Editing Seán Lemass (section)

==Early life and education==
Lemass was born at Norwood Lodge, [[Ballybrack]], [[Dublin]] on 15 July 1899, the second of seven children born to John T. Lemass and his wife Frances ({{nee}} Phelan) Lemass.<ref name=dib>{{cite web|url=https://www.dib.ie/biography/lemass-sean-a4787|title=Lemass, Seán|work=[[Dictionary of Irish Biography]]|last=Fanning|first=Ronan|access-date=22 September 2022}}</ref> He was baptised at Ss. Alphonsus and Columba Roman Catholic Church, [[Killiney]], six days later, on 21 July 1899. The family operated a hatter and outfitter business and lived at the premises in Capel Street (in [[Dublin city centre]]) where Lemass grew up.<ref name="Sean Lemass: The Enigmatic Patriot">{{cite book|last=Horgan|first=John |title=Sean Lemass: The Enigmatic Patriot: The Definitive Biography of Ireland's Great Modernising Taoiseach|publisher=Gill Books|year=1997}}</ref><ref name="judginglemass">{{cite book|last=Garvin |first=Tom |title=Judging Lemass: The Measure of the Man |publisher=Royal Irish Academy|year=2009 |isbn=978-1-904890-57-7}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|publisher=Irish National Archive|url=http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Dublin/North_City/Capel_St_/36300/|title=1911 Census: Lemass family|access-date=8 February 2011|archive-date=26 March 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326082233/http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Dublin/North_City/Capel_St_/36300/|url-status=live}}</ref> He was of distant French [[Huguenot]] descent.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100059470|title=Sean Francis Lemass – oi|access-date=9 September 2019}}</ref> Within the family his name soon changed to Jack and eventually, after 1916, he himself preferred to be called Seán. He was educated at [[O'Connell School]], where he was described as studious. He won a first-class honours exhibition in mathematics in 1915.<ref name=dib/>

One of Lemass's classmates was the popular Irish comedian [[Jimmy O'Dea]]. Another friend during his youth was [[Tom Farquharson]], who went on to play as a [[Goalkeeper (association football)|goalkeeper]] for [[Cardiff City F.C.|Cardiff City]]. In January 1915, Lemass was persuaded to join the [[Irish Volunteers]]. His mature looks ensured he would be accepted although he was only fifteen and a half at the time. Lemass became a member of the A Company of the 3rd Battalion of the Dublin Brigade. The battalion adjutant was [[Éamon de Valera]], future [[Taoiseach]] and [[President of Ireland]]. While out on a journey in the Dublin mountains during Easter 1916, Lemass and his brother Noel met two sons of Professor [[Eoin MacNeill]]. They informed the Lemasses of the [[Easter Rising]] that was taking place in the city. On Tuesday 25 April, Seán and Noel Lemass were allowed to join the Volunteer garrison at the [[General Post Office (Dublin)|General Post Office]]. Lemass was equipped with a [[shotgun]] and was positioned on the roof. He also was involved in fighting on Moore Street. However, by Friday the Rising had ended in failure and all involved were imprisoned. Lemass was held for a month in Richmond Barracks, due to his age he was released from the 1,783 that were arrested. Following this, Lemass's father wanted his son to continue with his studies and be called to the [[Irish Bar]].{{Citation needed|date=January 2024}}

===Deaths of the Lemass brothers===
Three of Lemass's brothers died while young. When he was 16, Lemass killed his own baby brother, Herbert, aged twenty-two months, in a domestic shooting accident with a revolver on 28 January 1916.<ref name=it-lemass-silent-anguish>{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/se%C3%A1n-lemass-s-silent-anguish-1.1469235|title=Seán Lemass's silent anguish|newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]|date=21 July 2013|access-date=22 July 2013|author=Eunan O'Halpin|author-link=Eunan O'Halpin|archive-date=21 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130721164117/http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/se%C3%A1n-lemass-s-silent-anguish-1.1469235|url-status=live}}</ref> His older brother, Noel, an anti-[[Anglo-Irish Treaty|Treaty]] officer, was abducted in June 1923 and murdered the following October, when he was 25; the Lemass family believed he was killed by pro-treaty soldier, [[Emmet Dalton]].<ref name=it-lemass-silent-anguish/> Another of Lemass's brothers, Patrick, died of natural causes at the age of 19 in 1926.<ref name=it-lemass-silent-anguish/>

===Alongside "The Twelve Apostles"===
Following the Easter Rising, Lemass remained active in the Irish Volunteers, carrying out raids for arms. Until November 1920, Lemass remained a part-time member of the Volunteers. In that month, during the height of the [[Irish War of Independence]], twelve members of the Dublin Brigade of the [[Irish Republican Army|IRA]] took part in an attack on British agents living in Dublin, whose names and addresses had been leaked to [[Michael Collins (Irish leader)|Michael Collins]] by his network of spies. The names<ref group="note">The "Twelve Apostles" were Joe Leonard, Seán Doyle, Jim Slattery, Bill Stapleton, Pat McCrae, James Conroy, Ben Barret and Patrick Daly. Mick McDonnell, the first leader, was later succeeded by Daly and, in January 1920, three men were added – Tom Keogh, Mick O'Reilly and Vincent Byrne. Byrne was the last of the "Apostles" to die, in 1992, aged 92.</ref> of those who carried out Collins' orders on the morning of 21 November 1920 were not disclosed until author [[Tim Pat Coogan]] mentioned them in his book on the history of the [[Irish Republican Army|IRA]], published in 1970. Coogan identified Lemass as taking part in the killing of a British agent as a member of the "Apostles" assassin squad which killed thirteen (and wounded five other) [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|British]] agents of the [[Cairo Gang]]. That day, 21 November 1920, became known as [[Bloody Sunday (1920)|Bloody Sunday]].<ref name=dib/>

Lemass was arrested in December 1920 and interned at [[Abercorn Barracks|Ballykinlar Camp]], [[County Down]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Orr |first1=Philip |title=Ballykinler Camp, The First Seven Decades, 1900-1969 |date=2012 |publisher=Down County Museum |isbn=978-0956727879}}</ref>

===Anti-treaty===
In December 1921, after the signing of [[Anglo-Irish Treaty]], Lemass was released. He became a training officer for a period in [[Beggars Bush Barracks]] before the IRA split and was involved in the Belfast Boycott operations (see [[The Troubles in Ulster (1920–1922)]]). During the debates of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in 1921, Lemass was one of the minority who opposed it along with de Valera. As a protest, all the anti-Treaty side withdrew from the [[Dáil]]. In the [[Irish Civil War]] which followed Lemass was adjutant to [[Rory O'Connor (Irish republican)|Rory O'Connor]], when the group seized the [[Four Courts]], the home of the [[High Court (Ireland)|High Court]] of Ireland. The occupation of the Four Courts eventually resulted in the outbreak of the Civil War, when, under British pressure, the Free State side shelled the building on 28 June 1922.<ref>C Townshend, "The Republic", p.412</ref> As a result, [[Battle of Dublin (1922)|fighting broke out in Dublin]] between pro and anti-Treaty factions. The Four Courts surrendered after two days of bombardment, however, Lemass escaped with [[Ernie O'Malley]] and some others to [[Blessington]].<ref>M. Hopkinson, "Green against Green", p.143-44.</ref> Their [[Flying Column]] operated in [[Enniscorthy]], [[Tullow]], [[Ferns, County Wexford|Ferns]], [[Baltinglass]] and [[Borris, County Carlow|Borris]] before the Column was broken up. Lemass and O'Malley returned to Dublin along with [[Thomas Derrig]] as a member of the IRA Eastern Command Headquarters but were later captured in December 1922 and interned in the [[Curragh Camp]].<ref name=dib/>

In June 1923, after the end of the civil war, Seán Lemass's brother Noel Lemass, an anti-Treaty IRA officer, was abducted in Dublin by a number of men, believed to be connected to the [[National Army (Ireland)|National Army]] or the Police [[Criminal Investigation Department (Ireland)|CID]] unit.<ref>[http://www.oup.co.uk/pdf/0-19-820426-4.pdf#search=%22noel%20lemass%20Irish%20civil%20war%20oriel%20house%22 ''The State and Civil War'', 1921–1923] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051102074437/http://www.oup.co.uk/pdf/0-19-820426-4.pdf |date=2 November 2005 }}, Oxford University Press</ref> He was held in secret until October when his mutilated body was found in the Dublin Mountains,<ref>{{cite book|last=Buning|first=Marius|title=Historicising Beckett: issues of performance  |editor=Marius Buning|publisher=Rodopi|year=2005|volume=15 of Samuel Beckett today/aujourd'hui|isbn=978-90-420-1767-2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=POGHjjvY5g4C&q=%22Featherbed+mountain+in+dublin%22&pg=PA118|access-date=14 August 2009}}</ref> (see also [[Executions during the Irish Civil War]]). Seán Lemass was released from prison on compassionate grounds following his brother's death. On 18 November 1924, Lemass was elected for the first time as a [[Sinn Féin]] TD.<ref name=elecs_irl>{{cite web|url=http://electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=1472|title=Seán Lemass|work=ElectionsIreland.org|access-date=1 June 2009|archive-date=14 April 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090414173522/http://www.electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=1472|url-status=live}}</ref>