Owen Sheehy-Skeffington
Encyclopedia
Dr. Owen Lancelot Sheehy-Skeffington (19 May 1909 – 7 June 1970) was an Irish university lecturer and Senator
.
. His father, Francis Sheehy-Skeffington
, was a pacifist and nationalist whose murder by Captain J.C. Bowen-Colthurst in 1916 during the week of the Easter Rising
became a cause celebre
. His mother, Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington
, was a founder of the Irish Women's Franchise League. After her husband's murder she became increasingly nationalist
, supporting the anti-Treaty
IRA during the Irish Civil War
.
He was educated in the United States
, and in Dublin at Sandford Park School
, a non-denominational school selected by his mother in the face of strong criticism. His cousin, the diplomat, writer and politician Conor Cruise O'Brien
, was a pupil there at the same time.
at Trinity College, Dublin
, where he was elected in 1954 as a member of the 8th Seanad Éireann by the Dublin University constituency
. He was re-elected in 1957, but lost his seat in 1961. He was returned to the 11th Seanad at the 1965 election, and was re-elected for a final time in 1969.
In the Seanad, he was known as a champion of human rights and an opponent of authoritarianism, campaigning for an end to corporal punishment
in Irish schools.http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/S/0092/S.0092.197905310003.html
In 1935, he married Andrée Denis, a French graduate of the Sorbonne
, with whom he had two sons and one daughter. She later wrote a biography of her husband: "Skeff: A Life of Owen Sheehy Skeffington 1909-1970". They resided at Hazelbrook Cottage, Rathfarnham
, Dublin.
In the late 1950s memorialist Peter Tyrrell
began a long term correspondence with him. Sheehy-Skeffington encouraged Tyrrell to write his autobiography, which posthumously helped to expose the brutal conditions in Irish Industrial schools
, and Letterfrack
in particular.. When Tyrrell committed suicide in 1967, the only clue to his identity was a card addressed to Owen Sheehy-Skeffington.
Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann is the upper house of the Oireachtas , which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann . It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its members Senators or Seanadóirí . Unlike Dáil Éireann, it is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members chosen by...
.
Early life
Sheehy-Skeffington was brought up in Dublin, IrelandIreland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. His father, Francis Sheehy-Skeffington
Francis Sheehy-Skeffington
Francis Skeffington from Bailieborough, County Cavan, was an Irish suffragist, pacifist and writer. He was a friend and schoolmate of James Joyce, Oliver St John Gogarty, Tom Kettle, and Conor Cruise O'Brien's father, Frank O'Brien...
, was a pacifist and nationalist whose murder by Captain J.C. Bowen-Colthurst in 1916 during the week of the Easter Rising
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
became a cause celebre
Cause célèbre
A is an issue or incident arousing widespread controversy, outside campaigning and heated public debate. The term is particularly used in connection with celebrated legal cases. It is a French phrase in common English use...
. His mother, Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington
Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington
Johanna Mary Sheehy-Skeffington, was a suffragette and Irish nationalist. Along with her husband and Margaret Cousins and James Cousins she founded the Irish Women's Franchise League in 1908 with the aim of obtaining women's voting rights...
, was a founder of the Irish Women's Franchise League. After her husband's murder she became increasingly nationalist
Irish nationalism
Irish nationalism manifests itself in political and social movements and in sentiment inspired by a love for Irish culture, language and history, and as a sense of pride in Ireland and in the Irish people...
, supporting the anti-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...
IRA during 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....
.
He was educated in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and in Dublin at Sandford Park School
Sandford Park School
Sandford Park School Ltd. is a small private, non-denominational, all-boys secondary school, located in the inner suburb of Ranelagh in Dublin, Ireland, founded in 1922.-School principals:* Alfred Le Peton 1922-25* Gordon Sylvester Bradshaw Mack 1925-34...
, a non-denominational school selected by his mother in the face of strong criticism. His cousin, the diplomat, writer and politician Conor Cruise O'Brien
Conor Cruise O'Brien
Conor Cruise O'Brien often nicknamed "The Cruiser", was an Irish politician, writer, historian and academic. Although his opinion on the role of Britain in Northern Ireland changed over the course of the 1970s and 1980s, he always acknowledge values of, as he saw, the two irreconcilable traditions...
, was a pupil there at the same time.
Career and adult life
He later became a lecturer in FrenchFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
at Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
, where he was elected in 1954 as a member of the 8th Seanad Éireann by the Dublin University constituency
Dublin University (constituency)
University of Dublin is a university constituency in Ireland, which has been used to elect members of various legislative bodies including currently Seanad Éireann. Alternative names are Dublin University or Trinity College, Dublin...
. He was re-elected in 1957, but lost his seat in 1961. He was returned to the 11th Seanad at the 1965 election, and was re-elected for a final time in 1969.
In the Seanad, he was known as a champion of human rights and an opponent of authoritarianism, campaigning for an end to corporal punishment
Corporal punishment
Corporal punishment is a form of physical punishment that involves the deliberate infliction of pain as retribution for an offence, or for the purpose of disciplining or reforming a wrongdoer, or to deter attitudes or behaviour deemed unacceptable...
in Irish schools.http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/S/0092/S.0092.197905310003.html
In 1935, he married Andrée Denis, a French graduate of the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
, with whom he had two sons and one daughter. She later wrote a biography of her husband: "Skeff: A Life of Owen Sheehy Skeffington 1909-1970". They resided at Hazelbrook Cottage, Rathfarnham
Rathfarnham
Rathfarnham or Rathfarnam is a Southside suburb of Dublin, Ireland. It is south of Terenure, east of Templeogue, and is in the postal districts of Dublin 14 and 16. It is within the administrative areas of both Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown and South Dublin County Councils.The area of Rathfarnham...
, Dublin.
In the late 1950s memorialist Peter Tyrrell
Peter Tyrrell
Peter Tyrrell , was an Irish author and former inmate of St Joseph's Industrial School, Letterfrack, an institution run by the Christian Brothers.-Early life:...
began a long term correspondence with him. Sheehy-Skeffington encouraged Tyrrell to write his autobiography, which posthumously helped to expose the brutal conditions in Irish Industrial schools
Industrial Schools in Ireland
Industrial Schools, were established in Ireland under the Industrial Schools Act of 1868 to care for "neglected, orphaned and abandoned children". By 1884, there were 5,049 children in such institutions throughout the country....
, and Letterfrack
St Joseph's Industrial School, Letterfrack
St Joseph's Industrial School was an industrial school for young boys in Letterfrack, County Galway, Ireland. The school was opened in 1887, and ran by the Congregation of Christian Brothers....
in particular.. When Tyrrell committed suicide in 1967, the only clue to his identity was a card addressed to Owen Sheehy-Skeffington.