Oliver James Flanagan (22 May 1920 – 26 April 1987) was an Irish

Fine Gael Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil É ...

politician who served as

Minister for Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

from 1976 to 1977 and as a Parliamentary Secretary from 1954 to 1957 and from 1975 to 1976. He 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 Parl ...

(TD) for the Laois-Offaly constituency from 1943 to 1987. He was elected to the Dáil fourteen times between 1943 and 1982, topping the poll on almost every occasion. He was Father of the Dáil from 1977 until his retirement in 1987, and remains one of the longest-serving members in the history of the Dáil. Flanagan was a

social conservative Social conservatism is a political philosophy and variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional power structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social instituti ...

, who famously claimed that "there was no sex in Ireland before television". An

anti-semite Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

and anti-Mason, he used his

maiden speech A maiden speech is the first speech given by a newly elected or appointed member of a legislature or parliament. Traditions surrounding maiden speeches vary from country to country. In many Westminster system governments, there is a convention th ...

in the Dáil, on 9 July 1943, to urge the government to emulate the Nazis and "rout the Jews out of this country... where the bees are there is honey, and where the Jews are there is money" and called for the banning of the

Freemasons Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

. Nonetheless, he was consistently popular in his own constituency, largely because of the attention he paid to individual voters' petitions and concerns. He has been described as "one of the cutest of

cute hoor Cute hoor and, by extension, "cute hoorism", is a cultural concept in Ireland where a certain level of corruption is forgiven - or sometimes even applauded - of politicians or businessmen. This phenomenon is sometimes attributed to postcolonialismb ...

s in the history of the Dáil".

Personal life

Flanagan was born in

Mountmellick Mountmellick or Mountmellic () is a town in the north of County Laois, Ireland. It lies on the N80 national secondary road and the R422 and R423 regional roads. Name ''Mountmellick'', sometimes spelt ''Montmellick'' or ''Montmellic'', is a ...

County Laois County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a med ...

, on 22 May 1920. He was educated at Mountmellick Boys National School and

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 ...

. He then worked as a carpenter and auctioneer. He was a member of the Catholic fraternal organisation the Knights of Saint Columbanus, and in 1978, was conferred a Knight of the Order of St. Gregory the Great by

Pope John Paul I Pope John Paul I ( la, Ioannes Paulus I}; it, Giovanni Paolo I; born Albino Luciani ; 17 October 1912 – 28 September 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City from 26 August 1978 to his death 33 days later. Hi ...

, given in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

on 20 September 1978.

Independent TD (1943–1954)

Flanagan first held political office in 1942, when he was elected as a

Council A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nati ...

lor to

Laois County Council Laois County Council ( ga, Comhairle Chontae Laoise) is the authority responsible for local government in County Laois, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing and co ...

, a position he would hold for almost forty-five years. He was first elected to

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland rea ...

as an Independent TD for the Laois–Offaly constituency at the 1943 general election — the third youngest person ever to have been elected to the Dáil at that time. He had stood for election on the Monetary Reform Party ticket, an anti-semitic and

Social credit Social credit is a distributive philosophy of political economy developed by C. H. Douglas. Douglas attributed economic downturns to discrepancies between the cost of goods and the compensation of the workers who made them. To combat what he ...

party confined to his own constituency which proposed reducing the supposed

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...

ish stranglehold on the financial system. During the campaign, Flanagan wrote to Fr

Denis Fahey Denis Fahey, C.S.Sp. (3 July 1883 – 21 January 1954) was an Irish Catholic priest. Fahey promoted the Catholic social teaching of Christ the King, and was involved in Irish politics through his organisation Maria Duce. Fahey firmly believed ...

: "Just a line letting you know we are going ahead with the election campaign in Laois-Offaly against the Jew-Masonic System which is imposed on us. The people are coming to us – but it's hard to get the people to understand how they are held down by the Jews and Masons, who control their very lives." He used his maiden speech in the Dáil to urge the government to use the Emergency Powers Acts to "rout the Jews out of this country": Nonetheless, he was re-elected to the Dáil at the 1944 general election, with more than twice as many votes as he had won the previous year. In 1947, he caused a controversy when he levelled accusations of corruption against members of the Fianna Fáil government, including

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 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 govern ...

Minister for Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry. Lists of current ministries of justice Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia) * Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Justi ...

Gerald Boland Gerald Boland (25 May 1885 – 5 January 1973) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Minister for Justice from 1939 to 1948 and 1951 to 1954, Minister for Lands from 1936 to 1939, Minister for Posts and Telegraphs from 1933 to 1936 ...

and Minister for Industry and Commerce

Seán Lemass Seán Francis Lemass (born John Francis Lemass; 15 July 1899 – 11 May 1971) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1959 to 1966. He also served as Tánaiste from 1957 to 1959, 1951 to 1954 ...

.Joseph Lee (1989). ''Ireland, 1912–1985: Politics and Society'', pp. 296–297. Cambridge:

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer. Cambridge University Pr ...

. A tribunal of inquiry comprising three judges investigated his allegations and found them to be untrue. Despite the judges' conclusion that Flanagan had lied to the tribunal, his vote increased by 45% at the 1948 general election. During a 1952 Dáil debate, after John A. Costello had said "I made no reference to an Adoption of Children Bill", Flanagan quipped "Deputy Flynn would be more qualified to do that".Dáil debates, Vol.129, col.273
John Flynn, who was not in the chamber at the time, interpreted this as an insulting innuendo, and later punched Flanagan in the Dáil restaurant.Report – Assault Committed by a Member on another Member in the Oireachtas Restaurant on 31 January 1952
Committee on Procedure and Privilege, 28 February 1952 The Dáil Committee on Procedure and Privilege condemned the conduct of both TDs.

Fine Gael TD (1952–1987)

Flanagan joined

in 1952. He served in government as a Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Agriculture from 1954 to 1957.Fine Gael (23 October 2005).
Kenny to pay tribute to Oliver J Flanagan
''. Retrieved on 24 January 2008. In 1957, Fine Gael returned to opposition and Flanagan became front bench Spokesperson for

Lands Land is the solid surface of the Earth that is not covered by water. Land, lands, The Land, or the Lands may also refer to: Entertainment and media Film * ''Land'' (1987 film), a British television film by Barry Collins * ''Land'' (2018 film), ...

. In 1975, he was named Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Local Government. When

Paddy Donegan Patrick Sarsfield Donegan (29 October 1923 – 26 November 2000) was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as Minister for Fisheries from February 1977 to July 1977, Minister for Lands from 1976 to 1977 and Minister for Defence from 1973 t ...

switched departments following the "thundering disgrace" controversy in 1976, Flanagan succeeded him as

, in

Liam Cosgrave Liam Cosgrave (13 April 1920 – 4 October 2017) was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as Taoiseach from 1973 to 1977, Leader of Fine Gael from 1965 to 1977, Leader of the Opposition from 1965 to 1973, Minister for External Affairs fro ...

's government. He served as Minister for six months, until Fine Gael lost power following the 1977 general election. He was a representative on the

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is the parliamentary arm of the Council of Europe, a 46-nation international organisation dedicated to upholding human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The Assembly is made up ...

from 1977 to 1987. Due to ill health, Flanagan did not contest the 1987 general election. His son,

Charles Flanagan Charlie Flanagan (born 1 November 1956) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Laois–Offaly constituency since 2020, and previously from 1987 to 2002, 2007 to 2016 and from 2016 to 2020 for the Laois con ...

, was elected to his seat. Oliver Flanagan died two months after the election.

References

Personal life

Independent TD (1943–1954)

Fine Gael TD (1952–1987)

See also

References