Madeleine ffrench-Mullen (30 December 1880 – 26 May 1944) was an Irish revolutionary and labour activist who took part in the
Easter Rising in Dublin in 1916.
Ffrench-Mullen was a member of the radical nationalist women's organisation . In 1913 during the
Dublin Lock-out
The Dublin lock-out was a major industrial dispute between approximately 20,000 workers and 300 employers that took place in Ireland's capital and largest city, Dublin. The dispute, lasting from 26 August 1913 to 18 January 1914, is often vi ...
, she worked in the soup kitchen in
Liberty Hall
Liberty Hall ( ga, Halla na Saoirse), in Dublin, Ireland, is the headquarters of the Services, Industrial, Professional, and Technical Union (SIPTU). Designed by Desmond Rea O'Kelly, it was completed in 1965. It was for a time the tallest b ...
. She subsequently joined the
Irish Citizen Army
The Irish Citizen Army (), or ICA, was a small paramilitary group of trained trade union volunteers from the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union (ITGWU) established in Dublin for the defence of workers' demonstrations from the Dublin M ...
(ICA).
[Deirdre Bryan, "Mullen, Madeleine ffrench-", ''Dictionary of Irish Biography''.] In the Easter Rising she worked in a first-aid tent. She was arrested after the Rising but released the following month.
She joined
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur G ...
and was elected to Rathmines District Council in 1920.
Early life
Madeleine ffrench-Mullen was born on 30 December 1880 in Malta, where her father, St Lawrence ffrench-Mullen, a Royal Navy surgeon, was stationed. She had two brothers, St Lawrence Patrick Joseph (1890–1891) and Douglas (1893–1943).
Women Rights and the Suffrage Movement
Ffrench-Mullen's interest in politics started young, Her father was a committed Parnellite and their Dundrum home was a campaign headquarters. She was a radical feminist and republican during her life. Like many other of the time she regarded it as a woman's right to vote. She joined the
suffrage movement, and met women with a similar worldview and values. The women's suffrage movement was included in the Movements of Extremists reports of the
Dublin Metropolitan Police
The Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP) was the police force of Dublin, Ireland, from 1836 to 1925, when it was amalgamated into the new Garda Síochána.
History
19th century
The Dublin city police had been subject to major reforms in 1786 and ...
.
Ffrench-Mullen went on to join
Inghinidhe na hÉireann
Inghinidhe na hÉireann (; "Daughters of Ireland") was a radical Irish nationalist women's organisation led and founded by Maud Gonne from 1900 to 1914, when it merged with the new Cumann na mBan.
Patriotic Children's Treat
The Inghinidhe origi ...
, a radical nationalist women's group founded by
Maud Gonne
Maud Gonne MacBride ( ga, Maud Nic Ghoinn Bean Mhic Giolla Bhríghde; 21 December 1866 – 27 April 1953) was an English-born Irish republican revolutionary, suffragette and actress. Of Anglo-Irish descent, she was won over to Irish nationalism ...
in 1900. The organisation developed into
Cumann na mBan
Cumann na mBan (; literally "The Women's Council" but calling themselves The Irishwomen's Council in English), abbreviated C na mB, is an Irish republican women's paramilitary organisation formed in Dublin on 2 April 1914, merging with and d ...
in 1913. Suffragist values were central to
Cumann na mBan
Cumann na mBan (; literally "The Women's Council" but calling themselves The Irishwomen's Council in English), abbreviated C na mB, is an Irish republican women's paramilitary organisation formed in Dublin on 2 April 1914, merging with and d ...
's goal of standing side-by-side with men in the fight for the Irish Republic. Some members saw this as women regaining the rights that had belonged to them in pre-invasion Gaelic civilisation. Ffrench-Mullen was on the socialist wing of the moment, holding to the ideals of universal social equality of the syndicalist
James Connolly
James Connolly ( ga, Séamas Ó Conghaile; 5 June 1868 – 12 May 1916) was an Irish republican, socialist and trade union leader. Born to Irish parents in the Cowgate area of Edinburgh, Scotland, Connolly left school for working life at the a ...
and the
Irish Citizen Army
The Irish Citizen Army (), or ICA, was a small paramilitary group of trained trade union volunteers from the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union (ITGWU) established in Dublin for the defence of workers' demonstrations from the Dublin M ...
.
1916 Easter Rising
During the 1916
Easter Rising, ffrench-Mullen served as a lieutenant in the
Irish Citizen Army
The Irish Citizen Army (), or ICA, was a small paramilitary group of trained trade union volunteers from the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union (ITGWU) established in Dublin for the defence of workers' demonstrations from the Dublin M ...
. She saw action with the
St Stephen's Green
St Stephen's Green () is a garden square and public park located in the city centre of Dublin, Ireland. The current landscape of the park was designed by William Sheppard. It was officially re-opened to the public on Tuesday, 27 July 1880 by ...
and
Royal College of Surgeons
The Royal College of Surgeons is an ancient college (a form of corporation) established in England to regulate the activity of surgeons. Derivative organisations survive in many present and former members of the Commonwealth. These organisations a ...
garrison.
In St Stephen's Green she was in command of the 15 Citizen Army women who set up a medical station and field kitchen.
While occupying St Stephen's Green, she and her comrades came under sustained heavy fire from the
Shellbourne Hotel and buildings on the north side of the Green.
After the surrender of the College of Surgeons garrison ffrench-Mullen was one of the 77 women who had fought in the Rising who were imprisoned, among them her close friend
Kathleen Lynn
Kathleen Florence Lynn (28 January 1874 – 14 September 1955) was an Irish Sinn Féin politician, activist and medical doctor.
Lynn was so greatly affected by the poverty and disease among the poor in the west of Ireland that, at 16, she decid ...
. While in captivity ffrench Mullen was moved three times, spending time in
Richmond Barracks
Richmond Barracks was a British Army barracks in Inchicore, Dublin, Ireland. It is now a cultural centre.
History
The barracks, which were named after Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond, were completed in 1810 and first occupied by the Briti ...
,
Kilmainham Gaol
Kilmainham Gaol ( ga, Príosún Chill Mhaighneann) is a former prison in Kilmainham, Dublin, Ireland. It is now a museum run by the Office of Public Works, an agency of the Government of Ireland. Many Irish revolutionaries, including the lead ...
and
Mountjoy Jail
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
...
. She was released on 5 June 1916.
Ffrench-Mullen and Kathleen Lynn
Ffrench-Mullen met Kathleen Lynn through Inghinidhe na h-Éireann.
In 1915, she moved into Lynn's home in
Belgrave Road, Rathmines,
where they lived together for 30 years, until ffrench-Mullen's death in 1944.
Ffrench-Mullen recorded in her prison diary in 1916 that she could face prison without fear once Lynn (whom she referred to as "the Doctor") and she were together.
Katherine Lynch of the Women's Studies Centre 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 ...
describes them as partners, calling them part of a network of lesbians living in Dublin—which included
Helena Molony
Helena Mary Molony (15 January 1883 – 29 January 1967) was a prominent Irish republican, feminist and labour activist. She fought in the 1916 Easter Rising and later became the second woman president of the Irish Trades Union Congress.
Early ...
,
Louie Bennett
Louie Bennett (Louisa Elizabeth Bennett; 1870 – 1956) was an Irish suffragette, trade unionist, journalist and writer. Born and raised in Dublin, she established the Irish Women's Suffrage Federation in 1911. She was a joint editor and contr ...
and
Elizabeth O'Farrell—who met through the suffrage movement and later became involved with the national and trade union movement.
Legacy: St Ultan's
Madeleine ffrench-Mullen and Kathleen Lynn established
Saint Ultan's Children's Hospital,
also known as ''Teach Ultan'', was a female-run hospital for infants at 37 Charlemont Street, Dublin in 1919. The hospital focused on children's health and wellbeing, an area that was perceived at the time as women's concern. In the aftermath of
WW1
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 ...
many health problems had arisen including a rise in venereal diseases such as
syphilis, carried from soldiers returning home from war. Many of Ireland's infants of the time suffered from
congenital syphilis
Congenital syphilis is syphilis present ''in utero'' and at birth, and occurs when a child is born to a mother with syphilis. Untreated early syphilis infections results in a high risk of poor pregnancy outcomes, including saddle nose, lower extr ...
(inherited disease from mother at birth) this was a driving factor in the opening of St Ultan's hospital.
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...
was endemic in Ireland during its time as a British colony. Against steadfast opposition by the State and the Catholic Church, Lynn and ffrench Mullen established a vaccination project, vaccinating thousands of impoverished children who would certainly have succumbed to TB without their vaccines. Their success led to the foundation of Ireland's
BCG programme, which has vaccinated all babies since the 1950s.
Death
Madeleine ffrench-Mullen died in a Dublin nursing home on 26 May 1944, aged 63.
She is interred with her parents, St Lawrence (1846–1895) and Margaret (1857–1912), as well as her younger brothers (whom she outlived), St Lawrence Patrick Joseph (1890–1891) and Douglas (1893–1943), in the ffrench-Mullen family plot in
Glasnevin Cemetery
Glasnevin Cemetery ( ga, Reilig Ghlas Naíon) is a large cemetery in Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland which opened in 1832. It holds the graves and memorials of several notable figures, and has a museum.
Location
The cemetery is located in Glasne ...
.
Her funeral took place on the same day as the
1944 General Election.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ffrench-Mullen, Madeleine
1880 births
1944 deaths
Early Sinn Féin politicians
Irish Citizen Army members
Irish revolutionaries
Irish LGBT politicians
People of the Easter Rising
Irish socialist feminists
Women in war in Ireland
People from Dundrum, Dublin
Cumann na mBan members
20th-century Irish LGBT people