Eoin MacWhite (1923–1972) was an Irish

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

, and

scholar A scholar is a person who is a researcher or has expertise in an academic discipline. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researcher at a university. An academic usually holds an advanced degree or a termina ...

Birth

He was born in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

where his father,

Michael MacWhite Michael MacWhite (1883–1958) was an Irish diplomat. He was born in Reenogreena, near Glandore, County Cork in 1883. Amongst other postings, he served as the first Irish permanent delegate to the League of Nations. Early career MacWhite worked ...

, was serving as a member of the delegation chosen to represent the newly independent

Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...

. At the time, the Irish were applying to join the

League of Nations The League of Nations (LN or LoN; , SdN) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace ...

. Eoin MacWhite was born on the same day that the Irish Free State's application for membership was approved. His birth coincided with a tragic event for the MacWhite family. On the very day he was born, his infant sister died suddenly. Each member of the Irish delegation attended the infant's funeral in Geneva.

Education and career

He attended

University College Dublin University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...

from 1940, ultimately earning a PhD in Archaeology. His important contributions to archaeology included work on Irish rock art and the Iberian

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

. He joined the Irish diplomatic service and rose to the rank of

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

, representing his country first at that rank in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and subsequently the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Death

He was killed in a

car accident A traffic collision, also known as a motor vehicle collision, or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other moving or stationary obstruction, such as a tree, pole or building. T ...

in 1972.The Irish Times (1972) MacWhite: A Noted Scholar, Linguist, Distinguished diplomate dies in Car Crash at the Hague. August 1. Page 9

References

1972 deaths 1923 births 20th-century Irish archaeologists Irish expatriates in Switzerland Ambassadors of Ireland to the Netherlands Alumni of University College Dublin Ambassadors of Ireland to Australia {{Ireland-bio-stub