 |
| File Reference |
MSP34REF12088
|
| Name |
Denis Sheerin |
| Gender |
male |
| Address detail |
| Street |
3 St Mary's Villas, Ballina
|
| County |
Mayo
|
| Country |
Ireland
|
| Address detail |
| Street |
2 Addison Road, Fairview, Dublin
|
| County |
Dublin
|
| Country |
Ireland
|
| Address detail |
| Street |
Knocklinn Lodge, Old Connaught Road, Bray
|
| County |
Wicklow
|
| Country |
Ireland
|
| Address detail |
| Street |
3 Royal Marine Terrace, Bray
|
| County |
Wicklow
|
| Country |
Ireland
|
| Date of birth |
1898-01-06
|
| Date of death |
1979-05-01
|
| Associated files in MSPA |
34C331;
|
| Easter rising service |
No |
| Organisation |
Irish Volunteers |
| Rank |
Company Adjutant
|
| Unit |
North Mayo Battalion
|
| Company |
Ballina Company
|
| Brigade |
Mayo Brigade
|
| Commanding Officer(s) |
Thomas Ruane; Martin Lacken;
|
| Organisation |
Irish Republican Army |
| Rank |
Unknown
|
| Unit |
1 Battalion
|
| Brigade |
North Mayo Brigade
|
| Commanding Officer(s) |
Thomas Ruane; Eamon Gannon;
|
| Organisation |
Irish Republican Army |
| Rank |
Brigade Quartermaster
|
| Brigade |
North Mayo Brigade
|
| Commanding Officer(s) |
Eamon Gannon; Thomas Loftus;
|
| Organisation |
Irish Republican Army |
| Rank |
Unknown
|
| Unit |
Active Service Service Unit
|
| Brigade |
North Mayo Brigade
|
| Commanding Officer(s) |
Eamon Gannon; Thomas Loftus;
|
| Organisation |
Irish Republican Army |
| Rank |
Brigade Quartermaster
|
| Division |
4 Western Division
|
| Brigade |
North Mayo Brigade (2 Brigade)
|
| Commanding Officer(s) |
Seamus Kilcullen; Thomas Ruane;
|
| Organisation |
Irish Republican Army |
| Rank |
Unknown
|
| Unit |
Active Service Unit
|
| Division |
4 Western Division
|
| Brigade |
North Mayo Brigade (2 Brigade)
|
| Organisation |
Irish Republican Army |
| Rank |
Brigade Officer Commanding
|
| Division |
4 Western Division
|
| Brigade |
North Mayo Brigade (2 Brigade)
|
| Commanding Officer(s) |
Seamus Kilcullen; Maurice Sweeney (Prison); J. Hoade (Prison); J. Hurley (Prison);
|
| Pension Claim |
Yes |
| Award Pension |
Yes |
| Army Pensions Act 1923/1953 |
No |
| Military Service Pensions Acts 1924 |
No |
| Military Service Pensions Acts 1934 |
Yes |
| Grade |
C |
| Notes |
Awarded 6 and 11/12 years service for pension purposes in 1938 following appeal against original award of 6 and 2/3 years service granted in 1937
|
| Military Service Pensions Acts 1949 |
No |
| Digital file |
Scanned/digital copyWMSP34REF12088DENISSHEERIN.pdf
Scanned/digital copyW34C331DENISSHEERIN.pdf |
| File dates |
19 September 1934 - 12 December 1979
|
| Subject Information |
File relates to Denis Sheerin's receipt of a military service pension in respect of his service with the Irish Volunteers and IRA for part or all of the service periods between 1 April 1917 and 30 September 1923 during the War of Independence, Truce period and Civil War. Applicant also claimed unsuccessfully for service in the periods between 1 April 1916 and 31 March 1917.
Denis Sheerin claims membership of the Irish Volunteers from 1914. From 1917 to the end of the War of Independence Sheerin served as an Irish Volunteer Company Adjutant, Battalion Quartermaster and Vice Commandant, and as an IRA Brigade Quartermaster. During 1917 and 1918 he was mainly involved in organisational and training work as well as taking part in munitions manufacturing. However he also states that in [May] 1918 he accompanied Fintan Murphy and later Richard Walsh to Belderrig, County Mayo in unsuccessful efforts to make contact with a German submarine from which it was hoped to acquire arms for the Irish Volunteers. During 1920 Sheerin states that he took part in an IRA raid on an income tax office in Ballina, County Mayo as well as taking part in the burning of RIC barracks at Cloghans, Ballymohenry, Enniscrone and Corrick and a number of raids for arms and munitions. In June 1920 he took part in a raid on Ballina Railway Station to remove and destroy a quantity of steel shutters to be used for RIC barracks. On 11 July 1920 he took part in an attack in which an RIC Sergeant Armstrong was killed and in August was involved in the IRA attack on Enniscrone Coastguard station. In late 1920 he took part in IRA attacks on RIC personnel at Callow and Belgarriff (sic) near Foxford. During 1921 he took part in IRA attacks on /exchanges of fire with RIC and British forces at Ballina, Bonniconlon, Ballycastle, Heathfield and Culleens.
During the Truce period Denis Sheerin took part in IRA training camps and served in the North Mayo Brigade Headquarters in Ballina. He claims he was responsible for a successful attempt in September 1921 to import arms from Glasgow to the Quay, Ballina for the IRA. Following the Army split of March 1922 Denis Sheerin had sided with the anti-Treaty IRA forces. On 26 June 1922 he states that he was arrested in Roscommon by National Army forces - allegedly in retaliation for the arresting of National Army soldiers by IRA forces in Westport, County Mayo previously. He escaped and returned to Ballina and took part in fighting / attacks against National Army forces there as well as at Callow, Drumsheen and Churchpark during the Civil War. In early 1923 he became Brigade Officer Commanding and was captured in March and subsequently interned until December 1923 in Galway and Tintown No. 2 Internment Camp during which he claims to have assisted other prisoners to escape and taken part in a 42 day hunger strike.
File includes: handwritten material signed and submitted by Denis Sheerin in support of his service pension application; newspaper cutting of Thursday 20 October 1921 from the Ballina Herald newspaper which contains among other items reports from Ballina Quarter Sessions regarding claims for compensation from civilians, members of the RIC and the widow of RIC Sergeant Foody arising from incidents during the War of Independence and including the claim of a Bernard Hanley, Knox Street, Ballina who claims that he was physically beaten and robbed by members of the British forces who threatened to kill him if he did not give them information regarding Sheerin; undated unidentified newspaper cutting regarding a court hearing of a charge brought against Peter Hanley, Ballina for making a false claim against the Minister for Finance in respect of good allegedly removed from Hanley's premises in Ballina by 'Irregular' (IRA) forces in September 1922 and containing details of evidence given by Denis Sherin (sic); standard form Referee R.15 showing details of claimant's rank and unit strength as of 11 July 1921 and 1 July 1922 from records / information supplied by Thomas Ruane and the relevant IRA brigade committee; typed transcript (14 pages) of sworn statement made by Denis Sheerin on 16 October 1936 before the Advisory Committee, Military Service Pensions Act, 1934; signed statements and letters regarding subject's service and service pension application from M. Kilcawley, Thomas Ruane, P. A. Calleary, C. A. Macken, Thomas Loftus, Seamus Kilcullen, P. J. Ruttledge TD, Minister for Justice, Patrick Timoney, William Hopkins, William Doherty and Michael Lavell; handwritten notes relating to discussions regarding claimant's service and activities with "Messrs Calleary and Ruane" material relating to Denis Sheerin's service with the Defence Forces during the Emergency (Second World War); and material relating to Denis Sheerin's surviving children - partly closed.
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