Thomas Brennan (1886 – 22 January 1953) was an Irish

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 ...

politician who sat for 9 years as a

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

Wicklow Wicklow ( ; , meaning 'church of the toothless one'; ) is the county town of County Wicklow in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located on the east of Ireland, south of Dublin. According to the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, it had ...

Early life and revolutionary period

Brennan joined the Irish Volunteers in 1917, was appointed Battalion Commandant of 4 Battalion, North Wexford Brigade and was involved in raids and other armed operations during

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 ...

. Taking the anti-Treaty side in 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 ...

(1922-1923), Brennan took part in fighting against National forces in County Wexford and County Wicklow. He was captured on 28 July 1922, took part in the burning of Portlaoghise Jail, underwent 23 days hunger strike, and was released on 11 May 1924. Brennan later applied to the Irish government for a service pension under the Military Service Pensions Act, 1934 and was awarded 5 and 2/3 years service at Grade C for his service with the Irish Volunteers and the IRA between 1 April 1918 and 30 September 1923. Irish Military Archives, Military Service (1916-1923) Pension Collection, Thomas Brennan, MSP34REF36218. Available online at http://mspcsearch.militaryarchives.ie/search.aspx?formtype=advanced.

Politics

A building contractor before entering politics, Brennan first stood for election to

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 ...

at the 1943 general election but failed to win a seat. The following year, at the 1944 general election, he unseated his Fianna Fáil colleague Christopher Byrne and took his seat in the

15th Dáil The 15th Dáil was elected at the 1954 general election on 14 May 1954 and met on 2 June 1954. The members of Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas (legislature), of Ireland are known as TDs. It sat with the 8th Seana ...

. He was re-elected at the 1948 election and again at the 1951 general election but died in office on 22 January 1953. The by-election for his seat was held on 18 June 1953 and won by the

Fine Gael Fine Gael ( ; ; ) is a centre-right, liberal-conservative, Christian democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil Éireann. The party had a member ...

candidate Mark Deering. At the 1954 general election, his son

Paudge Brennan Patrick Brennan (18 February 1922 – 10 June 1998) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who sat for 25 years as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Wicklow constituency, and was briefly a senator. Early life Patrick Brennan was born on 18 February 19 ...

was elected for Fianna Fáil, beginning a 30-year career in the

Oireachtas The Oireachtas ( ; ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of the president of Ireland and the two houses of the Oireachtas (): a house ...

References

1886 births 1953 deaths Fianna Fáil TDs Members of the 12th Dáil Members of the 13th Dáil Members of the 14th Dáil Politicians from County Wicklow Irish Republican Army (1919–1922) members {{TeachtaDála-stub

Early life and revolutionary period

Politics

See also

References