Thomas Bryan (born Thomas Brien; 9 January 1897 – 14 March 1921) was an Irish republican and member of the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various Resistance movement, resistance organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dominantly Catholic and dedicated to anti-imperiali ...

who was one of six men hanged in

Mountjoy Prison Mountjoy Prison (), founded as Mountjoy Gaol and nicknamed The Joy, is a medium security men's prison located in Phibsborough in the centre of Dublin, Ireland. The current prison Governor is Ray Murtagh. History Mountjoy was designed by Cap ...

on 14 March 1921.

Background

Thomas Brien was born at 30 North Brunswick Street, Dublin on 9 January 1897. His birth was registered as Thomas, son of James Brien, a labourer, and Mary (née Caffrey) Brien. In the early 1900s, he and his family lived in North King Street, Dublin. He was an experienced IRA Volunteer and a member of the Dublin Brigade's

Active Service Unit An active service unit (ASU; ) was a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) Clandestine cell system, cell of four to ten members, tasked with carrying out armed attacks. In 2002, the IRA had about 1,000 active members of which about 300 were i ...

. In 1917, he took part in the

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance where participants fasting, fast as an act of political protest, usually with the objective of achieving a specific goal, such as a policy change. Hunger strikers that do not take fluids are ...

in Mountjoy in which

Thomas Ashe Thomas Patrick Ashe (; 12 January 1885 – 25 September 1917) was an Irish revolutionary and politician. He was a member of the Gaelic League, the Gaelic Athletic Association, the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and a founding member of th ...

died. By 1920, Bryan, as his surname came to be spelled for some reason, was living at 14 Henrietta Street, Dublin and was an electrician by trade. Bryan married Annie Glynn at St. Michan's Catholic Church, Dublin on 28 November 1920. English singer

Boy George George Alan O'Dowd (born 14 June 1961), known professionally as Boy George, is an English singer-songwriter and DJ who rose to fame as the lead singer of the pop band Culture Club. He began his solo career in 1987. Boy George grew up in Eltham a ...

is one of Bryan's great-nephews.

Trial and execution

He was tried by

court-martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the arme ...

on 24 February 1921 for his part in an attempted ambush at Drumcondra on 21 January 1921. Found guilty of

high treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its d ...

, he was hanged, aged 24, along with Frank Flood at 8am on 14 March 1921. Four other men had been hanged earlier on the same day: Thomas Whelan and Patrick Moran at 6am and

Patrick Doyle Patrick Doyle (born 6 April 1953) is a Scottish composer and occasional actor best known for his film scores. During his 50-year career in film, television and theatre, he has composed the scores for over 60 feature films. A longtime collaborato ...

and Bernard Ryan at 7am. It was reported that a crowd of over 20,000 people assembled outside Mountjoy on the morning of the executions. Work was also suspended throughout the city following a call from the Irish Labour Party.

Re-interment

He is one of a group of men hanged in Mountjoy Prison in the period 1920–21, commonly referred to as The Forgotten Ten. On 14 October 2001, he and the other nine, including

Kevin Barry Kevin Gerard Barry (20 January 1902 – 1 November 1920) was an Irish Republican Army (IRA) soldier and medical student who was executed by the British Government during the Irish War of Independence. He was sentenced to death for his part in a ...

, were exhumed from their graves in the prison and given a full

state funeral A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive elements o ...

. He is now buried in

Glasnevin Cemetery Glasnevin Cemetery () is a large cemetery in Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland which opened in 1832. It holds the graves and memorials of several notable figures, and has a museum. Location The cemetery is located in Glasnevin, Dublin, in two part ...

, Dublin. In March 2023, a plaque was unveiled by

Dublin City Council Dublin City Council () is the Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local authority of the city of Dublin in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the authority was k ...

at his old residence, 14 Henrietta Street.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bryan, Thomas 1897 births 1922 deaths People executed for treason against the United Kingdom The Forgotten Ten Executed people from County Dublin Irish republicans