Frank B. Gallagher (''pseudo. David Hogan'') (1893–1962) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

journalist,

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

and

Volunteer Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...

. Born in

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

, he was the son of James J. Gallagher, secretary to Dwyer & Co. Ltd. He was educated at Presentation Brothers College, Cork, Cork and for a short period at

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh) is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one ...

Journalist

As a young journalist, Gallagher was initially employed as London correspondent of

William O'Brien William O'Brien (2 October 1852 – 25 February 1928) was an Irish nationalist, journalist, agrarian agitator, social revolutionary, politician, party leader, newspaper publisher, author and Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons o ...

's ''

Cork Free Press The ''Cork Free Press'' (11 June 1910 – 9 December 1916) was a nationalist newspaper in Ireland, which circulated primarily in the Munster region surrounding its base in Cork, and was the newspaper of the dissident All-for-Ireland League p ...

'', subsequently its final editor, though himself a separatist, personally admired O'Brien.Maume, Patrick: ''The long Gestation, Irish Nationalist Life 1891-1918'', "Who's Who" p. 229, Gill & Macmillan (1999) The paper suffered closure in 1916 soon after the appointment of Lord Decies as Chief Press Censor for Ireland. Decies warned the press to be careful about what they published. Such warnings had little effect when dealing with such papers as the ''Cork Free Press''. It was suppressed after Gallagher accused the British authorities of lying about the conditions and situation of republican prisoners in the

Frongoch internment camp Frongoch internment camp at Frongoch in Merionethshire, Wales was a makeshift place of imprisonment during the First World War and the 1916 Easter Rising. History 1916 the camp housed German prisoners of war in a yellow distillery and cru ...

. Gallagher also contributed to the nationalist newspaper New Ireland.

Volunteer

Following the Easter Rising of 1916, he joined the IRA and collaborated with Erskine Childers to publish the ''

Irish Bulletin The ''Irish Bulletin'' was the official gazette of the government of the Irish Republic. It was produced by the Department of Propaganda during the Irish War of Independence. and its offices were originally located at No. 6 Harcourt Street, Du ...

'' alongside the Republican publicity staff and fought alongside

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 ...

during the Irish War of Independence. Gallagher and Robert Brennan were the significant contributors to the Irish Bulletin which was produced at this time. He wrote several short stories for de Valera under various pseudonyms. Gallagher served long stints in prison due to his

IRA Ira or IRA may refer to: *Ira (name), a Hebrew, Sanskrit, Russian or Finnish language personal name *Ira (surname), a rare Estonian and some other language family name *Iran, UNDP code IRA Law *Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, US, on status of ...

involvement and went on many hunger strikes (the shortest lasting three days, the longest 41). In the 1920s Gallagher and thousands of other Irish Republican prisoners went on hunger strike to protest their

internment Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...

without charges/trials and prison conditions. Gallagher led approximately 100 interned men on a successful 14 day hunger strike demanding

Prisoner of War A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

status or release (they were released). In his day to day journal while on

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke a feeling of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most ...

, Gallagher writes about his motivations on the first day of the strike (April 5, 1920) in

Mountjoy Prison Mountjoy Prison ( ga, Príosún Mhuinseo), founded as Mountjoy Gaol and nicknamed ''The Joy'', is a medium security men's prison located in Phibsborough in the centre of Dublin, Ireland. The current prison Governor is Edward Mullins. History ...

on (

Easter Monday Easter Monday refers to the day after Easter Sunday in either the Eastern or Western Christian traditions. It is a public holiday in some countries. It is the second day of Eastertide. In Western Christianity, it marks the second day of the Octa ...

): "There is a queer happiness in me. If it were not so quiet in this cell and in the whole jail, I would sing and call out in sheer gaiety of spirit...The fight is on, the fight that now can have but one ending...triumph and freedom, something done for liberty and the rights of all men."

Later life

In December 1931 Gallagher was prosecuted by an

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 ...

Military tribunal for

Seditious libel Sedition and seditious libel were criminal offences under English common law, and are still criminal offences in Canada. Sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that is deemed by the legal authority to tend toward insurrection ...

for publishing articles alleging Gardaí had mistreated the opponents (i.e. Anti-Treaty republicans) of the

government, this was facilitated by ''Amendment No. 17 of

Constitution of the Irish Free State The Constitution of the Irish Free State ( ga, Bunreacht Shaorstát Eireann) was adopted by Act of Dáil Éireann sitting as a constituent assembly on 25 October 1922. In accordance with Article 83 of the Constitution,Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christia ...

, in the 1920s Gallagher contributed to

An Phoblacht ''An Phoblacht'' (Irish pronunciation: ; en, "The Republic") is a formerly weekly, and currently monthly newspaper published by Sinn Féin in Ireland. From early 2018 onwards, ''An Phoblacht'' has moved to a magazine format while remaining an ...

, the weekly newspaper of the Republican movement. He was subsequently de Valera's director of publicity and editor of ''

The Irish Press ''The Irish Press'' (Irish: ''Scéala Éireann'') was an Irish national daily newspaper published by Irish Press plc between 5 September 1931 and 25 May 1995. Foundation The paper's first issue was published on the eve of the 1931 All-Ireland ...

'' in 1931 and was appointed deputy director of

Radio Éireann Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...

in 1936. He would later serve as the director of the Government Information Bureau from 1939 to 1948 and again through 1951–54. Gallagher has composed numerous short stories, biographies and historical pieces. From 1954 he worked at the

National Library of Ireland The National Library of Ireland (NLI; ga, Leabharlann Náisiúnta na hÉireann) is the Republic of Ireland's national library located in Dublin, in a building designed by Thomas Newenham Deane. The mission of the National Library of Ireland i ...

up until his death on 16 July 1962, at which time he was working on a biography of de Valera. Portions of it were published posthumously as ''The Anglo-Irish Treaty'' (1965). Gallagher's implacable hostility to the

Anglo-Irish Treaty The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty ( ga , An Conradh Angla-Éireannach), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the ...

inevitably colours his analysis; but despite his belief that de Valera was entirely in the right in the ensuing conflict, he makes impressive efforts to be fair to those who negotiated the Treaty, especially

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 ...

. He published ''Days of Fear'' (1928) and under the pseudonym 'David Hogan', ''The Four Glorious Years'' (1953).Cadogan (2006)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gallagher, Frank 1893 births 1962 deaths Irish journalists Irish newspaper editors Irish male short story writers Irish Republican Army (1919–1922) members Writers from Cork (city) People of the Irish Civil War (Anti-Treaty side) Irish prisoners of war RTÉ executives The Irish Press people Irish male novelists 20th-century Irish novelists 20th-century Irish male writers 20th-century Irish short story writers 20th-century journalists