Francis Cahill ( 1882 – 19 October 1957) was an

Irish nationalist 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 ...

, teacher and politician. Prominently associated with the

Gaelic League (; historically known in English as the Gaelic League) is a social and cultural organisation which promotes the Irish language in Ireland and worldwide. The organisation was founded in 1893 with Douglas Hyde as its first president, when it emer ...

, the

Irish Republican Brotherhood The Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB; ) was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland between 1858 and 1924.McGee, p. 15. Its counterpart in the United States ...

(IRB) and the Irish-Ireland movement. A teacher by profession Frank taught for 50 years in St Laurence O'Toole C.B.S., Seville Place, Dublin. A close friend of

Arthur Griffith Arthur Joseph Griffith ( ga, Art Seosamh Ó Gríobhtha; 31 March 1871 – 12 August 1922) was an Irish writer, newspaper editor and politician who founded the political party Sinn Féin. He led the Irish delegation at the negotiations that prod ...

and

Seán O'Casey Seán O'Casey ( ga, Seán Ó Cathasaigh ; born John Casey; 30 March 1880 – 18 September 1964) was an Irish dramatist and memoirist. A committed socialist, he was the first Irish playwright of note to write about the Dublin working classes. ...

as well as the leaders of the Easter rising Tom Clarke and

Seán Mac Diarmada Seán Mac Diarmada (27 January 1883 – 12 May 1916), also known as Seán MacDermott, was an Irish republican political activist and revolutionary leader. He was one of the seven leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916, which he helped to organi ...

, Cahill was dedicated to the cause of Irish independence and Gaelic revival. In 1901 he founded the St. Laurence O'Toole Gaelic Athletic Club and would go on in 1910 to form the

St. Laurence O'Toole Pipe Band The St. Laurence O'Toole Pipe Band is a Grade 1 pipe band based in St. Mary's Hospital Campus Phoenix Park, Dublin,Ireland. The band was established in 1910, and won the RSPBA World Pipe Band Championships in 2010. The band's Pipe Major is Alen ...

and drama group with Seán O'Casey. In 1928 he led the way in setting up Primary Schools' League GAA (Cumann na mBunscol) to promote Gaelic culture. Having been an

Alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...

for

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...

Dublin Corporation Dublin Corporation (), known by generations of Dubliners simply as ''The Corpo'', is the former name of the city government and its administrative organisation in Dublin since the 1100s. Significantly re-structured in 1660-1661, even more sign ...

for several years Cahill was elected to

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland read ...

as a

Cumann na nGaedheal Cumann na nGaedheal (; "Society of the Gaels") was a political party in the Irish Free State, which formed the government from 1923 to 1932. In 1933 it merged with smaller groups to form the Fine Gael party. Origins In 1922 the pro-Treaty G ...

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( , ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas (the Irish Parliament). It is the equivalent of terms such as ''Member of Parli ...

(TD) for the

Dublin North Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cens ...

constituency at the 1923 general election. He resigned his seat on 30 October 1924 following the

Irish Army Mutiny The Army Mutiny was an Irish Army crisis in March 1924 provoked by a proposed reduction in army numbers in the immediate post-Civil War period.Garret FitzGerald Reflections On The Foundation of the Irish State'', University College Cork, April 20 ...

and, along with several other members of the Dáil, formed the National Party. In 1925 he was nominated for the Seanad but was not elected. After retirement from teaching an inter-county senior football testimonial match between Meath and

Louth Louth may refer to: Australia *Hundred of Louth, a cadastral unit in South Australia * Louth, New South Wales, a town *Louth Bay, a bay in South Australia **Louth Bay, South Australia, a town and locality Canada * Louth, Ontario Ireland * County ...

was held at

Croke Park Croke Park ( ga, Páirc an Chrócaigh, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and he ...

to recognise Frank's life of service to the national game. On his death in 1957 the Frank Cahill memorial committee was formed to recognize his contributions to the GAA and Parish. A GAA trophy (The Frank Cahill Cup), awarded at primary level, was named after Cahill and a plaque and statue of Our Lady of Lourdes was erected in the grounds of St. Laurence O'Toole's church, North Wall.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cahill, Francis 1880s births 1957 deaths Burials at St. Fintan's Cemetery, Sutton Cumann na nGaedheal TDs Early Sinn Féin politicians Founders of Gaelic games institutions Irish schoolteachers Irish sportsperson-politicians Members of the 4th Dáil Politicians from County Dublin