Paddy Roe McLaughlin (17 December 1902 – 29 September 1974) was an

Irish republican Irish republicanism () is the political movement for an Irish republic, void of any British rule. Throughout its centuries of existence, it has encompassed various tactics and identities, simultaneously elective and militant and has been both w ...

and left-wing political activist. He fought on the republican side during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

Early life

McLaughlin was born in Lecamey near

Moville Moville (; ) is a coastal town located on the Inishowen Peninsula of County Donegal, Ireland, close to the northern tip of the island of Ireland. It is the first coastal town of the Wild Atlantic Way when starting on the northern end. Location ...

on the

Inishowen Inishowen () is a peninsula in the north of County Donegal in Ireland. Inishowen is the largest peninsula on the island of Ireland. The Inishowen peninsula includes Ireland's most northerly point, Malin Head. The Grianan of Aileach, a ringfor ...

peninsula,

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...

on 17 December 1902. His parents, Thomas and Bridget McLaughlin, were small farmers. The family nickname was "Roe" to distinguish from the many other McLaughlin families in the region. He was educated at Falmore National School and was an altar boy at St John's Church, Ballinacrea. McLaughlin was a veteran of the

War of Independence Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...

and was on the

Anti-Treaty The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty (), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain an ...

side during the

Irish Civil War The Irish Civil War (; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United Kingdom but within the British Emp ...

. He emigrated to Canada and later moved to the USA where he worked in construction on the New York subway during the 1930s. He also served in the 69th Infantry Regiment of the

New York National Guard New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 19 ...

Political activism

McLaughlin participated in protests in defence of the two Italian-born American anarchists, Nicolo Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti outside the prison in the state of Massachusetts when they were executed on August 23, 1927. Both were accused of the killing of a shoe factory paymaster and a security guard during a robbery on April 15, 1920.

Spanish Civil War

Following the outbreak of the

in 1936 he travelled from New York to London on board the ''Normandie'', where he met up with over 40 other volunteers, including Peter Daly and Frank Edwards. From there they travelled to Spain to fight for the

Second Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of democratic government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931 after the deposition of Alfonso XIII, King Alfonso XIII. ...

in the

XV international brigade The XV International Brigade was one of the International Brigades formed to fight for the Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. History The XVth Brigade mustered at Albacete in January 1937. It consisted of English-speaking volunte ...

(also known as the Abraham Lincoln Brigade) against

Franco Franco may refer to: Name * Franco (name) * Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975 * Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître" * Franco of Cologne (mid to late 13th cent ...

's fascist coup. McLaughlin fought at the

Battle of Jarama The Battle of Jarama (6–27 February 1937) was an attempt by General Francisco Franco's Nationalists to dislodge the Second Spanish Republic, Republican lines along the river Jarama, just east of Madrid, during the Spanish Civil War. Elite Spa ...

where he lost his comrade and friend, Liam Tumilson.

Later life

McLaughlin returned to England in 1938 and married Tumilson's fiancée, Kathleen Walsh. They had two children, including British far-right activist Michael McLaughlin. Paddy Roe was a founding member of the

Connolly Association The Connolly Association is an organisation based among Irish emigrants in Britain which supports the aims of Irish republicanism. It takes its name from James Connolly, a socialist republican, born in Edinburgh, Scotland and executed by the Brit ...

in England and both he and Kathleen were members of the Communist Party. On the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

he joined the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

as a mechanic and was later employed at the

Dounreay Dounreay (; ) is a small settlement and the site of two large nuclear establishments on the north coast of Caithness Caithness (; ; ) is a Shires of Scotland, historic county, registration county and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutena ...

nuclear power station in North Scotland. Following the 1956 Soviet invasion of Hungary, Kathleen left the Communist Party disillusioned, while Paddy remained a member. He died in Liverpool in 1974. In 2013, McLaughlin was commemorated, along with other volunteers from Donegal, Derry and Tyrone, on a plaque erected on the facade of the

Unite the Union Unite the Union, commonly known as Unite, is a trade union in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, Ireland, formed on 1 May 2007 by the merger of Amicus (trade union), Amicus and the Transport and General Workers' Union. A general union ...

building in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McLaughlin, Paddy Roe 1902 births 1974 deaths Irish anti-fascists Irish communists Irish people of the Spanish Civil War People from County Donegal