John Joseph Hearne (; 189329 March 1969) was an Irish legal scholar and diplomat who was referred to as "Ireland's

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

" for his role in the drafting of the 1937

Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democracy, is broadly within the traditio ...

Biography

John Hearne was the youngest son of Alderman Richard Hearne, a member of the

Irish Parliamentary Party The Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP; commonly called the Irish Party or the Home Rule Party) was formed in 1874 by Isaac Butt, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish nationa ...

, who twice served as

Mayor of Waterford The Kings of Viking Waterford (914–1170) The Vikings, who had created a longphort near Waterford in 853, finally settled and created a town in 914. These were led by Ottir Iarla. Ragnall ua Ímair then installed himself over them in 917, ho ...

, and Alice Mary Hearne (née Power). His older brother Canon Maurice Hearne served as

parish priest A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

Cahir Cahir (; ) is a town in County Tipperary in Ireland. It is also a civil parish in the barony of Iffa and Offa West. Location and access For much of the twentieth century, Cahir stood at an intersection of two busy national roadways: the Dubl ...

. Hearne attended Waterpark College (Christian Brothers). He went to train for the priesthood at St. John's College, Waterford transferring in 1911 to

Maynooth College St Patrick's Pontifical University, Maynooth ( ga, Coláiste Naoimh Phádraig, Maigh Nuad), is the "National Seminary for Ireland" (a Roman Catholic college), and a pontifical university, located in the town of Maynooth, from Dublin, Ireland. ...

after a year. Here he completed a BA degree in Arts and Philosophy from

National University of Ireland The National University of Ireland (NUI) ( ga, Ollscoil na hÉireann) is a federal university system of ''constituent universities'' (previously called '' constituent colleges'') and ''recognised colleges'' set up under the Irish Universiti ...

, enrolling in a Theology Degree which he didn't complete. He left in 1916 having decided not to become a priest, and studied for the degree of barrister at law at the

King's Inns The Honorable Society of King's Inns ( ir, Cumann Onórach Óstaí an Rí) is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environmen ...

. He also studied law 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 collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...

being awarded an LLB Degree. In 1937, during the government of

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 governm ...

, he was working as a legal expert in the Department of External Affairs when de Valera called on him to assist in the writing of the new constitution, which would replace the 1922

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,Maurice Moynihan Maurice Gerard Moynihan, (14 December 1902 – 21 August 1999) was an Irish economist and civil servant who served as the Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland from 1960 to 1969. He was also a co-drafter of the 1937 Constitution of Ireland, S ...

, Hearne drew up the first draft of the constitution; according to Moynihan, Hearne had been instrumental in convincing de Valera that a new constitution was necessary in the first place. The exact role of Hearne is not evident from the remaining documents; it is not clear who actually wrote the first draft, and according to the Irish historian

John Joseph Lee John Joseph Lee (born 9 July 1942) (commonly known as J.J. Lee), is an Irish historian and former senator. He has held the chairs of Modern History in University College Cork and Professor of History and Glucksman Professor for Irish Studies an ...

, "Much remains to be uncovered about the planning and drafting of the constitution, including not least the roles of John Hearne, the legal adviser to External Affairs, and of Maurice Moynihan." After his legal career, Hearne filled a number of diplomatic positions. In 1939, he was appointed High Commissioner to Canada. In March 1950, he became the first Irish ambassador to the United States, and was welcomed in Boston on 13 May 1950. He began the tradition of presenting a bowl of shamrock to the White House on St Patrick's Day. In 1954, he gave the commencement address at

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...

, and on that occasion was awarded with an honorary degree. In 1960, after retiring from the diplomatic service, he became a legislative consultant to

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...

and

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

, which had recently acquired independence, albeit within the Commonwealth. He died 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 cen ...

in 1969. On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Irish constitution, Hearne's birthplace (8 William Street in Waterford) was marked with a tribute. A bust of Hearne by Elizabeth O'Kane was unveiled in Waterford on 3 July 2017 on the 80th anniversary of the constitution. There is a replica in the Irish Embassy, Washington D.C. and a replica stands in the garden of

Iveagh House Iveagh House is a Georgian house which now contains the headquarters of the Department of Foreign Affairs in Dublin, Ireland. It is also sometimes used colloquially as a metonym referring to the department itself. Iveagh House was originally ...

, headquarters of the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. A biography of Hearne, "John Hearne: Architect of the 1937 Constitution of Ireland" by Eugene Broderick was published in 2017.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hearne, John 1893 births 1969 deaths 20th-century Irish people Irish legal scholars Alumni of the National University of Ireland Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth Alumni of University College Dublin High Commissioners of Ireland to Canada Ambassadors of Ireland to the United States Irish diplomats People educated at Waterpark College Alumni of King's Inns