Eamonn (or Eamon; also Edward
) Mansfield (1878–1954)
was an Irish schoolteacher and public servant, and briefly a member of the
Free State Seanad
Free may refer to:
Concept
* Freedom, having the ability to do something, without having to obey anyone/anything
* Freethought, a position that beliefs should be formed only on the basis of logic, reason, and empiricism
* Emancipate, to procure ...
.
Mansfield's father was a
tenant farmer
A tenant farmer is a person (farmer or farmworker) who resides on land owned by a landlord. Tenant farming is an agricultural production system in which landowners contribute their land and often a measure of operating capital and management, ...
who was
evicted
Eviction is the removal of a tenant from rental property by the landlord. In some jurisdictions it may also involve the removal of persons from premises that were foreclosed by a mortgagee (often, the prior owners who defaulted on a mortgage ...
.
The son became principal of the
national school in
Cullen, County Tipperary
Cullen () is a rural village in County Tipperary, Ireland. The centre of the village is located at a junction of two roads in south Tipperary. These roads lead to Monard, Lattin, the "Rocky Road" and Oola respectively.
Name
The village was trad ...
, where his wife was also a teacher. He was president of the
Irish National Teachers' Organisation
The Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) ( ga, Cumann Múinteoirí Éireann), founded in 1868, is the oldest and largest teachers' trade union in Ireland. It represents teachers at primary level in the Republic of Ireland, and at prima ...
(INTO) in 1910–11, and later its first full-time general secretary.
He was dismissed as principal in October 1912 after his 1911 INTO president's address criticised W. H. Welpy, a school inspector who was reputed to give poor assessments to keep salaries down.
and other
Irish Parliamentary Party
The Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP; commonly called the Irish Party or the Home Rule Party) was formed in 1874 by Isaac Butt, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish national ...
MPs campaigned for his reinstatement;
Mansfield and his wife continued to teach without pay until this was achieved in 1915.
He was later Chairman of the Wages Board c.1921.
On 7 December 1922, the day after 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 th ...
came into existence, the members of the
Third Dáil
The Third Dáil was elected at the general election held on 16 June 1922. This election was required to be held under the Anglo-Irish Treaty signed on 6 December 1921. It first met on 9 September and until 6 December 1922, it was the Provision ...
(TDs) voted to choose 30 members of the newly created Seanad. With
Labour Party support,
[ Mansfield was elected in 23rd place, thereby securing a three-year term to expire at the 1925 election. The ]Irish Civil War
The Irish Civil War ( ga, Cogadh Cathartha na hÉireann; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United ...
was in progress, and the same day, two pro-Treaty
A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations
An international organization or international o ...
TDs were shot, one fatally. The following day, four imprisoned anti-Treaty leaders were executed in reprisal. On 12 December, Mansfield sent a telegram
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
resigning from the Seanad "on account of Friday's reprisal" and stating that "peace is Ireland's only hope". Ernest Blythe
Ernest Blythe (; 13 April 1889 – 23 February 1975) was an Irish journalist, managing director of the Abbey Theatre, and politician who served as Minister for Finance from 1923 to 1932, Minister for Posts and Telegraphs and Vice-President of t ...
suggested later that Mansfield had resigned in panic at anti-Treaty commander Liam Lynch's order to assassinate all Senators.
Mansfield was later a member of the Commission of Agriculture, and was consulted in the drafting of the Land Acts of 1923 and 1933.Irish Land Commission
The Irish Land Commission was created by the British crown in 1843 to 'inquire into the occupation of the land in Ireland. The office of the commission was in Dublin Castle, and the records were, on its conclusion, deposited in the records tower t ...
from 1934 to 1950.Kathleen Browne
Kathleen Anne Browne (1 October 1876 – 9 October 1943) was an Irish politician, farmer, writer, historian and archaeologist. She was arrested after the Easter Rising and held in Kilmainham Gaol. During the Civil War, she was Pro-Treaty and j ...
complained in the Seanad about his appointment, his expertise and impartiality were commended by minister Joseph Connolly and senators Michael Comyn
Michael Comyn (6 June 1871 – 6 October 1952) was an Irish barrister, Fianna Fáil Senator and later a judge on the Circuit Court. He was also a member of the British Civil Service, geologist, discoverer and operator of mines, and finally "li ...
, James Charles Dowdall, and William Cummins.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mansfield, Eamonn
Members of the 1922 Seanad
Politicians from County Tipperary
Irish schoolteachers
Trade unionists from County Tipperary
1878 births
1954 deaths
Independent members of Seanad Éireann