David Neligan (14 October 1899 – 1983), known by his soubriquet "The Spy in the Castle", was a crucial figure involved in the Irish War of Independence (1919–21) and subsequently became Director of Intelligence for the

Irish Army The Irish Army, known simply as the Army ( ga, an tArm), is the land component of the Defence Forces of Ireland.The Defence Forces are made up of the Permanent Defence Forces – the standing branches – and the Reserve Defence Forces. The A ...

after the Irish Civil War (1922–23).

Early life

David Neligan was born 14 October 1899 at

Templeglantine Templeglantine (pronounced "Temple-glan-tin"), officially Templeglentan (), is a village in west County Limerick, Ireland between Newcastle West and Abbeyfeale on the N21 national primary route – the main road from Limerick to Tralee. The vi ...

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

where his parents, David and Elizabeth Neligan (née Mullan), were primary school teachers. He was an accomplished hurler with his local Templeglantine GAA Club. In 1917 Neligan joined the military organisation established in 1913 by

Irish nationalists Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...

- the

Irish Volunteers The Irish Volunteers ( ga, Óglaigh na hÉireann), sometimes called the Irish Volunteer Force or Irish Volunteer Army, was a military organisation established in 1913 by Irish nationalists and republicans. It was ostensibly formed in respon ...

Dublin Metropolitan Police & MI5

Against his father's wishes, Neligan joined the

Dublin Metropolitan Police The Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP) was the police force of Dublin, Ireland, from 1836 to 1925, when it was amalgamated into the new Garda Síochána. History 19th century The Dublin city police had been subject to major reforms in 1786 and ...

(DMP) - also in 1917. Picking up travel documentation from the local

Royal Irish Constabulary The Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC, ga, Constáblacht Ríoga na hÉireann; simply called the Irish Constabulary 1836–67) was the police force in Ireland from 1822 until 1922, when all of the country was part of the United Kingdom. A separate ...

barracks he declined a suggestion that he enlist in this armed rural force. After service as a uniformed constable with the DMP, Neligan was promoted to Detective and transferred into the Department's widely hated

counterintelligence Counterintelligence is an activity aimed at protecting an agency's intelligence program from an opposition's intelligence service. It includes gathering information and conducting activities to prevent espionage, sabotage, assassinations or ot ...

and anti-political-subversion unit, the

G Division G (detective) Division was a plainclothes divisional office of the Dublin Metropolitan Police concerned with detective police work.Patrick Maume, ‘Mallon, John (1839–1915)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, ...

, in 1919. In May 1920 Neligan's elder brother Maurice (1895–1920), an

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief th ...

(IRA) member and friend of

Michael Collins Michael Collins or Mike Collins most commonly refers to: * Michael Collins (Irish leader) (1890–1922), Irish revolutionary leader, soldier, and politician * Michael Collins (astronaut) (1930–2021), American astronaut, member of Apollo 11 and Ge ...

, persuaded him to resign from the DMP. After his resignation, Neligan returned to his native

County Limerick "Remember Limerick" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Limerick.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Republic of Ireland, Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Provinces of Ireland, Province , subd ...

with the intention of doing the Limerick IRA. Shortly afterward his brother Maurice was killed in a motorcycle accident, near their home in Templeglantine. In the meantime, Neligan also received word from a family friend that Michael Collins wished to meet with him in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. Collins had been outraged that Neligan had been allowed to resign and persuaded Neligan to rejoin the DMP as a

mole Mole (or Molé) may refer to: Animals * Mole (animal) or "true mole", mammals in the family Talpidae, found in Eurasia and North America * Golden moles, southern African mammals in the family Chrysochloridae, similar to but unrelated to Talpida ...

for the intelligence wing of the IRA. Along with Detectives

Eamon Broy Eamon Broy (also called ''Edward Broy''; 22 December 1887 – 22 January 1972) was successively a member of the Dublin Metropolitan Police, the Irish Republican Army, the National Army, and the Garda Síochána of the Irish Free State. He serv ...

and James McNamara, Neligan acted as a highly valuable agent for Collins and passed on reams of vital information. Neligan leaked documents about the relative importance of police and military personnel and also warned insurgents of upcoming raids and ambushes. Unconfirmed rumors were that Neligan might have been a double agent working for British interests, can now be dismissed as smear campaign owing to his subsequent service on behalf of the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between ...

. In 1921 Collins ordered Neligan to let himself be recruited into

MI5 The Security Service, also known as MI5 ( Military Intelligence, Section 5), is the United Kingdom's domestic counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), G ...

and he used the opportunity to memorise their passwords and the identities of their agents. All of this was passed on to Collins. After Broy and McNamara were dismissed in 1921, Neligan became Collins' most important mole inside

Dublin Castle Dublin Castle ( ga, Caisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a former Motte-and-bailey castle and current Irish government complex and conference centre. It was chosen for its position at the highest point of central Dublin. Until 1922 it was the s ...

Irish Civil War

On the outbreak of the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

in June 1922, Neligan joined the

in Islandbridge Barracks with the rank of Commandant, and was attached to the

Dublin Guard The Dublin Guard was a unit of the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and then of the Irish National Army in the ensuing Civil War. Foundation In May 1921 the Active Service Unit of the Irish Republican Army's Dublin Briga ...

. He was involved in the seaborne assault on

Fenit Fenit () is a small village in County Kerry, Ireland, located on north side of Tralee Bay about west of Tralee town, just south of the Shannon Estuary. The bay is enclosed from the Atlantic by the Maharee spit which extends northwards from ...

and spent the remainder of the war serving as a

military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from a ...

officer operating between

Ballymullen Barracks Ballymullen Barracks () is an Irish military installation at Tralee, County Kerry in Ireland. History The barracks were built for local militia units between 1810 and 1815. In 1873 a system of recruiting areas based on counties was instituted ...

Tralee Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in Count ...

Killarney Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross Cast ...

. He has been accused of involvement in several atrocities including the

Ballyseedy massacre The executions during the Irish Civil War took place during the guerrilla phase of the Irish Civil War (June 1922 – May 1923). This phase of the war was bitter, and both sides, the government forces of the Irish Free State and the anti-Treat ...

and has been referred to as the "Butcher of Kerry". However,

Ernie O'Malley Ernest Bernard Malley ( ga, Earnán Ó Máille; 26 May 1897 – 25 March 1957) was an IRA officer during the Irish War of Independence. Subsequently, he became assistant chief of staff of the Anti-Treaty IRA during the Irish Civil War. O'Malley ...

expressed doubts as to the evidence of this. In 1923 Neligan was posted to Dublin, where he was promoted to Colonel and succeeded

Diarmuid O'Hegarty Diarmuid O'Hegarty (Irish: ''Ó hÉigeartaigh''; 1892–1958) was an Irish revolutionary and civil servant. He was a member of the Irish Volunteer executive (June 1916 – November 1921), IRA Director of Communications (July 1918 – March 1920) ...

as the Irish Army's

Director of Intelligence Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

Later life

In 1924 Neligan handed over his post to the youthful Colonel

Michael Joe Costello Michael Joseph Costello (4 July 1904 – 20 October 1986) was an Irish rebel and military leader during the Irish War of Independence. Biography Michael Joseph Costello was born on 4 July 1904 in Cloughjordan, County Tipperary, son of Denis Cos ...

and took command of the DMP (which still continued as a force separate from the newly established

Garda Síochána (; meaning "the Guardian(s) of the Peace"), more commonly referred to as the Gardaí (; "Guardians") or "the Guards", is the national police service of Ireland. The service is headed by the Garda Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Gover ...

) with the rank of Chief Superintendent. The next year he transferred to the Garda when the two police forces were amalgamated, and was instrumental in the foundation of Garda Special Branch. When

Éamon de Valera Éamon de Valera (, ; first registered as George de Valero; changed some time before 1901 to Edward de Valera; 14 October 1882 – 29 August 1975) was a prominent Irish statesman and political leader. He served several terms as head of govern ...

became

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a gro ...

in 1932, his Republican followers demanded Neligan's dismissal. Instead, Neligan was transferred to an equivalent post in the

Irish Civil Service The Civil Service ( ga, An Státseirbhís) of Ireland is the collective term for the permanent staff of the departments of state and certain state agencies who advise and work for the Government of Ireland. It consists of two broad components, ...

. In June 1935 Neligan was married to fellow civil servant Sheila Maeve Rogan. Neligan drew pensions from the DMP, the British

, the

and the

. He also received an ' Old IRA' pension through the

Department of Defence Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philipp ...

References

Sources

* The Spy in the Castle by David Neligan. * Who's Who in the Irish War of Independence 1916–1921. Padraic O'Farrell, Mercier Press 1980. {{DEFAULTSORT:Neligan, David Double agents People of the Irish Civil War (Pro-Treaty side) Garda Síochána officers Irish Directorate of Intelligence personnel Military personnel from County Limerick Spies during the Irish War of Independence 1899 births 1983 deaths National Army (Ireland) officers Dublin Metropolitan Police officers Irish spies