Joseph Walshe
Joseph P. Walshe | |
|---|---|
| Born | 2 October 1886 Killenaule, County Tipperary, Ireland |
| Died | 6 February 1956 (aged 69) Cairo, Egypt |
| Resting place | Cairo |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Alma mater | University College Dublin |
| Occupation | Civil Servant |
| Known for | Secretary, Department of Foreign Affairs |
Joseph (Joe) Walshe (2 October 1886 – 6 February 1956) was an Irish civil servant and diplomat. As Secretary of the Department of External Affairs of the Irish Free State from 1923 to 1946, he was the department's most senior official.[1]
Early life and education
Walshe was born in the largely agricultural and coal mining region of
From Irish Republic to Treaty split
Having completed his studies, Walshe went on holidays to France where he met with
Second World War
During World War II, he was viewed as being pro-German by outside observers, especially in the United Kingdom. In June 1940, he met with Eduard Hempel, the German Minister to Ireland. According to Hempel's report back to Berlin:
"The conversation, in which Walshe expressed great admiration for the German achievements, went off in a friendly way ... (Walshe) remarked that he hoped that the statement of the Leader in his interview with Weygand respecting his absence of intention to destroy the British Empire, did not mean the abandonment of Ireland."[3]
On 21 June 1940, Walshe sent Éamon de Valera a memo entitled 'Britain's Inevitable Defeat'.[4] He argued that 'Neither time nor gold can beat Germany' and that Britain would swiftly be forced to submit by German bombing.
On 2 May 1945, he and Taoiseach Éamon de Valera visited Hempel at home in Dún Laoghaire to express the Irish Government's official condolences on the suicide of Adolf Hitler. However, Walshe strongly advised De Valera not to sign the book of condolences.
He served as Ambassador to the Holy See from 1946 to 1954.[2] He died in Cairo on 6 February 1956.
Personal life
Some who worked in the Department with Walshe believed that he long held the desire to marry his colleague Sheila Murphy, but that his ill health had prevented this.[5]
Bibliography
- Nolan, Aengus : Joseph Walshe: Irish Foreign Policy 1922–1946 : ISBN 978-1-85635-580-3
References
- hdl:11603/19192.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-85635-580-3. Retrieved 5 July 2010.
- ^
Documents on German Foreign Policy, 1918–45, Volume 8, Document 473. London: ISBN 0-11-591578-8.
- ^ Britain's Inevitable Defeat
- ^ Kennedy, Michael (2009). "Walshe, Joseph Patrick". In McGuire, James; Quinn, James (eds.). Dictionary of Irish Biography. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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