Pádraic Ó Máille (23 February 1878 – 19 January 1946) was an Irish politician. He was a founder member of

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...

and of the Conradh na Gaeilge in Galway. He was a member of the

Irish Volunteers The Irish Volunteers (), also known as the Irish Volunteer Force or the Irish Volunteer Army, was a paramilitary organisation established in 1913 by nationalists and republicans in Ireland. It was ostensibly formed in response to the format ...

from 1917 to 1921. He was born in Kilmilkin, in Maam Valley in

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

and was a farmer. He was elected as a

MP for Galway Connemara at the 1918 general election. In January 1919, Sinn Féin MPs who had been elected in the Westminster elections of 1918 refused to recognise the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace ...

and instead assembled at the Mansion House in

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 ...

as a revolutionary parliament called

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( ; , ) is the lower house and principal chamber of the Oireachtas, which also includes the president of Ireland and a senate called Seanad Éireann.Article 15.1.2° of the Constitution of Ireland reads: "The Oireachtas shall co ...

. He was re-elected as a Sinn Féin

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( ; ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish language, Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The official Engli ...

(TD) for the

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

constituency at the 1921 elections. He supported the

Anglo-Irish Treaty 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 ...

and voted in favour of it. He was re-elected as a pro-Treaty Sinn Féin TD for Galway at the 1922 general election, and was elected as a Cumann na nGaedheal TD for Galway at the 1923 general election. In the subsequent

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 ...

, he was targeted for assassination by anti-Treaty forces and was shot and badly wounded in Dublin in December 1922. He was critical of the proposed Irish Boundary Commission and resigned from Cumann na nGaedheal and founded a new political party called Clann Éireann in 1926. He lost his seat at the June 1927 general election and was unsuccessful at the September 1927 general election. He later joined

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland. Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...

(the party which had emerged from the anti-Treaty side in the civil war) and contested the 1932 general election for that party in the Dublin County constituency but was not elected. On each of these occasions he was subjected to a smear campaign by his former party colleagues who used his pro-Treaty stance during the civil war against him. It was alleged that he had personally selected his fellow county man Liam Mellows for

execution Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence ordering that an offender be punished in ...

. These smears persisted despite denials from the Mellows family and from Ó Máille himself. In fact, Mellows was executed in reprisal for the attack on Ó Máille and Sean Hales in 1922. Mellows was shot the following day while Ó Máille himself was gravely wounded and in hospital. He served as a Fianna Fáil Senator in

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann ( ; ; "Senate of Ireland") is the senate of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (defined as the house of representatives). It is commonly called the Seanad or ...

from 1934 to 1936. He was re-elected to the new Seanad in 1938 on the Agricultural Panel. From 1939 until his death in 1946 he was re-appointed to the Seanad as a nominee of the Taoiseach

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 ...

. He was Leas-Chathaoirleach (deputy chairperson) of the Seanad from May to November 1938.

References

Sources

*Richard Dunphy (1995), ''The Making of Fianna Fáil Power in Ireland: 1923–48'' *Michael Ó Cuinneagáin (1996), ''On the Arm of Time''

Gallery

Piece 102-43; Prosecution of Patrick O´Malley MP; Firing Revolver At Police; 1918.pdf, Prosecution of Patrick O'Malley MP; Firing Revolver At Police Piece 207-125; Patrick O'Malley (1922).pdf, page=4, alt=British Army intelligence file for Patrick O'Malley, British Army intelligence file for Patrick O'Malley {{DEFAULTSORT:Omaille, Padraic 1878 births 1946 deaths People of the Irish Civil War (Pro-Treaty side) Early Sinn Féin TDs Cumann na nGaedheal TDs Fianna Fáil senators Members of the 1st Dáil Members of the 2nd Dáil Members of the 3rd Dáil Members of the 4th Dáil Members of the 1934 Seanad Members of the 2nd Seanad Members of the 3rd Seanad Members of the 4th Seanad Members of the 5th Seanad Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Galway constituencies (1801–1922) UK MPs 1918–1922 Politicians from County Galway Nominated members of Seanad Éireann Agricultural Panel senators