Seamus Costello (Irish: Séamus Mac Coisdealbha, 1939 - 1977) born in Old Connaught Avenue, Bray, County Wicklow in 1939 was a leader of Official Sinn Féin and the Official Irish Republican Army and latterly of the Irish Republican Socialist Party and the Irish National Liberation Army.
He argued for a combination of socialist politics on economic issues and traditional Irish republicanism. He is best remembered for the founding of the Irish Republican Socialist Party and the Irish National Liberation Army. He was a victim of the feud with his former comrades in the Official IRA.
At the age of 16 he joined Sinn Féin and the Irish Republican Army. Within a year, he was commanding an active service unit of the IRA in south County Londonderry during the Border Campaign, where his leadership skills earned him the nickname of "the Boy General". The most publicised actions of his unit included the destruction of bridges and the burning of Magherafelt courthouse. He was arrested in Glencree, County Wicklow, in 1957 and sentenced to six months in Mountjoy Prison. On his release, he was immediately interned in the Curragh prison camp for two years.
He spent his time in prison studying. He was particularly inspired by his studies of the Vietnamese struggle. He became a member of the escape committee which engineered the successful escapes of Ruairí Ó Brádaigh and Dáithí Ó Conaill, among others. Costello would later refer to this time as his "university days".After his release, Costello worked to rebuild the Republican Movement, beginning by building a local base of support in County Wicklow as Sinn Féin's local organiser. Costello strongly supported the movement's left-wing orientation of these years - especially its emphasis on grassroots political activism. He helped found a strong tenants' association in Bray, and also became involved with the credit union movement and various farmers' organisations. During this period, he found time to marry a Tipperary woman, Maeliosa, who also became active in the Republican Movement. Costello stood for election to the Bray Urban District Council in 1967 and was successful.
After the Troubles broke out in Northern Ireland in 1969, the IRA and Sinn Féin both split over abstentionism and the "left-wing" faction's Marxist politics. During the split of the Republican Movement into Official and Provisional movements in 1969, Costello remained with the Officials, due to their greater commitment to left wing politics. He served as Vice-President of Official Sinn Féin and as a staff officer in the Official IRA.
As the Officials moved away from armed struggle (calling a ceasefire in 1972), Costello's opposition caused him to be dismissed from the OIRA and suspended from OSF. He was dismissed from OSF in 1974 after the OSF leadership blocked his supporters from attending the party convention.
At a meeting in the Lucan Spa Hotel near Dublin, on 10 December 1974, the Irish Republican Socialist Party was formed by republicans, socialists, and trade unionists with Costello as the Chairperson.
At a private meeting later the same day, the Irish National Liberation Army was formed with Costello as the Chief of Staff, although its existence was to be kept secret for a time. The new grouping intended to combine far left politics with the "armed struggle" against British security forces in Northern Ireland.
Within days of its founding, the fledgling Irish Republican Socialist Movement was embroiled in a bitter feud with the Official IRA. Members of the IRSM were attacked, some were killed. Before a truce was reached, three members of the young movement were dead.Despite the truce, Costello was shot dead as he sat in his car on the North Strand Road in Dublin on 5 October 1977 by a member of the Official IRA, who happened to be in the area at the time.[5] The Official and Provisional IRAs both denied responsibility and Sinn Féin/The Workers' Party issued a statement condemning the killing. Members of an opposing INLA faction in Belfast also denied the killing. However, the INLA eventually settled upon the person responsible, and he was shot dead in June 1982 in the North Strand, Dublin, very close to the spot where Costello died.[6]
Costello was the first (and so far only) leader of an Irish political party to be murdered.
At the time of his death, he was a member of the following bodies:
Wicklow County Council
County Wicklow Committee of Agriculture
General Council of Committees of Agriculture
Eastern Regional Development Organisation
National Museum Development Committee
Bray Urban District Council
Bray Branch of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union
Bray and District Trade Unions Council (of which he was president 1976-77)
Cualann Historical Society
as well as still holding the positions of
Chairperson of the IRSP and
Chief of Staff of the INLA.
At his funeral, Nora Connolly O'Brien daughter of the Easter Rising leader, James Connolly said "he was the only one who truly understood what James Connolly meant when he spoke of his vision of the freedom of the Irish people."
He once said - "I Owe My Allegiance Only to the Working Class"
He was a man FOR the working class. He was not a war monger but a man who believed in standing for those oppressed and those who were struggling through their lives and in need of support. He believed in doing what it takes to aid those in need. Those workers of the world. When being a regular working class Joe wasnt enough to get by. A time when people were truly oppressed.
Remember him well. He could have made the changes.
He had the socialist vision - 'WE ARE NOTHING AND WE SHALL BE EVERYTHING' - which the establishment recognises and fears." -- James Daly, Oration at the funeral of Seamus Costello, October 8, 1977
Mr. Costello was buried in Bray.
He argued for a combination of socialist politics on economic issues and traditional Irish republicanism. He is best remembered for the founding of the Irish Republican Socialist Party and the Irish National Liberation Army. He was a victim of the feud with his former comrades in the Official IRA.
At the age of 16 he joined Sinn Féin and the Irish Republican Army. Within a year, he was commanding an active service unit of the IRA in south County Londonderry during the Border Campaign, where his leadership skills earned him the nickname of "the Boy General". The most publicised actions of his unit included the destruction of bridges and the burning of Magherafelt courthouse. He was arrested in Glencree, County Wicklow, in 1957 and sentenced to six months in Mountjoy Prison. On his release, he was immediately interned in the Curragh prison camp for two years.
He spent his time in prison studying. He was particularly inspired by his studies of the Vietnamese struggle. He became a member of the escape committee which engineered the successful escapes of Ruairí Ó Brádaigh and Dáithí Ó Conaill, among others. Costello would later refer to this time as his "university days".After his release, Costello worked to rebuild the Republican Movement, beginning by building a local base of support in County Wicklow as Sinn Féin's local organiser. Costello strongly supported the movement's left-wing orientation of these years - especially its emphasis on grassroots political activism. He helped found a strong tenants' association in Bray, and also became involved with the credit union movement and various farmers' organisations. During this period, he found time to marry a Tipperary woman, Maeliosa, who also became active in the Republican Movement. Costello stood for election to the Bray Urban District Council in 1967 and was successful.
After the Troubles broke out in Northern Ireland in 1969, the IRA and Sinn Féin both split over abstentionism and the "left-wing" faction's Marxist politics. During the split of the Republican Movement into Official and Provisional movements in 1969, Costello remained with the Officials, due to their greater commitment to left wing politics. He served as Vice-President of Official Sinn Féin and as a staff officer in the Official IRA.
As the Officials moved away from armed struggle (calling a ceasefire in 1972), Costello's opposition caused him to be dismissed from the OIRA and suspended from OSF. He was dismissed from OSF in 1974 after the OSF leadership blocked his supporters from attending the party convention.
At a meeting in the Lucan Spa Hotel near Dublin, on 10 December 1974, the Irish Republican Socialist Party was formed by republicans, socialists, and trade unionists with Costello as the Chairperson.
At a private meeting later the same day, the Irish National Liberation Army was formed with Costello as the Chief of Staff, although its existence was to be kept secret for a time. The new grouping intended to combine far left politics with the "armed struggle" against British security forces in Northern Ireland.
Within days of its founding, the fledgling Irish Republican Socialist Movement was embroiled in a bitter feud with the Official IRA. Members of the IRSM were attacked, some were killed. Before a truce was reached, three members of the young movement were dead.Despite the truce, Costello was shot dead as he sat in his car on the North Strand Road in Dublin on 5 October 1977 by a member of the Official IRA, who happened to be in the area at the time.[5] The Official and Provisional IRAs both denied responsibility and Sinn Féin/The Workers' Party issued a statement condemning the killing. Members of an opposing INLA faction in Belfast also denied the killing. However, the INLA eventually settled upon the person responsible, and he was shot dead in June 1982 in the North Strand, Dublin, very close to the spot where Costello died.[6]
Costello was the first (and so far only) leader of an Irish political party to be murdered.
At the time of his death, he was a member of the following bodies:
Wicklow County Council
County Wicklow Committee of Agriculture
General Council of Committees of Agriculture
Eastern Regional Development Organisation
National Museum Development Committee
Bray Urban District Council
Bray Branch of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union
Bray and District Trade Unions Council (of which he was president 1976-77)
Cualann Historical Society
as well as still holding the positions of
Chairperson of the IRSP and
Chief of Staff of the INLA.
At his funeral, Nora Connolly O'Brien daughter of the Easter Rising leader, James Connolly said "he was the only one who truly understood what James Connolly meant when he spoke of his vision of the freedom of the Irish people."
He once said - "I Owe My Allegiance Only to the Working Class"
He was a man FOR the working class. He was not a war monger but a man who believed in standing for those oppressed and those who were struggling through their lives and in need of support. He believed in doing what it takes to aid those in need. Those workers of the world. When being a regular working class Joe wasnt enough to get by. A time when people were truly oppressed.
Remember him well. He could have made the changes.
He had the socialist vision - 'WE ARE NOTHING AND WE SHALL BE EVERYTHING' - which the establishment recognises and fears." -- James Daly, Oration at the funeral of Seamus Costello, October 8, 1977
Mr. Costello was buried in Bray.
Seamus Costello (Irish: Séamus Mac Coisdealbha, 1939 - 1977) born in Old Connaught Avenue, Bray, County Wicklow in 1939 was a leader of Official Sinn Féin and the Official Irish Republican Army and latterly of the Irish Republican Socialist Party and the Irish National Liberation Army.
He argued for a combination of socialist politics on economic issues and traditional Irish republicanism. He is best remembered for the founding of the Irish Republican Socialist Party and the Irish National Liberation Army. He was a victim of the feud with his former comrades in the Official IRA.
At the age of 16 he joined Sinn Féin and the Irish Republican Army. Within a year, he was commanding an active service unit of the IRA in south County Londonderry during the Border Campaign, where his leadership skills earned him the nickname of "the Boy General". The most publicised actions of his unit included the destruction of bridges and the burning of Magherafelt courthouse. He was arrested in Glencree, County Wicklow, in 1957 and sentenced to six months in Mountjoy Prison. On his release, he was immediately interned in the Curragh prison camp for two years.
He spent his time in prison studying. He was particularly inspired by his studies of the Vietnamese struggle. He became a member of the escape committee which engineered the successful escapes of Ruairí Ó Brádaigh and Dáithí Ó Conaill, among others. Costello would later refer to this time as his "university days".After his release, Costello worked to rebuild the Republican Movement, beginning by building a local base of support in County Wicklow as Sinn Féin's local organiser. Costello strongly supported the movement's left-wing orientation of these years - especially its emphasis on grassroots political activism. He helped found a strong tenants' association in Bray, and also became involved with the credit union movement and various farmers' organisations. During this period, he found time to marry a Tipperary woman, Maeliosa, who also became active in the Republican Movement. Costello stood for election to the Bray Urban District Council in 1967 and was successful.
After the Troubles broke out in Northern Ireland in 1969, the IRA and Sinn Féin both split over abstentionism and the "left-wing" faction's Marxist politics. During the split of the Republican Movement into Official and Provisional movements in 1969, Costello remained with the Officials, due to their greater commitment to left wing politics. He served as Vice-President of Official Sinn Féin and as a staff officer in the Official IRA.
As the Officials moved away from armed struggle (calling a ceasefire in 1972), Costello's opposition caused him to be dismissed from the OIRA and suspended from OSF. He was dismissed from OSF in 1974 after the OSF leadership blocked his supporters from attending the party convention.
At a meeting in the Lucan Spa Hotel near Dublin, on 10 December 1974, the Irish Republican Socialist Party was formed by republicans, socialists, and trade unionists with Costello as the Chairperson.
At a private meeting later the same day, the Irish National Liberation Army was formed with Costello as the Chief of Staff, although its existence was to be kept secret for a time. The new grouping intended to combine far left politics with the "armed struggle" against British security forces in Northern Ireland.
Within days of its founding, the fledgling Irish Republican Socialist Movement was embroiled in a bitter feud with the Official IRA. Members of the IRSM were attacked, some were killed. Before a truce was reached, three members of the young movement were dead.Despite the truce, Costello was shot dead as he sat in his car on the North Strand Road in Dublin on 5 October 1977 by a member of the Official IRA, who happened to be in the area at the time.[5] The Official and Provisional IRAs both denied responsibility and Sinn Féin/The Workers' Party issued a statement condemning the killing. Members of an opposing INLA faction in Belfast also denied the killing. However, the INLA eventually settled upon the person responsible, and he was shot dead in June 1982 in the North Strand, Dublin, very close to the spot where Costello died.[6]
Costello was the first (and so far only) leader of an Irish political party to be murdered.
At the time of his death, he was a member of the following bodies:
Wicklow County Council
County Wicklow Committee of Agriculture
General Council of Committees of Agriculture
Eastern Regional Development Organisation
National Museum Development Committee
Bray Urban District Council
Bray Branch of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union
Bray and District Trade Unions Council (of which he was president 1976-77)
Cualann Historical Society
as well as still holding the positions of
Chairperson of the IRSP and
Chief of Staff of the INLA.
At his funeral, Nora Connolly O'Brien daughter of the Easter Rising leader, James Connolly said "he was the only one who truly understood what James Connolly meant when he spoke of his vision of the freedom of the Irish people."
He once said - "I Owe My Allegiance Only to the Working Class"
He was a man FOR the working class. He was not a war monger but a man who believed in standing for those oppressed and those who were struggling through their lives and in need of support. He believed in doing what it takes to aid those in need. Those workers of the world. When being a regular working class Joe wasnt enough to get by. A time when people were truly oppressed.
Remember him well. He could have made the changes.
He had the socialist vision - 'WE ARE NOTHING AND WE SHALL BE EVERYTHING' - which the establishment recognises and fears." -- James Daly, Oration at the funeral of Seamus Costello, October 8, 1977
Mr. Costello was buried in Bray.
He argued for a combination of socialist politics on economic issues and traditional Irish republicanism. He is best remembered for the founding of the Irish Republican Socialist Party and the Irish National Liberation Army. He was a victim of the feud with his former comrades in the Official IRA.
At the age of 16 he joined Sinn Féin and the Irish Republican Army. Within a year, he was commanding an active service unit of the IRA in south County Londonderry during the Border Campaign, where his leadership skills earned him the nickname of "the Boy General". The most publicised actions of his unit included the destruction of bridges and the burning of Magherafelt courthouse. He was arrested in Glencree, County Wicklow, in 1957 and sentenced to six months in Mountjoy Prison. On his release, he was immediately interned in the Curragh prison camp for two years.
He spent his time in prison studying. He was particularly inspired by his studies of the Vietnamese struggle. He became a member of the escape committee which engineered the successful escapes of Ruairí Ó Brádaigh and Dáithí Ó Conaill, among others. Costello would later refer to this time as his "university days".After his release, Costello worked to rebuild the Republican Movement, beginning by building a local base of support in County Wicklow as Sinn Féin's local organiser. Costello strongly supported the movement's left-wing orientation of these years - especially its emphasis on grassroots political activism. He helped found a strong tenants' association in Bray, and also became involved with the credit union movement and various farmers' organisations. During this period, he found time to marry a Tipperary woman, Maeliosa, who also became active in the Republican Movement. Costello stood for election to the Bray Urban District Council in 1967 and was successful.
After the Troubles broke out in Northern Ireland in 1969, the IRA and Sinn Féin both split over abstentionism and the "left-wing" faction's Marxist politics. During the split of the Republican Movement into Official and Provisional movements in 1969, Costello remained with the Officials, due to their greater commitment to left wing politics. He served as Vice-President of Official Sinn Féin and as a staff officer in the Official IRA.
As the Officials moved away from armed struggle (calling a ceasefire in 1972), Costello's opposition caused him to be dismissed from the OIRA and suspended from OSF. He was dismissed from OSF in 1974 after the OSF leadership blocked his supporters from attending the party convention.
At a meeting in the Lucan Spa Hotel near Dublin, on 10 December 1974, the Irish Republican Socialist Party was formed by republicans, socialists, and trade unionists with Costello as the Chairperson.
At a private meeting later the same day, the Irish National Liberation Army was formed with Costello as the Chief of Staff, although its existence was to be kept secret for a time. The new grouping intended to combine far left politics with the "armed struggle" against British security forces in Northern Ireland.
Within days of its founding, the fledgling Irish Republican Socialist Movement was embroiled in a bitter feud with the Official IRA. Members of the IRSM were attacked, some were killed. Before a truce was reached, three members of the young movement were dead.Despite the truce, Costello was shot dead as he sat in his car on the North Strand Road in Dublin on 5 October 1977 by a member of the Official IRA, who happened to be in the area at the time.[5] The Official and Provisional IRAs both denied responsibility and Sinn Féin/The Workers' Party issued a statement condemning the killing. Members of an opposing INLA faction in Belfast also denied the killing. However, the INLA eventually settled upon the person responsible, and he was shot dead in June 1982 in the North Strand, Dublin, very close to the spot where Costello died.[6]
Costello was the first (and so far only) leader of an Irish political party to be murdered.
At the time of his death, he was a member of the following bodies:
Wicklow County Council
County Wicklow Committee of Agriculture
General Council of Committees of Agriculture
Eastern Regional Development Organisation
National Museum Development Committee
Bray Urban District Council
Bray Branch of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union
Bray and District Trade Unions Council (of which he was president 1976-77)
Cualann Historical Society
as well as still holding the positions of
Chairperson of the IRSP and
Chief of Staff of the INLA.
At his funeral, Nora Connolly O'Brien daughter of the Easter Rising leader, James Connolly said "he was the only one who truly understood what James Connolly meant when he spoke of his vision of the freedom of the Irish people."
He once said - "I Owe My Allegiance Only to the Working Class"
He was a man FOR the working class. He was not a war monger but a man who believed in standing for those oppressed and those who were struggling through their lives and in need of support. He believed in doing what it takes to aid those in need. Those workers of the world. When being a regular working class Joe wasnt enough to get by. A time when people were truly oppressed.
Remember him well. He could have made the changes.
He had the socialist vision - 'WE ARE NOTHING AND WE SHALL BE EVERYTHING' - which the establishment recognises and fears." -- James Daly, Oration at the funeral of Seamus Costello, October 8, 1977
Mr. Costello was buried in Bray.
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