Séan Francis Gibbons (31 May 1883 – 19 April 1952) was an Irish politician who sat as

Cumann na nGaedheal Cumann na nGaedheal (; "Society of the Gaels") was a political party in the Irish Free State, which formed the government from 1923 to 1932. In 1933 it merged with smaller groups to form the Fine Gael party. Origins In 1922 the pro-Treaty G ...

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) in the 1920s and as a

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian- ...

TD in the 1930s. He later became a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, and was Cathaoirleach (chairperson) of the Seanad for five years. Gibbons was 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 read ...

on his first attempt, as a Cumann na nGaedheal candidate in the Carlow–Kilkenny constituency at the 1923 general election. However, he was not an active participant in proceedings because his health was poor, requiring him to leave the country at one point. He left Cumann na nGaedhael to join the National Party in March 1924, led by Joseph McGrath, in the aftermath of the Army Mutiny.See the exchange between O'Higgins,

Gorey Gorey () is a market town in north County Wexford, Ireland. It is beside the main M11 Dublin to Wexford road. The town is also connected to the railway network along the same route. Local newspapers include the ''Gorey Guardian''. As a growi ...

and Gibbons a
Dáil Éireann Official Report - Volume 9 - 22 October 1924
He and eight other National Party TDs resigned their seats in the

4th Dáil Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

on 30 October 1924, only 14 months after his election. The

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

was held on 11 March 1925 and won by Cumann na nGaedheal's Thomas Bolger. Gibbons joined Fianna Fáil and stood for them as a candidate in Carlow–Kilkenny at the 1932 general election, winning one of his party's fifteen new seats in the

7th Dáil 7 (seven) is the natural number following 6 and preceding 8. It is the only prime number preceding a cube. As an early prime number in the series of positive integers, the number seven has greatly symbolic associations in religion, mythology, s ...

. He was returned at the 1933 general election, but after the constituency was divided under the Electoral (Revision of Constituencies) Act 1935, he lost his seat at the 1937 general election in the new

Kilkenny Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilken ...

constituency. He then stood as a Fianna Fáil candidate for election to Seanad Éireann on the Agricultural Panel, winning a seat in the

2nd Seanad This is a list of the members of the 2nd Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Ireland. These Senators were elected or appointed in March 1938 and served until the close of poll for the 3rd Seanad in July 1938. ...

and becoming Cathaoirleach. He remained as Cathoirleach in the

3rd Seanad This is a list of the members of the 3rd Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. These Senate, Senators were elected or appointed in 1938, after the 1938 Irish general election, 1938 ge ...

, holding the office until 1944, when he was re-elected to the

4th Seanad This is a list of the members of the 4th Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Ireland. These Senators were elected or appointed in 1943, after the 1943 general election and served until the close of poll for th ...

. He did not sit in the

5th Seanad This is a list of the members of the 5th Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Ireland. These Senators were elected or appointed in 1944, after the 1944 general election and served until the close of poll for the 6 ...

but was re-elected by the Agricultural Panel to the

6th Seanad This is a list of the members of the 6th Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. These Senate, Senators were elected or appointed in 1948, after the 1948 Irish general election, 1948 gene ...

, sitting from 1948 to 1951. He died on 19 April 1952, aged 68. Five years later, his nephew Jim Gibbons was elected as a Fianna Fáil TD in the restored Carlow–Kilkenny constituency, where Jim's son

Martin Gibbons Martin Gibbons (born 1 March 1953) is a former Irish politician who served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Carlow–Kilkenny constituency from 1987 to 1989. Gibbons was one of 14 Progressive Democrat TDs elected to the 25th Dáil following the ...

was a Progressive Democrat TD from 1987 to 1989. Another of Jim's sons,

Jim Gibbons Jnr James Gibbons (born 26 April 1954) is an Irish former Progressive Democrats politician who served as a member of Seanad Éireann. The son of former Fianna Fáil TD and cabinet minister Jim Gibbons Snr, Gibbons stood at the 1997 general electio ...

was a Progressive Democrat Senator.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gibbons, Sean 1883 births 1952 deaths Cumann na nGaedheal TDs Fianna Fáil TDs Cathaoirligh of Seanad Éireann Members of the 4th Dáil Members of the 7th Dáil Members of the 8th Dáil Members of the 2nd Seanad Members of the 3rd Seanad Members of the 4th Seanad Members of the 6th Seanad Fianna Fáil senators

See also

References