Sinéad de Valera (; 3 June 1878 – 7 January 1975) was an Irish author of a number of children's books in both

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

and English. She was married to

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 o ...

and third

president of Ireland The president of Ireland ( ga, Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Ireland and the supreme commander of the Irish Defence Forces. The president holds office for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms.Constitu ...

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 ...

Background

She was born Jane O'Flanagan in Balbriggan. Her father, Laurence, was a carpenter and was a native of

Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional ce ...

who moved to Balbriggan and married a local girl, Margaret Byrne. The couple emigrated to

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, where their daughter Mary was born in 1871. The family returned to Balbriggan in 1873, and Sinéad was born there in 1878. She trained as a teacher and worked first in

Edenderry Edenderry (; ) is a town in east County Offaly, Ireland. It is near the borders with Counties Kildare, Meath and Westmeath. The Grand Canal runs along the south of Edenderry, through the Bog of Allen, and there is a short spur to the town ...

, before taking up a post at a national school in Dorset Street,

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 c ...

in around 1901. The 1901 census records her as 'Jane Flanagan', living with her parents and three siblings at 6 Richmond Cottages in Dublin.

Marriage and children

In her spare time, she taught Irish at the Leinster College of the

Gaelic League (; historically known in English as the Gaelic League) is a social and cultural organisation which promotes the Irish language in Ireland and worldwide. The organisation was founded in 1893 with Douglas Hyde as its first president, when it emer ...

in Parnell Square. One of her Irish students was

, then a teacher of mathematics. On 8 January 1910, they were married. Together they had five sons, Vivion, Éamon, Brian, Rúaidhrí and Terence (Terry), and two daughters, Máirín and Emer. On 9 February 1936, Brian, then aged twenty, was killed in a riding accident in the

Phoenix Park The Phoenix Park ( ga, Páirc an Fhionnuisce) is a large urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its perimeter wall encloses of recreational space. It includes large areas of grassland and tre ...

. Due to a combination of his imprisonment, political activities, and fundraising tours of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, the family saw relatively little of Éamon de Valera in the 1916 to 1923 period. He was also away from home frequently during the early years of his political career. Sinéad de Valera played little or no public role during her husband's fifty years in public life.

Literary output

Sinéad de Valera wrote thirty-one books for children, in both English and Irish. Among her works were plays such as ''Cluichidhe na Gaedhilge'' (1935) and story collections such as ''The Emerald Ring and Other Irish Fairy Stories'' (1951), ''The Stolen Child and Other Stories'' (1961), ''The Four-leafed Shamrock'' (1964) and ''The Miser's Gold'' (1970).

Spouse of president

Her husband was inaugurated as

President of Ireland The president of Ireland ( ga, Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Ireland and the supreme commander of the Irish Defence Forces. The president holds office for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms.Constitu ...

on 25 June 1959, two days after retiring as

. They immediately took up residence at

Áras an Uachtaráin (; "Residence of the President"), formerly the Viceregal Lodge, is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of Ireland. It is located off Chesterfield Avenue in the Phoenix Park in Dublin. The building design was credite ...

. She remained unconvinced about her new role but conceded that "she should be happy if only for er husband’ssake".De Valera Rule 1932-75, pg. 375, by David McCullagh; Gill Books 2018

Death

Sinéad de Valera died on 7 January 1975, at the age of 96, the day before what would have been the de Valeras' sixty-fifth wedding anniversary. Éamon de Valera died just under eight months later, on 29 August 1975, aged 92. The couple are buried together, along with their son Brian, at

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 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:De Valera, Sinead 1878 births 1975 deaths De Valera family Irish activists Irish educators Irish folklorists Burials at Glasnevin Cemetery People from Balbriggan Spouses of presidents of Ireland Spouses and partners of Taoisigh