Pierce McCan
Encyclopedia
Pierce McCan (2 August 1882 – 6 March 1919) was an Irish
Sinn Féin
politician.
, the son of Francis McCan, a land agent, and Jane Power. He was nephew of Patrick Joseph Power, MP for East Waterford from 1885 to 1913.
He attended Clongowes Wood College
. He resided at Ballyowen House, Dualla, Cashel
, County Tipperary
, was an "extensive farmer" and was a member of the Tipperary Hunt.
He was a founder member of Sinn Féin in 1905. He joined the Gaelic League
in 1909 and was a member of the Irish Volunteers
from 1914 onwards.
He was interned after the Easter Rising
for several months in Richmond Barracks
, Dublin, and Knutsford
, England
.
In May 1918, he was arrested under the premise of the so-called German Plot and detained without charge in Gloucester Jail
.
McCan was president of the East Tipperary executive of Sinn Féin
. While incarcerated, he was selected as a Sinn Féin
candidate for the East Tipperary constituency in the 1918 general election. He was elected but never took his seat in the Westminster parliament in accordance with Sinn Féin's policy.
In January 1919, Sinn Féin MPs refused to recognise the Parliament of the United Kingdom
and instead assembled in the Mansion House, Dublin
as a revolutionary parliament called Dáil Éireann
. McCan never sat in Dáil Éireann, having died in prison in 1919, a victim of that year's influenza epidemic.
On 9 March 1919, McCan was buried in Dualla, Cashel
, County Tipperary
.
told the First Dáil
:
The McCan Barracks in Templemore
, North Tipperary
, is named after him.
, Mc Can's brother Joseph, a member of the National Farmers' and Ratepayers' Association, stood unsuccessfully for the National Centre Party in the Tipperary
constituency.
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
politician.
Career
He was born at Prospect lodge, Ballyanne Desmesne, County WexfordCounty Wexford
County Wexford is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wexford. In pre-Norman times it was part of the Kingdom of Uí Cheinnselaig, whose capital was at Ferns. Wexford County Council is the local...
, the son of Francis McCan, a land agent, and Jane Power. He was nephew of Patrick Joseph Power, MP for East Waterford from 1885 to 1913.
He attended Clongowes Wood College
Clongowes Wood College
Clongowes Wood College is a voluntary secondary boarding school for boys, located near Clane in County Kildare, Ireland. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1814, it is one of Ireland's oldest Catholic schools, and featured prominently in James Joyce's semi-autobiographical novel A Portrait of the...
. He resided at Ballyowen House, Dualla, Cashel
Cashel, County Tipperary
Cashel is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 2936 at the 2006 census. The town gives its name to the ecclesiastical province of Cashel. Additionally, the cathedra of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly was originally in the town prior to the English Reformation....
, 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...
, was an "extensive farmer" and was a member of the Tipperary Hunt.
He was a founder member of Sinn Féin in 1905. He joined the Gaelic League
Conradh na Gaeilge
Conradh na Gaeilge is a non-governmental organisation that promotes the Irish language in Ireland and abroad. The motto of the League is Sinn Féin, Sinn Féin amháin .-Origins:...
in 1909 and was a member of the Irish Volunteers
Irish Volunteers
The Irish Volunteers was a military organisation established in 1913 by Irish nationalists. It was ostensibly formed in response to the formation of the Ulster Volunteers in 1912, and its declared primary aim was "to secure and maintain the rights and liberties common to the whole people of Ireland"...
from 1914 onwards.
He was interned after 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...
for several months in Richmond Barracks
Richmond Barracks
Richmond Barracks in Dublin, Ireland , where I.R.A.leaders were held for their part in the 1916 Easter Rising. After the Irish Free State was founded in 1922, the Barracks was occupied by the Irish Army, and it was renamed Keogh Barracks...
, Dublin, and Knutsford
Knutsford
Knutsford is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority area of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, in North West England...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
In May 1918, he was arrested under the premise of the so-called German Plot and detained without charge in Gloucester Jail
Gloucester (HM Prison)
HM Prison Gloucester is a Category B men's prison, located in Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service.-History:...
.
McCan was president of the East Tipperary executive of Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
. While incarcerated, he was selected as a Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
candidate for the East Tipperary constituency in the 1918 general election. He was elected but never took his seat in the Westminster parliament in accordance with Sinn Féin's policy.
In January 1919, Sinn Féin MPs refused to recognise the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
and instead assembled in the Mansion House, Dublin
Mansion House, Dublin
The Mansion House on Dawson Street, Dublin, is the official residence of the Lord Mayor of Dublin since 1715.-Features:The Mansion House's most famous features include the "Round Room", where the First Dáil assembled on 21 January 1919 to proclaim the Irish Declaration of Independence...
as a revolutionary parliament called Dáil Éireann
First Dáil
The First Dáil was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 1919–1921. In 1919 candidates who had been elected in the Westminster elections of 1918 refused to recognise the Parliament of the United Kingdom and instead assembled as a unicameral, revolutionary parliament called "Dáil Éireann"...
. McCan never sat in Dáil Éireann, having died in prison in 1919, a victim of that year's influenza epidemic.
On 9 March 1919, McCan was buried in Dualla, Cashel
Cashel, County Tipperary
Cashel is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 2936 at the 2006 census. The town gives its name to the ecclesiastical province of Cashel. Additionally, the cathedra of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly was originally in the town prior to the English Reformation....
, 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...
.
Tribute on death
On 10 April 1919, Cathal BrughaCathal Brugha
Cathal Brugha was an Irish revolutionary and politician, active in the Easter Rising, Irish War of Independence, and the Irish Civil War and was the first Ceann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann.-Background:...
told the First Dáil
First Dáil
The First Dáil was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 1919–1921. In 1919 candidates who had been elected in the Westminster elections of 1918 refused to recognise the Parliament of the United Kingdom and instead assembled as a unicameral, revolutionary parliament called "Dáil Éireann"...
:
Before I formally move the motion, as I have mentioned the name of Pierce McCan, I would ask the Members of the Dáil to stand up as a mark of our respect to the first man of our body to die for Ireland, and of our sympathy with his relatives. We are sure that their sorrow is lightened by the fact that his death was for the cause for which he would have lived, and that his memory will ever be cherished in the hearts of the comrades who knew him, and will be honoured by succeeding generations of his countrymen with that of the other martyrs of our holy cause.
The McCan Barracks in Templemore
Templemore
Templemore is a town in North Tipperary, Ireland. It is a civil parish in the historical barony of Eliogarty. It is part of the Roman Catholic parish of Templemore, Clonmore and Killea....
, North Tipperary
North Tipperary
North Tipperary is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-West Region and is also located in the province of Munster. It is named after the town of Tipperary and consists of 48% of the land area of the traditional county of Tipperary. The county was established in 1898 and has had a county...
, is named after him.
Family
In the general election of January 1933Irish general election, 1933
The Irish general election of 1933 was held on 24 January 1933. The newly elected members of the 8th Dáil assembled at Leinster House on 8 February when the new President of the Executive Council and Executive Council of the Irish Free State were appointed....
, Mc Can's brother Joseph, a member of the National Farmers' and Ratepayers' Association, stood unsuccessfully for the National Centre Party in the Tipperary
Tipperary (Dáil Éireann constituency)
Tipperary was a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas from 1923 to 1948...
constituency.
External links
- McCan family census return, 1901
- McCan's census return, 1911
- Anthony McCan, "The McCan family", accessed 22 August 2010.
Sources
- Allegiance, Robert Brennan, (1950)
- Memoirs of Senator Joseph Connolly: A Founder of Modern Ireland, J. Anthony Gaughan (ed), (1996)