Joseph McGrath (politician)
Encyclopedia
Joseph McGrath (1887 – 1 March 1966) was an Irish
politician and businessman. He was a Sinn Féin
and later a Cumann na nGaedheal Teachta Dála
(TD) for various constituencies in Dublin and County Mayo
and developed widespread business interests.
and soon joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood
. He fought in Marrowbone Lane
in the 1916 Easter Rising
. McGrath was arrested after the rising, and jailed in Wormwood Scrubs
and Brixton
prisons in England
. In the 1918 general election, he was elected as Sinn Féin
TD
for the Dublin St James's
constituency and later went on to become a member of the First Dáil
. He was also a member of the Irish Republican Army
, the guerrilla army of the Irish Republic
, and successfully organised many bank robberies during the Irish war of Independence
(1919–1921), where a small percentage of the proceeds was retained as a reward by him and his fellow-soldiers.
In October 1921 McGrath travelled with the Irish Treaty
delegation to London
as one of Michael Collins
' personal staff.
In the Irish Civil War
of 1922–1923, he took the pro-treaty side and was made Director of Intelligence, replacing Liam Tobin
. He was later put in charge of the police Intelligence service of the new Irish Free State
, the Criminal Investigation Department
or CID. It was accused of the torture and killing of a number of republican (anti-treaty) prisoners during the civil war and was disbanded at the war's end, being unnecessary for a police force in peacetime. McGrath went on to serve as Minister for Labour in the Second Dáil
and the Provisional Government of Ireland. He also served in the 1st and 2nd Executive Councils holding the Industry and Commerce portfolio.
McGrath resigned from office in April 1924 because of dissatisfaction with the government's attitude to certain army
officers and as he said himself, "government by a clique and by the officialdom of the old regime." By this he meant that former IRA fighters were being overlooked and that the Republican goals of an all Ireland republic had been sidelined, a cause of the "army mutiny".http://www.oireachtas-debates.gov.ie:80/D/0006/D.0006.192404030029.html McGrath and eight other TDs who had resigned from Cumann na nGaedheal then resigned their seats to contest by-elections
, running as the National Party
. However, Cumann na nGaedheal won seven of these and Sinn Féin won the other two.
, German
contractors for the Ardnacrusha hydro-electric scheme near Limerick
. McGrath founded the Irish Hospitals' Sweepstake
in 1930, and the success of its sweepstakes made him an extremely wealthy man. He had other extensive and successful business interests always investing in Ireland and became Ireland's best-known racehorse owner and breeder, winning the Epsom Derby
with Arctic Prince in 1951.
McGrath died at his house Cabinteely House in Dublin in March 1966.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
politician and businessman. He was a Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
and later a Cumann na nGaedheal Teachta Dála
Teachta Dála
A Teachta Dála , usually abbreviated as TD in English, is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas . It is the equivalent of terms such as "Member of Parliament" or "deputy" used in other states. The official translation of the term is "Deputy to the Dáil", though a more literal...
(TD) for various constituencies in Dublin and County Mayo
County Mayo
County Mayo is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the village of Mayo, which is now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county is 130,552...
and developed widespread business interests.
Political career
McGrath was born in Dublin in 1887. He became involved in Irish nationalismIrish nationalism
Irish nationalism manifests itself in political and social movements and in sentiment inspired by a love for Irish culture, language and history, and as a sense of pride in Ireland and in the Irish people...
and soon joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood
Irish Republican Brotherhood
The Irish Republican Brotherhood was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland during the second half of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century...
. He fought in Marrowbone Lane
Marrowbone Lane
Marrowbone Lane is a street off Cork Street in Dublin, Ireland. The name is a corruption of St. Mary Le Bone; it was known as Marrowbone Lane as far back as 1743....
in the 1916 Easter Rising
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
. McGrath was arrested after the rising, and jailed in Wormwood Scrubs
Wormwood Scrubs
Wormwood Scrubs, known locally as The Scrubs, is an open space located in the north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London. It is the largest open space in the Borough, at 80 ha , and one of the largest areas of common land in London...
and Brixton
Brixton
Brixton is a district in the London Borough of Lambeth in south London, England. It is south south-east of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London....
prisons in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. In the 1918 general election, he was elected as Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
TD
Teachta Dála
A Teachta Dála , usually abbreviated as TD in English, is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas . It is the equivalent of terms such as "Member of Parliament" or "deputy" used in other states. The official translation of the term is "Deputy to the Dáil", though a more literal...
for the Dublin St James's
Dublin St James's (UK Parliament constituency)
St James's, a division of Dublin, was a UK parliamentary constituency in Ireland. It returned one Member of Parliament to the British House of Commons 1918–1922....
constituency and later went on to become a member of the First Dáil
First Dáil
The First Dáil was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 1919–1921. In 1919 candidates who had been elected in the Westminster elections of 1918 refused to recognise the Parliament of the United Kingdom and instead assembled as a unicameral, revolutionary parliament called "Dáil Éireann"...
. He was also a member 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...
, the guerrilla army of the Irish Republic
Irish Republic
The Irish Republic was a revolutionary state that declared its independence from Great Britain in January 1919. It established a legislature , a government , a court system and a police force...
, and successfully organised many bank robberies during the Irish war of Independence
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...
(1919–1921), where a small percentage of the proceeds was retained as a reward by him and his fellow-soldiers.
In October 1921 McGrath travelled with the Irish Treaty
Anglo-Irish Treaty
The Anglo-Irish Treaty , officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a treaty between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and representatives of the secessionist Irish Republic that concluded the Irish War of...
delegation to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
as one of Michael Collins
Michael Collins (Irish leader)
Michael "Mick" Collins was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance and Teachta Dála for Cork South in the First Dáil of 1919, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations. Subsequently, he was both Chairman of the...
' personal staff.
In the Irish Civil War
Irish Civil War
The Irish Civil War was a conflict that accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State as an entity independent from the United Kingdom within the British Empire....
of 1922–1923, he took the pro-treaty side and was made Director of Intelligence, replacing Liam Tobin
Liam Tobin
Major General Liam Tobin was an Irish statesman and officer in the Irish Army. During the Irish War of Independence, he served as an IRA intelligence officer for Michael Collins' Squad.-Early life:...
. He was later put in charge of the police Intelligence service of the new Irish Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
, the Criminal Investigation Department
Criminal Investigation Department (Ireland)
The Criminal Investigation Department in the Irish Free State was an armed, plain-clothed counter-insurgency police unit that operated during the Irish Civil War. It was organised separately from the unarmed Civic Guard police force...
or CID. It was accused of the torture and killing of a number of republican (anti-treaty) prisoners during the civil war and was disbanded at the war's end, being unnecessary for a police force in peacetime. McGrath went on to serve as Minister for Labour in the Second Dáil
Second Dáil
The Second Dáil was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 16 August 1921 until 8 June 1922. From 1919–1922 Dáil Éireann was the revolutionary parliament of the self-proclaimed Irish Republic. The Second Dáil consisted of members elected in 1921...
and the Provisional Government of Ireland. He also served in the 1st and 2nd Executive Councils holding the Industry and Commerce portfolio.
McGrath resigned from office in April 1924 because of dissatisfaction with the government's attitude to certain army
Irish Army
The Irish Army, officially named simply the Army is the main branch of the Defence Forces of Ireland. Approximately 8,500 men and women serve in the Irish Army, divided into three infantry Brigades...
officers and as he said himself, "government by a clique and by the officialdom of the old regime." By this he meant that former IRA fighters were being overlooked and that the Republican goals of an all Ireland republic had been sidelined, a cause of the "army mutiny".http://www.oireachtas-debates.gov.ie:80/D/0006/D.0006.192404030029.html McGrath and eight other TDs who had resigned from Cumann na nGaedheal then resigned their seats to contest by-elections
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
, running as the National Party
National Party (Ireland, 1924)
The National Party was a minor political party in the Irish Free State between 1924 and 1925. It was a splinter group of nine Cumann na nGaedheal TDs led by Joseph McGrath, who had been Minister for Industry and Commerce in the CnaG government....
. However, Cumann na nGaedheal won seven of these and Sinn Féin won the other two.
Business interests
Following his political career he went on to become involved in the building trade. In 1925 he became labour adviser to Siemens-SchuckertSiemens-Schuckert
Siemens-Schuckert was a German electrical engineering company headquartered in Berlin, Erlangen and Nuremberg that was incorporated into the Siemens AG in 1966....
, German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
contractors for the Ardnacrusha hydro-electric scheme near Limerick
Limerick
Limerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland's Mid-West Region. It is the fifth most populous city in all of Ireland. When taking the extra-municipal suburbs into account, Limerick is the third largest conurbation in the...
. McGrath founded the Irish Hospitals' Sweepstake
Irish Hospitals' Sweepstake
The Irish Hospitals' Sweepstake was a lottery established in the Irish Free State in 1930 as the Irish Free State Hospitals' Sweepstake to finance hospitals, and is often referred to as the Irish Sweepstake...
in 1930, and the success of its sweepstakes made him an extremely wealthy man. He had other extensive and successful business interests always investing in Ireland and became Ireland's best-known racehorse owner and breeder, winning the Epsom Derby
Epsom Derby
The Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
with Arctic Prince in 1951.
McGrath died at his house Cabinteely House in Dublin in March 1966.