in Thomas MacGreevy
Thomas MacGreevy
Thomas MacGreevy was a pivotal figure in the history of Irish literary modernism. A poet, he was also director of the National Gallery of Ireland from 1950 to 1963 and served on the first Irish Arts Council .-Early life:MacGreevy was born in County Kerry, the son of a policeman and a primary...
's poem "The Six who were Hanged".
External links
- Transcripts of Flood's last letters to his family from CDVEC Educational Service to Prisons. (archived at WebCite)