Tom Ruane was captain of the Second Western Division 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 ...

from 1916 to 1920.

Background

Ruane was a native of Carnmore,

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

, and joined the

Irish Republican Brotherhood The Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB; ) was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland between 1858 and 1924.McGee, p. 15. Its counterpart in the United States ...

in 1908. He was already an active sportsman with the

GAA Gaa may refer to: * Gaa language, a language of Nigeria * gaa, the ISO 639 code for the Ga language of Ghana GAA may stand for: Compounds * Glacial (water-free), acetic acid * Acid alpha-glucosidase, also known as glucosidase, alpha; acid, an e ...

, his position being full-back. From 1910 to 1916 he captained the local hurling team.

Easter 1916

During the Galway

Easter Rising The Easter Rising (), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an ind ...

in 1916 he was captain of the

Claregalway Baile Chláir or Baile Chláir na Gaillimhe (anglicised Claregalway) is a Gaeltacht village about 10 km north of Galway city in County Galway, Ireland. Claregalway was founded on the banks of the River Clare, hence the derivation of its na ...

men. They rendezvoused with the Castlegar man under Brian Molloy and Pat Callanan at Carnmore. Orders were received from

Liam Mellows William Joseph Mellows (, 25 May 1892 – 8 December 1922) was an Irish republicanism, Irish republican and Sinn Féin politician. Born in England to an English father and Irish mother, he grew up in Ashton-under-Lyne before moving to Ireland, ...

to proceed to the deserted Moyode Castle, in Oranmore. The volunteers were discovered while resting at Carnmore Cross by a group of

Royal Irish Constabulary The Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC, ; simply called the Irish Constabulary 1836–67) was the police force in Ireland from 1822 until 1922, when all of the island was part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom. A sep ...

. Fighting broke out but the only casualty was a Constable Whelan, who was the first to die during the Rising. Arriving at Moyode they congregated with other companies but lack of orders and supplies led to fatigue and hunger. When news of the failure of the Rising in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

arrived, the men dispersed, some going home. Ruane himself went on the run. He hid out in

Moycullen Moycullen () is a village situated in the Gaeltacht region of County Galway, Ireland, about 10 km (7 mi) northwest of Galway city. It is near Lough Corrib, on the N59 road to Oughterard and Clifden, in Connemara. Moycullen is now ...

and used an island in

Lough Corrib Lough Corrib ( ; ) is a lake in the west of Ireland. The River Corrib or Galway River connects the lake to the sea at Galway. It is the largest lake within the Republic of Ireland and the second largest on the island of Ireland (after Lough Nea ...

as a fall-back during searches. However, a letter was found in his wife's handbag which gave his address as at Bohans, Borra, Moycullen. He was arrested and sent to

Frongoch internment camp Frongoch is a village located in Gwynedd, Wales. It lies close to the market town of Bala, on the A4212 road. It was the home of the Frongoch internment camp, used to hold German prisoners-of-war during First World War, and then Irish ...

, where he spent ten months. After his release, he was arrested in 1918 in connection with the German Plot, this time in

Wormwood Scrubs Wormwood Scrubs, known locally as The Scrubs (or simply Scrubs), is an open space in Old Oak Common located in the north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London. It is the largest open space in the borough ...

and

Winson Green Winson Green is a loosely defined inner-city area in the west of the city of Birmingham, England. It is part of the ward of Soho. It is the location of HM Prison Birmingham (known locally as Winson Green Prison or "the Green") and of City H ...

Military and civil activities

After his release from

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

Prison he was appointed a justice of the

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

courts for south and west Galway. His activities came at the price of a thousand-pound reward for his capture, and he was targeted by the

Black and Tans The Black and Tans () were constables recruited into the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) as reinforcements during the Irish War of Independence. Recruitment began in Great Britain in January 1920, and about 10,000 men enlisted during the conflic ...

. He may have participated on the attack on Loughgeorge R.I.C. Barracks in May 1920, launched by the mid-Galway Brigade. After the Treaty, he fought on the side of the Republicans. As a reprisal for the Kilroe ambush, near

Headford Headford () is a small town in County Galway, located 26 km north of Galway city in the west of Ireland. It is an angling centre for the eastern shore of Lough Corrib, and Greenfields, approximately 6.5 km west of the town, is its bo ...

, all his farm produce was burned. In 1925 Ruane was arrested and charged with weapons possession at

Boyle, County Roscommon Boyle (; ) is a town in County Roscommon, Ireland. It is located at the foot of the Curlew Mountains near Lough Key in the north of the county. Carrowkeel Megalithic Cemetery, the Drumanone Dolmen and the lakes of Lough Arrow and Lough Gara ...

. The charges were later dismissed.MacEoin, Uinseann (1997), ''The IRA in the Twilight Years 1923-1948'', Argenta Publications, Dublin, pg 117, ISBN 0951117246

Later career

Ruane was a member of the County Board and a chairman of the Galway District Council for seven years. He served as a Sinn Féin member of the County Council and chairman of the Finance Committee. His son, Paddy Ruane, was elected to the council six times for Sinn Féin while his other son, Stephen, was a member of

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland. Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...

. One of Ruane's grandson's was a British M.P. as of 2000. Ruane died on 31 August 1937, aged 53, and was buried in

cemetery.

Background

Easter 1916

Military and civil activities

Later career

References

Further reading