Robert James Rowlette (16 October 1873 – 13 October 1944) was an Irish medical doctor and an independent politician. He was later a member of

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann (, ; "Senate of Ireland") is the upper house of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (the lower house). It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its memb ...

Early life

He was born 16 October 1873 at Carncash,

County Sligo County Sligo ( , gle, Contae Shligigh) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the Border Region and is part of the province of Connacht. Sligo is the administrative capital and largest town in the county. Sligo County Council is the local ...

, second son of Matthew Rowlett, a farmer, and Kezia Rowlett (née Hunter). His own name always appears as 'Rowlette'. Rowlette attended

Sligo Grammar School Sligo Grammar School is a private fee-paying co-educational boarding school located on The Mall in Sligo. The school has approximately 450 students of which approximately 100 are boarders. It offers the traditional Junior Certificate and Leavin ...

, and entered

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

(TCD) in 1891, graduating in 1895 as senior moderator in ethics and logic. In 1896–97, he was president of the University Philosophical Society and was vice-president of the College Historical Society whose gold medal for oratory he won in 1899. Also in 1899, he graduated MD, having studied medicine since 1893 in parallel with his arts courses, already receiving his MB and B.Ch. in 1898."Death of Dr. R.J. Rowlette", ''The Irish Times'', 14 October 1944, p 1. Rowlette's varied academic record anticipated a subsequent career in medicine and politics, where he moved between one discipline and the other with apparent ease.

Career

He was, at various times, president of the

Royal College of Physicians of Ireland The Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI), ( ga, Coláiste Ríoga Lianna na hÉireann) is an Irish professional body dedicated to improving the practice of general medicine and related medical specialities, chiefly through the accredit ...

and of the Royal Irish Academy of Medicine and the editor of the ''Journal'' of the

Irish Medical Organisation The Irish Medical Organisation (Irish: ''Ceardchumann Dhochtúirí na hÉireann'' ) is a professional association for doctors in Ireland, and is also a trade union representing doctors in negotiations with the Irish government. The IMO was form ...

. As well as holding several hospital appointments (including

Mercer's Hospital Mercer's Hospital ( ga, Ospidéal Mercer) was a hospital in Dublin, Ireland. It was converted into a clinical centre and medical library for the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland in 1991.Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) is a medical professional and educational institution, which is also known as RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ireland's first private university. It was established in 1784 ...

Military and sporting activities

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 ...

he served in the

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. The RAMC, the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, the Royal Army Dental Corps a ...

, with the rank of

Lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

on his discharge. He was

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

while serving in France. His athletic prowess at TCD, particularly in track events, long-distance running, and membership of the Dublin University Harriers, translated into a passionate life interest. He had a long involvement in long distance athletics, both as a competitor in his younger years and later in the administration of the Irish Amateur Athletics Association and, after 1922, the National Athletic and Cycling Association of Ireland. He was Honorary Physician to the British Olympic team at the

1920 Summer Olympics The 1920 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1920; nl, Olympische Zomerspelen van 1920; german: Olympische Sommerspiele 1920), officially known as the Games of the VII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIe olympiade; nl, Spelen van ...

in Antwerp, and to the Irish teams at the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1924), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIIe olympiade) and also known as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The op ...

in Paris and the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad ( nl, Spelen van de IXe Olympiade) and commonly known as Amsterdam 1928, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from ...

in Amsterdam, the first two occasions on which an independent Irish team competed.

Political career

Rowlette was elected unopposed to the

8th Dáil 8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. In mathematics 8 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2. * a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of t ...

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) for the

Dublin University The University of Dublin ( ga, Ollscoil Átha Cliath), corporately designated the Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin, is a university located in Dublin, Ireland. It is the degree-awarding body for Trinity College Dubl ...

constituency at a by-election on 13 October 1933, following the death of sitting TD James Craig. He was the first TD elected to the Dáil without having to take the

Oath of Allegiance An oath of allegiance is an oath whereby a subject or citizen acknowledges a duty of allegiance and swears loyalty to a monarch or a country. In modern republics, oaths are sworn to the country in general, or to the country's constitution. For ...

to the crown, abolished with effect from the previous May. In 1938, the university constituencies were transferred to

, and Rowlette was then elected for three successive terms, to the 2nd,

3rd Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (d ...

and 4th Seanads. He failed to gain re-election to the Seanad in 1944, finishing as the runner-up by a margin of 5 votes out of a total valid poll of 2,297."Few Surprises in Senate elections", ''The Irish Times'', 2 August 1944, p 1.

Later life and death

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he took charge of air-raid casualty preparations in a liaison scheme between Mercer's and St Bricin's military hospital. He died on 13 October 1944 at his home, 55

Fitzwilliam Square Fitzwilliam Square ( ga, Cearnóg Mhic Liam) is a Georgian garden square in the south of central Dublin, Ireland. It was the last of the five Georgian squares in Dublin to be built, and is the smallest. The middle of the square is composed of a ...

, Dublin, survived by his widow Gladys Muriel, and by one son, He was buried in Enniskerry cemetery,

County Wicklow County Wicklow ( ; ga, Contae Chill Mhantáin ) is a county in Ireland. The last of the traditional 32 counties, having been formed as late as 1606, it is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is bordered by t ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rowlette, Robert 1873 births 1944 deaths Independent TDs Members of the 8th Dáil Members of the 2nd Seanad Members of the 3rd Seanad Members of the 4th Seanad Alumni of Trinity College Dublin British Army personnel of World War I Royal Army Medical Corps officers 20th-century Irish medical doctors Teachtaí Dála for Dublin University Members of Seanad Éireann for Dublin University Independent members of Seanad Éireann People educated at Sligo Grammar School Irish military doctors Physicians of the Mercer's Hospital Presidents of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland