Rickard Deasy (campaigner)

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Rickard Joseph Gerard Deasy (1916–1999), born in Terryglass, County Tipperary was a prominent farmers' rights campaigner in Ireland, Captain with the Irish army, and a member of the Labour Party. He was President of the National Farmers Association of Ireland between 1961 and 1967. Deasy was married to Countess Sheila O' Kelly de Gallagh,a countess of the Holy Roman Empire.

Personal life[]

Rickard Deasy was the son of Major Henry Hugh Peter Deasy,[1] founder of the Deasy Motor Car Company, and his wife Dolores Hickie, daughter of James and Lucilla Hickie and sister of Sir William Hickie; he was a grandson of the leading judge Rickard Deasy. He was educated at Christ Church, Oxford.[2] In 1961, he succeeded Dr. Juan Green[3] as President of the National Farmers' Association of Ireland.

Farmers' Rights Campaign[]

In 1966, frustrated with the desperate economic situation of Irish farmers and the hostile Minister for Agriculture, Charlie Haughey. Deasy organized what was to be a 30,000-man walking protest from Cork to the Irish Parliament at Dáil Éireann in Dublin.[4] This was followed by a 20-day sit-in protest and a six-month campaign of civil disobedience by farmers, culminating in the Irish Farmers' Association being officially recognized by the Irish Government.

Recognition of the Farmers' Association was seen as a major step forward for social partnership in Ireland, and a consultative approach to economic participation. It attracted widespread media attention, coming at a time of general distrust towards groups advocating greater economic equality. Deasy was at times accused of being a Marxist, which may have thwarted his electoral chances in a mainly rural constituency. His role in the farmers' movement was considered to have damaged the political aspirations of Charlie Haughey.[5]

Deasy married Countess Sheila O'Kelly de Gallagh. They had four children, three boys and one girl.

References[]

  1. ^ "Person Page". thepeerage.com.
  2. ^ "Person Page". thepeerage.com.
  3. ^ p. 84. Irish Independent. 22/04/2014.
  4. ^ Smith, Paddy (21 July 1999). "Why his likes will never be seen again". independent.ie. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  5. ^ Charles Haughey#Minister for Agriculture: 1966 Farmers.27 Strike


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