Francis Joseph Carty (3 April 1897 – 10 September 1942) was a leader of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) in the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-mil ...

, and a long-serving Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála (TD).

Early life

He was born on 3 April 1897 in Clooncunny, County Sligo, the only son of John Carty and Ellen Carty (née Rice).

Prison escapes and attempts

Carty's first escape from confinement came on 26 June 1920, when he was rescued from

Sligo Gaol Sligo Gaol or Sligo Prison, () is a former prison located in Sligo, County Sligo, Ireland, which was open from 1823 to 1959. Construction The prison sits on an site and was designed to hold 200 inmates in a polygon-shaped building, with the Go ...

. On 15 February 1921, Carty next escaped from Derry Gaol. The rescue party was led by

Charles McGuinness Charles John 'Nomad' McGuinness (6 March 1893 – 7 December 1947) was an Irish adventurer supposed to have been involved with a myriad of acts of patriotism and nomadic impulses. Due to a habitual trait of embellishing his own life story mixed ...

. Carty was taken from the city in a coal boat, the Carricklee by the first mate Oskar Norrby, a Swede. Following recapture, Frank Carty was later involved in an incident in Glasgow, Scotland when on 4 May 1921, members of the IRA attempted to free him from a prison van in a failed escape attempt. One Inspector was killed by gunfire, and another was wounded. Following the incident, thirteen people were brought to trial, but were acquitted by the jury, which accepted their alibi.

Political career

Carty was first elected in the 1921 general election to the 2nd Dáil for the Sligo–Mayo East constituency, and was re-elected in eight successive general elections. In common with other TDs opposed to the Anglo-Irish Treaty, he did not take his seat in the 3rd Dáil or in the

4th Dáil Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

, returning to Leinster House only as a founder member of Fianna Fáil, when he followed Éamon de Valera into the

5th Dáil Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a contagious rash that ...

, taking his seat on 12 August 1927. He remained active in local politics, being a member of the Sligo County Council from 1928 to 1934 representing the Tubbercurry area.Crowley, John (2018), ''Atlas of the Irish Revolution'', New York University Press, New York, pg 609, ISBN 978-4798-3428-0 He was re-elected in August 1942, only a month before his death, after which his Dáil seat remained vacant until the 1943 general election. Self-educated, he was called to the bar in 1936. He married Kathleen McGowan in 1938; they had no children.

References

Sources

*Younger, Carlton (1968). "Ireland's Civil War", 354. *Coyle, Stephen (2008). "High Noon on High Street: The Story of a Daring Ambush by the IRA in Glasgow in 1921". . *James, Lawrence. "Warrior Race: A History of the British at War", Macmillan (2003), 354, , . {{DEFAULTSORT:Carty, Frank 1897 births 1942 deaths Fianna Fáil TDs Irish Republican Army (1919–1922) members Early Sinn Féin politicians Members of the 2nd Dáil Members of the 3rd Dáil Members of the 4th Dáil Members of the 5th Dáil Members of the 6th Dáil Members of the 7th Dáil Members of the 8th Dáil Members of the 9th Dáil Members of the 10th Dáil Politicians from County Sligo