John Evan de Courcy Ireland (19 October 1911 – 4 April 2006) was an Irish
maritime historian
Maritime may refer to:
Geography
* Maritime Alps, a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps
* Maritime Region, a region in Togo
* Maritime Southeast Asia
* The Maritimes, the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Princ ...
and political activist.
Biography
de Courcy Ireland was born at
Lucknow
Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, son of
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 ...
major
de Courcy Ireland and Gabrielle (née Byron). His father, a
County Kildare
County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...
native from an Irish landed gentry family, was stationed at Lucknow at the time of his son's birth. de Courcy Ireland was educated at
Marlborough College
Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Independent school (United Kingdom), independent boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. Founded in 1843 for the sons of Church ...
,
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
and
Trinity College Dublin, where he was awarded a PhD in 1951. The title of his thesis was "The Influence of the Sea on Civilisation".
In 1949 de Courcy Ireland taught at St Patrick's Cathedral School in Dublin. He moved in 1951 to
Drogheda Grammar School and subsequently taught at Bandon Grammar School, Co Cork, and from 1968 at Kingstown Grammar School, Dún Laoghaire. This was amalgamated with Avoca School, Blackrock, to become Avoca Kingsown school, this later became
Newpark Comprehensive School, south of Dublin, where he stayed until 1986, when he left teaching at the age of 75.
He and his wife, Betty, who had been a nurse in Barcelona during the Spanish Civil War, were affiliated with The Irish Anti-Apartheid Movement and was president of the Ireland-China Friendship Society. A committed socialist, he was also affiliated or involved with the
Northern Ireland Labour Party, the
Irish Labour Party
The Labour Party ( ga, Páirtí an Lucht Oibre, literally "Party of the Working People") is a centre-left and social-democratic political party in the Republic of Ireland. Founded on 28 May 1912 in Clonmel, County Tipperary, by James Connolly, ...
, the
Communist Party of Ireland
The Communist Party of Ireland (CPI; ga, Páirtí Cumannach na hÉireann) is an all-Ireland Marxist–Leninist communist party, founded in 1933 and re-founded in 1970. It rarely contests elections and has never had electoral success. The part ...
, the
Democratic Socialist Party, the
Workers' Party,
Democratic Left and latterly the
Socialist Workers Party.
He was
James Larkin
James Larkin (28 January 1874 – 30 January 1947), sometimes known as Jim Larkin or Big Jim, was an Irish republican, socialist and trade union leader. He was one of the founders of the Irish Labour Party along with James Connolly and Willia ...
's election agent.
He was a founding member of the Irish
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
In the 1980s, he twice stood for election as a
Democratic Socialist Party candidate. He unsuccessfully contested the
Dún Laoghaire constituency at the
November 1982 general election, and was unsuccessful again at the
1984 European Parliament election
Events
January
* January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888.
* January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...
when he stood in the
Dublin constituency.
Family
In 1933 he married
Beatrice Haigh; they had one son and two daughters. After marrying the couple spent time in the
Aran Islands and
County Donegal
County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...
to master the Irish language. Betty was also a noted political campaigner.
Death
John de Courcy Ireland died in 2006, aged 94.
A plaque in his memory was erected in
Dalkey
Dalkey ( ; ) is an affluent suburb of Dublin, and a seaside resort southeast of the city, and the town of Dún Laoghaire, in the county of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown in the historic County Dublin, Ireland. It was founded as a Viking settlement ...
. It reads:
To the memory of Dr John DeCourcy Ireland 1911–2006
Maritime Historian, Radical Politician, Humanist,
Teacher and Linguist. Founder Member of C.N.D. in Ireland.
Honours received from Argentina, Britain, China,
France, Portugal, Spain, Yugoslavia, R.N.L.I.
A true friend of seafarers
Awards
John de Courcy Ireland had been a Council member of the
Maritime Institute of Ireland
The Maritime Institute of Ireland (MII) was founded in 1941, at a time when World War II was raging and many seamen were in great peril of either being severely injured or losing their lives. Ireland, being an island nation, was dependent on the se ...
, who operate the
National Maritime Museum of Ireland
The National Maritime Museum of Ireland ( ga, Músaem Mhuirí Náisiúnta na hÉireann) opened in 1978 in the former Mariners' Church in Moran Park, located between the seafront and the centre of Dún Laoghaire town, southeast of Dublin city. ...
, for 55 years and was its Honorary Research Officer. He was awarded the following:
* Portuguese
Order of Prince Henry
The Order of Prince Henry ( pt, Ordem do Infante Dom Henrique) is a Portuguese order of knighthood created on 2 June 1960, to commemorate the quincentenary of the death of the Portuguese prince Henry the Navigator, one of the main initiators of ...
* Order of the Yugoslav Flag
* Order of Spanish Naval Merit
* Order des Palmes Acadamiques of France
* Member of Marine Academies of France
* Member of Marine Academies of Portugal
*
Caird Medal of the British
National Maritime Museum
* Member of Instituto Browniano (Argentina)
* Centenary Medal of Almirante Brown (Argentina)
* Hon. Life Governor of the
Royal National Lifeboat Institution
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. It i ...
The Award he valued most was the plaque in the Peoples' Park,
Dún Laoghaire, as it was the only award that coupled his name with that of his wife, Betty. The Maritime Institute of Ireland, posthumously awarded him its gold medal; it was accepted by his daughter on his behalf.
Publications
* ''History of Dun Laoghaire Harbour'', John De Courcy Ireland – 2001,
* ''Lifeboats in Dublin Bay, a review of the service from 1803–1997'', John De Courcy Ireland – 1997,
* ''The Sea and the Easter Rising''. John De Courcy Ireland – 1996 (first version), /
* ''Ireland's maritime heritage'', John De Courcy Ireland – 1992,
* ''Ireland and the Irish in Maritime History'', John De Courcy Ireland – 1985,
* ''Wreck and Rescue on the East Coast of Ireland'', John De Courcy Ireland – 1983,
* ''Ireland's Sea Fisheries: A History'', John De Courcy Ireland – 1981,
External links
John de Courcy Ireland collection at UCDMaritime Historical Studies Centre, University of Hull FARref>
Bibliography*
ttp://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2006/0406/1142365531634.html "Tributes are paid to..." by Lorna Siggins, Irish Times, 6 April 2006
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:De Courcy Ireland, John
1911 births
2006 deaths
Alumni of the University of Oxford
Irish maritime historians
Irish non-fiction writers
Irish male non-fiction writers
Irish schoolteachers
Irish socialists
Irish Trotskyists
People educated at Marlborough College
Democratic Socialist Party (Ireland) politicians
Alumni of Trinity College Dublin
People from Dún Laoghaire
20th-century non-fiction writers
British people in colonial India