Andy Cooney
Encyclopedia
Andrew Cooney was an Irish Republican.
From Nenagh
, County Tipperary
, Cooney began studying medicine at University College Dublin
just as the Irish War of Independence
was getting underway, and he played for a brief spell with the College's hurling
club. As surrounding events intensified, he joined the Third Battalion of the Dublin Brigade of the Irish Republican Army
(IRA). As a Tipperary native in Dublin, Cooney would have been certain, in normal circumstances, to have attended the challenge football match between these two counties on 21 November 1920.
It has been suggested, however, that Cooney was one of (or associated with) Michael Collins
' "Twelve Apostles", who eliminated the members of the British Cairo Gang
early that morning. Specifically, it is alleged that Cooney was part of an eight-man IRA team which killed British Army Captain Leonard Price, a Major Dowling, a Captain Keenlyside {wounded} and two British Army Colonels, Woodcock {Wounded} and Montgomery, who were staying in premises at 28 Pembroke Street, Dublin.
Later that day, in retaliation, the Auxiliaries killed about a dozen attendees at a football match between Tipperary and Dublin at Croke Park
. The day's violence became known as Bloody Sunday
. After the Anglo-Irish truce of July 1921, Cooney was appointed Officer Commanding (O/C) of the 1st Kerry Brigade, IRA, and reorganised it. He opposed the Anglo-Irish Treaty
of 1921 and in March 1922, and was appointed Commandant of the 1st Eastern Division of the anti-Treaty IRA in the Irish Civil War
.
The same year he was captured by Free State
forces and interned in Mountjoy Prison, where he became O/C of the prisoners in C Wing. He accepted responsibility for an attempted escape bid on 10 October 1923 in which a fellow prisoner Peadar Breslin was killed and another man was wounded. He was released in 1924. Cooney replaced Frank Aiken
as Chief of Staff of the IRA in 1925, but after eight months in the role, he departed on a fund-raising trip to the United States
. He soon returned, however, and won his only Fitzgibbon medal with UCD in 1927. An on-off decade of service for the UCD team ended when he qualified as a doctor in 1928.
In 1933, he unveiled the Terence Bellew McManus Memorial in the old Republican Plot in Glasnevin Cemetery
, Dublin. Thenceforth, semi-retired from the republican movement, Cooney continued to be a regular orator at gatherings, and he was a founder of the short-lived Cumann Poblachta na hÉireann
party in 1936. He emigrated to the USA in the 1940s and was assisted by veteran Irish republican Michael Flannery. Dr. Andrew Cooney died in the USA in 1968.
From Nenagh
Nenagh
Nenagh is the county town of North Tipperary in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of North Tipperary and in 2011 it had a recorded population of 7,995. It is a civil parish in the historical barony of Ormond Lower...
, County Tipperary
County Tipperary
County Tipperary is a county of Ireland. It is located in the province of Munster and is named after the town of Tipperary. The area of the county does not have a single local authority; local government is split between two authorities. In North Tipperary, part of the Mid-West Region, local...
, Cooney began studying medicine at University College Dublin
University College Dublin
University College Dublin ) - formally known as University College Dublin - National University of Ireland, Dublin is the Republic of Ireland's largest, and Ireland's second largest, university, with over 1,300 faculty and 17,000 students...
just as the Irish War of Independence
Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence , Anglo-Irish War, Black and Tan War, or Tan War was a guerrilla war mounted by the Irish Republican Army against the British government and its forces in Ireland. It began in January 1919, following the Irish Republic's declaration of independence. Both sides agreed...
was getting underway, and he played for a brief spell with the College's hurling
Hurling
Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...
club. As surrounding events intensified, he joined the Third Battalion of the Dublin Brigade of the Irish Republican Army
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
(IRA). As a Tipperary native in Dublin, Cooney would have been certain, in normal circumstances, to have attended the challenge football match between these two counties on 21 November 1920.
It has been suggested, however, that Cooney was one of (or associated with) Michael Collins
Michael Collins (Irish leader)
Michael "Mick" Collins was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance and Teachta Dála for Cork South in the First Dáil of 1919, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations. Subsequently, he was both Chairman of the...
' "Twelve Apostles", who eliminated the members of the British Cairo Gang
Cairo Gang
The Cairo Gang was a group of British Intelligence agents who were sent to Dublin during the Anglo-Irish War to conduct intelligence operations against prominent members of the Irish Republican Army...
early that morning. Specifically, it is alleged that Cooney was part of an eight-man IRA team which killed British Army Captain Leonard Price, a Major Dowling, a Captain Keenlyside {wounded} and two British Army Colonels, Woodcock {Wounded} and Montgomery, who were staying in premises at 28 Pembroke Street, Dublin.
Later that day, in retaliation, the Auxiliaries killed about a dozen attendees at a football match between Tipperary and Dublin at Croke Park
Croke Park
Croke Park in Dublin is the principal stadium and headquarters of the Gaelic Athletic Association , Ireland's biggest sporting organisation...
. The day's violence became known as Bloody Sunday
Bloody Sunday (1920)
Bloody Sunday was a day of violence in Dublin on 21 November 1920, during the Irish War of Independence. In total, 31 people were killed – fourteen British, fourteen Irish civilians and three republican prisoners....
. After the Anglo-Irish truce of July 1921, Cooney was appointed Officer Commanding (O/C) of the 1st Kerry Brigade, IRA, and reorganised it. He opposed the Anglo-Irish Treaty
Anglo-Irish Treaty
The Anglo-Irish Treaty , officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a treaty between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and representatives of the secessionist Irish Republic that concluded the Irish War of...
of 1921 and in March 1922, and was appointed Commandant of the 1st Eastern Division of the anti-Treaty IRA in the Irish Civil War
Irish Civil War
The Irish Civil War was a conflict that accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State as an entity independent from the United Kingdom within the British Empire....
.
The same year he was captured by Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
forces and interned in Mountjoy Prison, where he became O/C of the prisoners in C Wing. He accepted responsibility for an attempted escape bid on 10 October 1923 in which a fellow prisoner Peadar Breslin was killed and another man was wounded. He was released in 1924. Cooney replaced Frank Aiken
Frank Aiken
Frank Aiken was a commander of the Irish Republican Army and later an Irish politician. A founding-member of Fianna Fáil, Aiken was first elected to Dáil Éireann in 1923 and at each subsequent election until 1973...
as Chief of Staff of the IRA in 1925, but after eight months in the role, he departed on a fund-raising trip to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He soon returned, however, and won his only Fitzgibbon medal with UCD in 1927. An on-off decade of service for the UCD team ended when he qualified as a doctor in 1928.
In 1933, he unveiled the Terence Bellew McManus Memorial in the old Republican Plot in Glasnevin Cemetery
Glasnevin Cemetery
Glasnevin Cemetery , officially known as Prospect Cemetery, is the largest non-denominational cemetery in Ireland with an estimated 1.5 million burials...
, Dublin. Thenceforth, semi-retired from the republican movement, Cooney continued to be a regular orator at gatherings, and he was a founder of the short-lived Cumann Poblachta na hÉireann
Cumann Poblachta na hÉireann
Cumann Poblachta na hÉireann , abbreviated CPnaÉ, was a political party established by the Irish Republican Army in 1936. It existed until 1937.The party was led by prominent IRA members...
party in 1936. He emigrated to the USA in the 1940s and was assisted by veteran Irish republican Michael Flannery. Dr. Andrew Cooney died in the USA in 1968.
Sources
- "Student Radicals", in: High Ball, February 2002 (http://cao.gaa.ie/archive.html)