Joseph Sweeney (Irish politician)
Aged 21, had he taken his seat in the British Commons he would have been the youngest member of the house, however, as per Sinn Féin's abstentionist policy he did not and instead attended the meeting of the First Dáil, the new parliament of Ireland created by the Nationalists.In the lead-up to the civil war, he was involved in smuggling arms across the border to northern nationalists, which lead to clashes with British troops.[6] During the Civil War, he was made a General in the newly formed National Army and placed in command of its units in the North-West of the Island.The period saw Sweeney ordered by the Irish Government to execute four captured Republicans, including a former friend, Charlie Daly.By 1929 he had risen to the rank of Chief of Staff proper, a promotion that happened to coincide with the rise of Fianna Fáil to government.[6] Having spent most of his life in Dublin, he died in 1980 aged 83 before being buried in a full military ceremony back in Burtonport, Donegal.