Ida Mary Costello (; 14 November 1891 – 20 April 1956) was the wife of John A. Costello, who served as

Taoiseach The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the o ...

on two occasions between 1948 and 1957.

Biography

Ida Mary O'Malley was born in

Dublin 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 c ...

, the eldest of 13 children, seven boys and six girls. Her father, Dr. David O'Malley, was a very popular medical officer from

Glenamaddy Glenamaddy () is a small town in County Galway, Ireland. It lies at the crossroads where the R362 and R364 regional roads meet. Glenamaddy became a musical focal point in Connacht during the 1960s during the showband era. To the east of the ...

, County Galway. The O'Malley's were Redmondite Nationalists and at least four of her brothers joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, two of them being killed. She was educated at the Dominican School in Eccles Street, Dublin, and spent the academic year 1907–1908 studying in

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

on an early exchange programme. After taking a degree at

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 33,284 student ...

, she later taught at her alma mater in Eccles Street. She met John A. Costello at a dance in the

Gresham Hotel Hotel Riu Plaza The Gresham Dublin, formerly The Gresham Hotel, is a historic four-star hotel on O'Connell Street in Dublin, Ireland. It is a Dublin institution and landmark building which was refurbished in the early 2000s. History Hotel foun ...

in 1912, when he was still a law student. A relationship developed over the next seven years and they were married on 31 July 1919 at the Catholic University Church in St. Stephen's Green. The Costello's spent the first four years of their marriage living in a flat at 22 Ely Place. They were living there when their first child, Wilfrid, was born in 1921. He suffered a cerebral haemorrhage during his birth which left him with a mild mental disability. He later developed epilepsy as a teenager. The Costellos eldest daughter, Grace, was born in 1922. She followed her father into law and married the solicitor and economist Alexis FitzGerald. In August 1923, the growing family moved to Herbert Park. A second son, Declan, was born in 1926. As well as following his father into law, he also served as a

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) before being made President of the High Court. Eavan Costello, the couples' second and youngest daughter, was born in 1927. She completed a history degree before moving to

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 ...

. The youngest of the family, John, was born in 1931. He later became an architect. John A. Costello was elected as a TD for Dublin County in 1933. He was elected

in 1948, as head of the first inter-party government in Ireland. He served as head of government until 1951, however, he was re-elected for a second term in 1954. During her time as wife to the Taoiseach she kept a low profile and enjoyed a background role in her husbands' political career. She was at her husband's side in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

in 1948, when he announced that 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 ...

would be leaving the

British Commonwealth The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...

and declaring itself a republic. Ida Costello suffered from high blood pressure later in her adult life and in 1956 was diagnosed with chronic bacterial endocarditis, an inflammation of the lining of the heart. She was admitted to St. Vincent's Private Nursing Home in

Leeson Street __NOTOC__ Leeson Street (; ) is a thoroughfare near central Dublin, Ireland. Location The street is divided into two parts by the Grand Canal: Lower Leeson Street, in Dublin 2 is to the north of the canal, linking to St Stephen's Green, with ...

, but died from heart failure on 20 April 1956, at the age of 64.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Costello, Ida Mary 1891 births 1956 deaths Spouses and partners of Taoisigh People from Dublin (city) Alumni of University College Dublin Irish schoolteachers