Tom Ruane
Encyclopedia
Tom Ruane was Captain of the Second Western Division of the Irish Republican Army
, from 1916-1920.
, and joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood
in 1908. He was already an active sportsman with the G.A.A.. his position being full-back. From 1910 to 1916 he captained the local hurling team.
in 1916 he was Captain of the Claregalway
men. They rendezvoused with the Castlegar man under Brian Molloy
and Pat Callanan at Carnmore. Orders were received from Liam Mellows
to proceed to the deserted Moyode Castle, in Oranmore. The volunteers were discovered while resting at Carnmore Cross by a group of Royal Irish Constabulary
. Fighting broke out but the only casualty was a Constable Whelan, who was the first to die during the Rising.
Arriving at Moyode they congregated with other companies but lack of orders and supplies led to fatigue and hunger. When news of the failure of the Rising in Dublin arrived, the men dispersed, some going home. Ruane himself went on the run.
He hid out in Moycullen
and used an island in Lough Corrib
as a fall-back during searches. However, a letter was found in his wife's handbag which gave his address as at Bohans, Borra, Moycullen. He was arrested and sent to Frangoch, where he spent ten months. After his release, he was arrested in 1918 in connection with the German Plot, this time in Wormwood Scrubs
and Winson Green
.
Prison he was appointed a justice of the Sinn Féin
courts for south and west Galway. His activities came at the price of a thousand pound reward for his capture, and he was targeted by the Black and Tans
. He may have participated on the attack on Loughgeorge R.I.C. Barracks in May 1920, launched by the mid-Galway Brigade.
After the Treaty, he fought on the side of the Republicans. As a reprisal for the Kilroe ambush, near Headford
, all his farm produce was burned.
. One of Ruane's grandson's was a British M.P.
as of 2000.
Ruane died on the 31st August 1937, aged 53, and was buried in Claregalway
cemetery.
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...
, from 1916-1920.
Background
Ruane was a native of Carnmore, County GalwayCounty Galway
County Galway is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the city of Galway. Galway County Council is the local authority for the county. There are several strongly Irish-speaking areas in the west of the county...
, and joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood
Irish Republican Brotherhood
The Irish Republican Brotherhood was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland during the second half of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century...
in 1908. He was already an active sportsman with the G.A.A.. his position being full-back. From 1910 to 1916 he captained the local hurling team.
Easter 1916
During the Galway Easter RisingEaster 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...
in 1916 he was Captain of the Claregalway
Claregalway
Claregalway is a village situated about 10 km from the city of Galway in County Galway, Ireland. Claregalway was founded on the banks of the River Clare, hence the derivation of its name: Baile Chláir na Gaillimhe meaning "town on the Clare, in Galway"...
men. They rendezvoused with the Castlegar man under Brian Molloy
Brian Molloy
Brian Molloy, member of the Irish Republican Army, fl. 1916-1921Molloy, along with Michael Newell, was desceibed as ".. a born leader ... was the guide and motivator of the Castlegar Company in the 1916 rising and later in the War of Independence." He had been captured in the aftermath of the...
and Pat Callanan at Carnmore. Orders were received from Liam Mellows
Liam Mellows
Liam Mellows was an Irish Republican and Sinn Féin politician. Born in England, Mellows grew up in County Wexford in Ireland. He was active with the Irish Republican Brotherhood and Irish Volunteers, and participated in the Easter Rising in County Galway, and the War of Independence...
to proceed to the deserted Moyode Castle, in Oranmore. The volunteers were discovered while resting at Carnmore Cross by a group of Royal Irish Constabulary
Royal Irish Constabulary
The armed Royal Irish Constabulary was Ireland's major police force for most of the nineteenth and the early twentieth centuries. A separate civic police force, the unarmed Dublin Metropolitan Police controlled the capital, and the cities of Derry and Belfast, originally with their own police...
. Fighting broke out but the only casualty was a Constable Whelan, who was the first to die during the Rising.
Arriving at Moyode they congregated with other companies but lack of orders and supplies led to fatigue and hunger. When news of the failure of the Rising in Dublin arrived, the men dispersed, some going home. Ruane himself went on the run.
He hid out in Moycullen
Moycullen
Moycullen Moycullen Moycullen (official name: Maigh Cuilinn, Plain of Holly, or Plain of Cullen (a local giant) is a suburban village in County Galway, Ireland, about 10 km (7 mi) north west of Galway city. It is located near Lough Corrib, on the N59 road to Oughterard and Clifden in...
and used an island in Lough Corrib
Lough Corrib
Lough Corrib is a lake in the west of Ireland. The River Corrib or Galway river connects the lake to the sea at Galway. It is the second largest lough in Ireland . It covers 178 km² and lies mostly in County Galway with a small area of its northeast corner in County Mayo.The first canal in...
as a fall-back during searches. However, a letter was found in his wife's handbag which gave his address as at Bohans, Borra, Moycullen. He was arrested and sent to Frangoch, where he spent ten months. After his release, he was arrested in 1918 in connection with the German Plot, this time in Wormwood Scrubs
Wormwood Scrubs
Wormwood Scrubs, known locally as The Scrubs, is an open space located in the north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London. It is the largest open space in the Borough, at 80 ha , and one of the largest areas of common land in London...
and Winson Green
Winson Green
Winson Green is a loosely-defined inner-city area in the west of the city of Birmingham, England. It is part of the ward of Soho.It is the location of HM Prison Birmingham and City Hospital .The area has a very multi-racial population, with large Afro-Caribbean and Asian communities.R&B singer...
.
Military and civil activities
After his release from BirminghamBirmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
Prison he was appointed a justice of the 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...
courts for south and west Galway. His activities came at the price of a thousand pound reward for his capture, and he was targeted by the Black and Tans
Black and Tans
The Black and Tans was one of two newly recruited bodies, composed largely of British World War I veterans, employed by the Royal Irish Constabulary as Temporary Constables from 1920 to 1921 to suppress revolution in Ireland...
. He may have participated on the attack on Loughgeorge R.I.C. Barracks in May 1920, launched by the mid-Galway Brigade.
After the Treaty, he fought on the side of the Republicans. As a reprisal for the Kilroe ambush, near Headford
Headford
Headford is a town in County Galway, located 26 km north of Galway city in the west of Ireland. The N84 national secondary route from Galway to Castlebar passes through the town. The R333 road travels from Headford to Tuam. There are many other 'boreens' and third-class roads on the...
, all his farm produce was burned.
Later Career
Ruane was a member of the County Board and a chairman of the Galway District Council for seven years. He served as a Sinn Féin member of the County Council and chairman of the Finance Committee. His son, Paddy Ruane, was elected to the council six times for Sinn Féin while his other son, Stephen, was a member of Fianna FáilFianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party , more commonly known as Fianna Fáil is a centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál...
. One of Ruane's grandson's was a British M.P.
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
as of 2000.
Ruane died on the 31st August 1937, aged 53, and was buried in Claregalway
Claregalway
Claregalway is a village situated about 10 km from the city of Galway in County Galway, Ireland. Claregalway was founded on the banks of the River Clare, hence the derivation of its name: Baile Chláir na Gaillimhe meaning "town on the Clare, in Galway"...
cemetery.