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Peadar Kearney

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Peadar Kearney
Kearney in 1912
Born(1883-12-12)12 December 1883
68Lower Dorset Street, Dublin
Died24 November 1942(1942-11-24)(aged 58)
Inchicore,Dublin, Ireland
Buried
Glasnevin Cemetery,Dublin, Ireland
Service/branch
Battles/wars
Relations
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Peadar Kearney(Irish:Peadar Ó Cearnaigh[ˈpʲad̪ˠəɾˠoːˈcaɾˠn̪ˠiː];12 December 1883 – 24 November 1942)[1]was anIrish republicanand composer of numerousrebel songs.In 1907 he wrote the lyrics to "A Soldier's Song" (Irish:"Amhrán na bhFiann"), now the Irishnational anthem.He was the uncle ofIrish writersBrendan Behan,Brian Behan,andDominic Behan.

Background[edit]

Kearney was born in 1883 at 68Lower Dorset Street, Dublin,[2]above one of the twogrocer'sshops owned by his father, John Kearney (1854–1897),[3]originally from Funshog,Collon,County Louth.[4]John soon after lost his businesses and lived precariously as an insurance agent.[5]Peadar's mother, KatienéeMcGuinness (1859/60–1907),[6]was from Rathmaiden,Slane,County Meath.[7]Peadar was educated at theModel School,Schoolhouse Lane andSt. Joseph's C.B.S.inFairview.[8]He heard Willie Rooney give nationalist lectures on history in theMechanics' Institute.[9]He started atBelvedere Collegebut played truant to escape beatings, so that his father ended his education and got him a job at a bicycle repair shop.[10]His father died of pneumonia soon after, leaving Peadar to support his mother and five younger siblings.[11]He had various menial jobs for three years before being apprenticed to a house painter. He is a distant relative of Irish-Spanish resident Sandra Dunne (formerly Brady) of the Campoamor region in Spain[12]

Political activity[edit]

In 1901, the death ofWilliam Rooneyprompted Kearney to join the Willie Rooney Branch of theGaelic League.[13]He joined theIrish Republican Brotherhoodin 1903.[14]He taught night classes in Irish and numberedSeán O'Caseyamong his pupils.[15]He found work with the National Theatre Society and in 1904 was one of the first to inspect the derelict building that became theAbbey Theatre,which opened its doors on 27 December of that year. He assisted with props and performed occasional walk-on parts at the Abbey until 1916.[14]

Kearney was a co-founder of theIrish Volunteersin 1913. He took part in theHowthandKilcoolegun runnings in 1914.[14]In theEaster Risingof 1916 Kearney fought at Jacob's biscuit factory underThomas MacDonagh,abandoning an Abbey Theatre tour in England to take part in the Rising.[15]He escaped before the garrison was taken into custody.[14]

He was active in theWar of Independence.On 25 November 1920 he was captured at his home inSummerhill, Dublinand was interned first inCollinstown Campin Dublin and later inBallykinler CampinCounty Down.[14]

Kearney at first took theFree Stateside in theCivil Warbut lost faith in the Free State after Collins's death.[14]He took no further part in politics, returning to his original trade of house painting. Kearney died in relative poverty inInchicorein 1942.[16]He is buried inGlasnevin Cemeteryin Dublin. He was survived by his wife Eva and two sons, Pearse and Con.

The gravestone ofThomas Ashe,Peadar Kearney andPiaras Béaslaíat Glasnevin Cemetery.

Songs and legacy[edit]

Kearney's songs were highly popular with the Volunteers (which later became theIRA) in the 1913–22 period. Most popular was "The Soldier's Song". Kearney penned the original English lyrics in 1907 and his friend and musical collaboratorPatrick Heeneycomposed the music. The lyrics were published in 1912 and the music in 1916.[15]After 1916 it replaced "God Save Ireland"as the anthem of Irish nationalists. TheIrish Free Statewas established in 1922 and formally adopted the anthem in 1926. Subsequently, theatres and the state broadcaster began playing the anthem at the end of performances, and Kearney prepared to take legal action to demandroyalties,obliging the state to acquire thecopyrightin 1934 for £980 (half each to Kearney and the heirs of Heeney, who had died).[17][18]From the 1930s, the anthem was increasingly sung in Irish, in a translation byLiam Ó Rinn.

Other well-known songs by Kearney include "Down by the Glenside","The Tri-coloured Ribbon","Down by the Liffey Side "," Knockcroghery "(about the village ofKnockcroghery) and "Erin Go Bragh" (Erin Go Braghwas the text on theIrish nationalflag before the adoption of thetricolour).

Kearney was the uncle of the writersBrendan,andDominic Behan,both of whom were also republicans and songwriters, via his sisterKathleen Kearneywho marriedStephen Behan,one ofMichael Collins's "Twelve Apostles".[19]Brendan Behan was in prison when Kearney died, and was refused permission to attend his funeral. In a letter to Kearney's son, Pearse, he said, "my Uncle Peadar was the one, outside my own parents, who excited the admiration and love that is friendship."[20]

Famed Irish sculptor and artistJames Powerdid a portrait of Kearney in 1962 and is currently in theKilmainham GaolMuseum.[21]In 1957 his sister Margaret's son, Seamus de Burca (or Jimmy Bourke), published a biography of Kearney,The Soldier's Song: The Story of Peadar Ó Cearnaigh.[16]In 1976 De Burca also published Kearney's letters to his wife written during his internment in 1921 were published asMy Dear Eva... Letters from Ballykinlar Internment Camp, 1921.[16]A wall plaque on the west side of Dorset Street commemorates his birth there.

References[edit]

Citations[edit]

  1. ^de Burca 1957 p.18, 231
  2. ^de Burca 1957 p.18
  3. ^de Burca 1957 p.14, 17, 28
  4. ^de Burca 1957 p.13
  5. ^de Burca 1957 p.26
  6. ^de Burca 1957 p.17,58
  7. ^de Burca 1957 p.17
  8. ^de Burca 1957 p.18, 26
  9. ^de Burca 1957 p.24–25
  10. ^de Burca 1957 p.26–28
  11. ^de Burca 1957 p.18, 28
  12. ^de Burca 1957 p.28–32
  13. ^de Burca 1957 p.25
  14. ^abcdefMacDonncha, Mícheál (26 July 2007)."Centenary of Amhrán na bhFiann - The Soldier's Song".An Phoblacht.Archived fromthe originalon 4 November 2007.
  15. ^abcOrigin of the Irish National Anthemfrom-ireland.net
  16. ^abcPeadar Kearney - Riscorso.netPrincess Grace Irish Library, Monaco
  17. ^Department of Finance (November 1933).Estimate of the amount required in the year ending 31st March, 1934, for the acquisition by the state of copyright in the national anthem(PDF).Official publications. Vol. P.1116. Stationery Office.
  18. ^ Sherry, Ruth (Spring 1996)."The Story of the National Anthem".History Ireland.4(1). Dublin: 39–43.
  19. ^Cottrell, Peter (2009).The War for Ireland: 1913-1923.Osprey. p. 143.ISBN978-1846039966.Retrieved29 August2014.
  20. ^E. H. Mikhail, ed. (1992).The Letters of Brendan Behan.McGill-Queen's Press. p. 15.ISBN978-0-7735-0888-0.
  21. ^Fr O "Growney statue sculptor James Power dies, aged 90,Meath Chronicle,22 Apr 2009

Sources[edit]

External links[edit]

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