Joseph O'Sullivan (25 January 1897 – 10 August 1922), along with fellow

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various Resistance movement, resistance organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dominantly Catholic and dedicated to anti-imperiali ...

(IRA) (London Battalion) volunteer

Reginald Dunne Reginald William Dunne (June 1898 – 10 August 1922) was Battalion Commandant of the London Battalion, IRA and one of two men hanged for the murder of Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson. Dunne, the only child of Robert and Mary Dunne, was born (as ...

, shot dead

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

Sir Henry Wilson Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Sir Henry Hughes Wilson, 1st Baronet, (5 May 1864 – 22 June 1922) was one of the most senior British Army staff officers of the First World War and was briefly an Unionism in Ireland, Irish unio ...

outside Wilson's home at 36 Eaton Place,

Belgravia Belgravia () is a district in Central London, covering parts of the areas of the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Belgravia was known as the 'Five Fields' during the Tudor Period, and became a dangerous pla ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

on 22 June 1922. Many

Irish Republicans Irish republicanism () is the political movement for an Irish republic, void of any British rule. Throughout its centuries of existence, it has encompassed various tactics and identities, simultaneously elective and militant and has been both w ...

believed that this killing precipitated the start of the

Irish Civil War The Irish Civil War (; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United Kingdom but within the British Emp ...

(28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923). Convicted by a jury, he was sentenced to death by Mr Justice Shearman. Irish leader

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 an American-born Irish statesman and political leader. He served as the 3rd President of Ire ...

made a statement on the possible reason for the killing of Wilson: "I do not know who they were that shot Sir Henry Wilson, or why they shot him...I know that life has been made a hell for the Nationalist minority in Belfast and its neighborhood for the past couple of years". (See:

The Troubles in Ulster (1920–1922) The Troubles in Ulster of the 1920s was a period of conflict in the Irish province of Ulster, from June 1920 until June 1922, during and after the Irish War of Independence and the partition of Ireland (and specifically of Ulster). In Ulster, ...

). Despite a petition of 45,000 signatures, and a plea for clemency from many prominent figures at the time, including playwright

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 188 ...

, O'Sullivan and Dunne were hanged for the murder on 10 August 1922 at

Wandsworth Prison HM Prison Wandsworth is a Prison security categories in the United Kingdom, Category B men's prison at Wandsworth in the London Borough of Wandsworth, South West (London sub region), South West London, England. It is operated by His Majesty's Pri ...

. The event provided the inspiration for the film ''

Odd Man Out ''Odd Man Out'' is a 1947 British film noir directed by Carol Reed, and starring James Mason, Robert Newton, Cyril Cusack, and Kathleen Ryan. Set in Belfast, Northern Ireland, it follows a wounded Nationalist leader who attempts to evade pol ...

''. O'Sullivan's father, John, was originally from

Bantry Bantry () is a town in the civil parish of Kilmocomoge in the barony of Bantry on the southwest coast of County Cork, Ireland. It lies in West Cork at the head of Bantry Bay, a deep-water gulf extending for to the west. The Beara Peninsula i ...

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

, and had moved to London as a young man where he eventually became a successful tailor. O'Sullivan's mother, Mary Ann O'Sullivan (née Murphy), was born in

Inniscarra Inniscarra () is a civil parish in the Barony (Ireland), barony of Muskerry East, County Cork, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located about 15km west of Cork (city), Cork city. The local GAA club is Inniscarra GAA and Dripsey GAA. Innisca ...

. O'Sullivan was the youngest of thirteen children, all born in London, although only eleven survived to adulthood. As a boy he attended

St Edmund's College, Ware St Edmund's College is a coeducational private day and boarding school in the British public school tradition, set in in Ware, Hertfordshire. Founded in 1568 as a seminary, then a boys' school, it is the oldest continuously operatinga claim ...

. On 25 January 1915 (his eighteenth birthday) O'Sullivan enlisted into the

Royal Munster Fusiliers The Royal Munster Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 to 1922. It traced its origins to the East India Company, East India Company's Bengal European Regiment raised in 1652, which later became the 101st Regiment ...

, and later transferred to the

London Regiment London Regiment may refer to two infantry regiments in the British Army: * London Regiment (1908–1938) The London Regiment was an infantry regiment in the British Army, part of the Territorial Force (renamed the Territorial Army in 1921). Th ...

and served with the rank of

lance corporal Lance corporal is a military rank, used by many English-speaking armed forces worldwide, and also by some police forces and other uniformed organisations. It is below the rank of corporal. Etymology The presumed origin of the rank of lance corp ...

during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and lost a leg at

Ypres Ypres ( ; ; ; ; ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres/Ieper ...

in 1917. On being discharged from the army in 1918, O'Sullivan was employed by the

Ministry of Munitions The Minister of Munitions was a British government position created during the First World War to oversee and co-ordinate the production and distribution of munitions for the war effort. The position was created in response to the Shell Crisis o ...

and, when the war ended, was transferred to the

Ministry of Labour A ministry of labour ('' UK''), or labor ('' US''), also known as a department of labour, or labor, is a government department responsible for setting labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, training, and s ...

where he worked as a messenger. The Ministry of Labour was located in Montagu House, later demolished and replaced by the present day

Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

. Montagu House was located adjacent to

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...

. He became a member of the IRA detachment in London, and was named by Rex Taylor as being responsible for the execution of Vincent Fovargue as a British spy at the Ashford Golf Links, Middlesex, on 2 April 1921 with a label pinned to his body stating "Let spies and traitors beware, IRA". Fovargue had been an officer in the

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

IRA. O'Sullivan's brother, Patrick, the first Vice-Commandant of the London IRA during its early days in 1919 but was seconded to the Cork No. 1 Brigade during the

Anglo-Irish War The Irish War of Independence (), also known as the Anglo-Irish War, was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along wi ...

. Patrick O'Sullivan had also served in the

during the First World War, along with another brother, Aloysius, who was discharged from the army in 1916 suffering from

shell shock Shell shock is a term that originated during World War I to describe symptoms similar to those of combat stress reaction and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which many soldiers suffered during the war. Before PTSD was officially recogni ...

. Patrick O'Sullivan was also wounded in a gas attack during the First World War. He fought with the

Anti-Treaty IRA The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty (), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain an ...

during the Civil War and was wounded ten days after his brother was executed. Shortly before that, he had crossed over to England to participate in an abortive attempt to rescue Dunne and his brother. In 1923, John O'Sullivan tried to have the remains of his son and Dunne released for a funeral Mass. But it was not until after the abolition of capital punishment in the UK that Patrick O'Sullivan, with the assistance of the Irish Republican

National Graves Association The National Graves Association (NGA; , "Grave Committee of Heroes of the Gaels") is an Irish organisation which seeks to maintain the graves of Irish republicans who died in the pursuit of a reunified Ireland. Its stated objectives are "to resto ...

, was able to arrange for the bodies of Joseph O'Sullivan and Reginald Dunne to be sent to Ireland for burial. In mid August 1929

in London unveiled a plaque commemorating Dunne and O'Sullivan. In 1967, after some political and diplomatic debate by the British and Irish governments, the British Government allowed the bodies of Dunne and O'Sullivan to be exhumed. When the bodies of Dunne and O'Sullivan arrived in Dublin an IRA honor guard marched with the two coffins. They were subsequently reburied in

Deans Grange Cemetery Dean's Grange Cemetery (; also spelled ''Deansgrange'') is situated in the suburban area of Deansgrange in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, County Dublin, Ireland. Since it first opened in 1865, over 150,000 people have been buried there. It is, toge ...

County Dublin County Dublin ( or ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and holds its capital city, Dublin. It is located on the island's east coast, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Until 1994, County Dubli ...

, Ireland.

Alias

While under arrest, O'Sullivan was charged under the alias ''John O’Brien''Inside – Artists and Writers in Reading Prison
review by Danny Morrison in ''

An Phoblacht ''An Phoblacht'' (Irish pronunciation: ; ) is a Sinn Féin-affiliated online Irish republicanism, Irish republican news platform which also publishes a quarterly print magazine format. Editorially the paper takes a Left-wing politics, left-wing ...

'' 7 September 2016, viewed 2024-06-03

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Osullivan, Joseph 1897 births 1922 deaths 1920s murders in London 20th-century executions by England and Wales British Army personnel of World War I Burials at Deans Grange Cemetery Executed Irish people Executed assassins Irish Republican Army (1922–1969) members Irish amputees Irish politicians with disabilities Irish nationalist assassins Irish people of World War I People educated at St Edmund's College, Ware Criminals from London People of the Irish War of Independence Royal Munster Fusiliers soldiers People convicted of murder by England and Wales