Mary Ellen Spring Rice (14 September 1880 – 1 December 1924) was an

Irish nationalist Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cult ...

activist during the early 20th century.''Thomas Spring Rice and the Peopling of Australia''
Limerickcity.ie (43) She was actively involved in gun-running during 1913-14, notably as part of the Howth Gun Run.

Biography

Before 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 ...

, Spring Rice hosted many Irish nationalist and

Conradh na Gaeilge (; 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 ...

meetings at her home, and she became a close friend of

Douglas Hyde Douglas Ross Hyde (; 17 January 1860 – 12 July 1949), known as (), was an Irish academic, linguist, scholar of the Irish language, politician, and diplomat who served as the first president of Ireland from June 1938 to June 1945. He was a l ...

and her cousin Nelly O'Brien. During 1913 and 1914, Spring Rice was actively involved in gun-running, most notably the

Howth gun-running The Howth gun-running ( ) was the smuggling of 1,500 Mauser rifles to Howth harbour for the Irish Volunteers, an Irish nationalist paramilitary force, on 26 July 1914. The unloading of guns from a private yacht during daylight hours attracted a ...

.Martin, Francis Xavier, 1922–2000 (ed.). The Howth gun-running and the Kilcoole gun-running, 1914 ecollections and documents foreword by Eamon de Valera. Dublin: Browne and Nolan, (1964) This involved helping to ship weapons to be used in an Irish uprising from Germany into Ireland. Together with Molly Childers, she raised £2,000 towards the purchase of 900 Mauser rifles from Germany, many of which were used in the 1916

Easter Rising The Easter Rising (), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an ind ...

. Spring Rice sailed on the ''

Asgard In Nordic mythology, Asgard (Old Norse: ''Ásgarðr''; "Garden of the Æsir") is a location associated with the gods. It appears in several Old Norse sagas and mythological texts, including the Eddas, however it has also been suggested to be refe ...

'' to collect the guns and helped to unload them in Ireland. During the

Irish War of Independence 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 (1919–1922), Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and Unite ...

, she allowed her Mount Trenchard home to be used as a

safe house A safe house (also spelled safehouse) is a dwelling place or building whose unassuming appearance makes it an inconspicuous location where one can hide out, take shelter, or conduct clandestine activities. Historical usage It may also refer to ...

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 ...

fighters and the family boat was used to carry men and arms over the

Shannon Estuary The Shannon Estuary in Ireland () is a large estuary where the River Shannon flows into the Atlantic Ocean. The estuary has Limerick City at its head and its seaward limits are marked by Loop Head to the north and Kerry Head to the south. Th ...

Death

Spring Rice started to suffer from tuberculosis in 1923, and died in a sanatorium in

Clwyd Clwyd ( , ) is a preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Wales, situated in the north-east corner of the country; it is named after the River Clwyd, which runs through the area. To the north lies the Irish Sea, with the English cerem ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, on 1 December 1924. She was buried in Mount Trenchard, Loghill,

County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...

, Ireland. When her coffin arrived at Foynes railway station on 4 December 1924 it was greeted by several society members, including members of the

Irish Transport and General Workers' Union The Irish Transport and General Workers Union (ITGWU) was a trade union representing workers, initially mainly labourers, in Ireland. History The union was founded by James Larkin and James Fearon in January 1909 as a general union. Initially ...

(I.T.G.W.U.) Foynes Branch, lined up in military formation. The following day, the entirety of the Foynes Branch I.T.G.W.U. attended the funeral ''Limerick Leader'', 13 December 1924

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Spring Rice, Mary 1880 births 1924 deaths Protestant Irish nationalists

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

Daughters of barons People from County Limerick Irish activists Irish women activists Irish Anglicans 20th-century Anglo-Irish people