Godfrey Timmins (6 September 1927 – 11 April 2001) was an Irish

Fine Gael Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil � ...

politician who served in

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland r ...

from 1968 to 1987 and from 1989 to 1997.

Early and personal life

Born in Weaver's Square,

Baltinglass Baltinglass, historically known as Baltinglas (), is a town in south-west County Wicklow, Ireland. It is located on the River Slaney near the border with County Carlow and County Kildare, on the N81 road. Etymology The town's Irish name, ''B ...

County Wicklow County Wicklow ( ; ga, Contae Chill Mhantáin ) is a county in Ireland. The last of the traditional 32 counties, having been formed as late as 1606, it is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is bordered ...

, he was the eldest of four children. His father had been a

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur G ...

representative on the Baltinglass Board of Guardians, one of three Benchmen in the

Republican court The Republican Court was a group of American political figures, intellectuals, and their spouses which formed in the late 1700s and early 1800s around the president and first lady of the United States. It centered around social gatherings at the ho ...

during the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (1919–1922), Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and United Kingdom of Gre ...

, a pro-Treaty

Cumann na nGaedheal Cumann na nGaedheal (; "Society of the Gaels") was a political party in the Irish Free State, which formed the government from 1923 to 1932. In 1933 it merged with smaller groups to form the Fine Gael party. Origins In 1922 the pro-Treaty ...

supporter, and later a

Councillor. His mother Kitty (née Godfrey) was a native of

Ballyhaunis Ballyhaunis () is a town in County Mayo, Ireland. It is at the crossroads of the N60 and N83 National secondary roads and on the railway line linking Dublin to Westport and Ballina. It is thought that the town grew up around St Mary's Augu ...

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the yew trees") is a county in Ireland. In the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Coun ...

. He was known by his mother's maiden surname, Godfrey, to distinguish him from his father. He attended secondary school at the Patrician College,

Tullow Tullow (; , formerly ''Tulach Ó bhFéidhlim/ Tullowphelim'') is a market town in County Carlow, Ireland. It is located on the River Slaney where the N81 road intersects with the R725. , the population was 4,673. History There is a statue ...

and later at

Naas Naas ( ; ga, Nás na Ríogh or ) is the county town of County Kildare in Ireland. In 2016, it had a population of 21,393, making it the second largest town in County Kildare after Newbridge. History The name of Naas has been recorded in th ...

Christian Brothers School The following is a list of the schools, colleges, and other educational institutions founded, run or staffed (in any capacity) by the Congregation of Christian Brothers (sometimes called the Irish Christian Brothers) since 1802. Some schools no l ...

. After finishing school he worked in the

family business A family business is a commercial organization in which decision-making is influenced by multiple generations of a family, related by blood or marriage or adoption, who has both the ability to influence the vision of the business and the willin ...

and as a farmer and butcher in Baltinglass. He was a keen

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by ki ...

er. In 1946 he was the Baltinglass club delegate to the Wicklow County GAA Board. He served as Chairman of the local club from 1952 to 1970 and club President from 1971 until his death in 2001.

Political career

Timmins became active in politics with Fine Gael. In the local elections of 1950 he succeeded in being the only Fine Gael candidate elected to

Wicklow County Council Wicklow County Council ( ga, Comhairle Chontae Chill Mhantáin) is the authority responsible for local government in County Wicklow, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for h ...

. He was re-elected at each subsequent local election, and was a member of the council for 49 years. He held the position of Chairman on the Council on four occasions (1975, 1978, 1981 and 1996). He also served on the county council's committee on Agriculture, Wicklow

VEC Vec may mean: Mathematics: * vec(''A''), the vectorization of a matrix ''A''. * Vec denotes the category of vector spaces over the reals. Other: * Venetian language (Vèneto), language code. * Vecuronium, a muscle relaxant. * vec, a sentient mora ...

and the Eastern Health Board. Timmins was elected to the

18th Dáil 18 (eighteen) is the natural number following 17 and preceding 19. In mathematics * Eighteen is a composite number, its divisors being 1, 2, 3, 6 and 9. Three of these divisors (3, 6 and 9) add up to 18, hence 18 is a semiperfect numb ...

as a Fine Gael

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( , ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish language, Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas, Oireachtas (the Irish Parliament). It is the equivalent of terms s ...

(TD) for the

Wicklow Wicklow ( ; ga, Cill Mhantáin , meaning 'church of the toothless one'; non, Víkingaló) is the county town of County Wicklow in Ireland. It is located south of Dublin on the east coast of the island. According to the 2016 census, it has ...

constituency at the April 1968 by-election caused by the death of Labour Party TD

James Everett James Everett (14 February 1890 – 18 December 1967) was an Irish Labour Party politician who served as Minister for Justice from 1954 to 1957, Minister for Posts and Telegraphs from 1948 to 1951 and Leader of the National Labour Party from ...

. He was re-elected at each subsequent general election until he lost in

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airpor ...

. Refusing to stand for the Seanad, he regained his seat at the next general election and remained as a TD until he retired at the 1997 general election. He was succeeded in

by his son

Billy Timmins Billy Timmins (born 1 October 1959) is an Irish former politician. He was a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Wicklow constituency from 1997 until the 2016 general election. He was the deputy leader of Renua from the foundation of the party in March ...

. During his time in the Dáil he served as a member of the Committee on Procedure and Privileges, the Committee of Selection and the Committee of Accounts. He was Fine Gael

Chief Whip The Chief Whip is a political leader whose task is to enforce the whipping system, which aims to ensure that legislators who are members of a political party attend and vote on legislation as the party leadership prescribes. United Kingdom ...

from 1972 to 1973. He collapsed and died while attending a GAA match in Dunlavin in April 2001. He left an estate worth €3.5m in 2003.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Timmins, Godfrey 1927 births 2001 deaths Fine Gael TDs Gaelic games club administrators Gaelic games players from County Wicklow Irish sportsperson-politicians Members of Wicklow County Council Members of the 18th Dáil Members of the 19th Dáil Members of the 20th Dáil Members of the 21st Dáil Members of the 22nd Dáil Members of the 23rd Dáil Members of the 24th Dáil Members of the 26th Dáil Members of the 27th Dáil

Early and personal life

Political career

See also

References