Hibernian Rifles in 1915. He was arrested following the general surrender and sentenced to death after a court-martial at Richmond Barracks. This was almost immediately commuted to life imprisonment, but he was released the following year under a general amnesty. In autumn 1919 he was involved in a failed assassination attempt on Lord French. Walsh was elected as a Sinn Féin Member of Parliament (MP) in the 1918 general election for the Cork City constituency. As a member of the 1st Dáil he was arrested for partaking in an illegal government. He was released in 1921 and supported the Anglo-Irish Treaty and went on to become a founding member of the new political party, Cumann na nGaedheal. Walsh served as Postmaster General from 1922 until 1924 and joined the cabinet of W. T. Cosgrave between 1924 and 1927, after the office was reconstituted as the Department of Posts and Telegraphs. He was elected at every election for the Cork Borough constituency until 1927 when he retired from government. In August 1922 he was part of a government committee which was intended to consider what the "Irish free state"'s policy towards North-east Ulster would be. During World War II, known at the time in Ireland as "the Emergency", Walsh's connections with fascism, including his association with Ailtirí na hAiséirghe, brought him to the attention of the Directorate of Intelligence (G2), the Intelligence branch of the Irish Army. Their request to the Minister for Justice, Gerald Boland, to place a tap on Walsh's phone was, however, refused. He was closely associated with Irish-based pro-Nazi initiatives through his association with Ailtirí na hAiséirghe, during World War II, frequently expressing his views with anti-semitic rhetoric. On Sunday 24 April 2016 a plaque commemorating J.J. Walsh was unveiled in Kilbrittain. Bibliography Walsh, J.J. : Recollections of a Rebel : The Kerryman Ltd., Tralee : 1944 O'Mahony, S : Frongoch – University of Revolution: FDR Teoranta, Dublin : 1987 O'Halpin, Eunan Defending Ireland: The Irish State and Its Enemies Since 1922 : 2000 : References External links The Cork International Exhibition 1902 The Aonac Tailteann and the Tailteann Games (pub.1922?) Internet Archive by T.H. Nally 1880 births 1948 deaths Antisemitism in Ireland Cumann na nGaedheal TDs Early Sinn Féin TDs Irish anti-communists Irish fascists Members of the 1st Dáil Members of the 2nd Dáil Members of the 3rd Dáil Members of the 4th Dáil Members of