Edmond Prendiville was born near Listowen in County Kerry in 1871. He joined the RIC at the age of twenty-four (1896) and served in the counties of Monaghan, Cork, and Tipperary. Six years after joining (1903) he was promoted to acting sergeant, and moved to Millstreet. His time here was relatively uneventful, and he remained in Millstreet for two years before he was moved to take charge in Union Hall. About 1912 he was moved to Tipperary where spent the rest of his time in the force until he was demobilised on April 3rd 1922.
The following day, he was enlisted into the Civic Guard. Prendiville claimed that he had approached a senior Sinn Féin member during the War of Independence about his intention to retire from the force and stated that ‘he advised me not to on any account, that I was much more useful where I was’. Before his demobilisation, Prendiville had been serving in Clonmel, County Tipperary, and was active in the RIC Representative Body. He was part of a delegation that travelled three times to London in 1921 to discuss future policing arrangements in Ireland with Sir Hamar Greenwood. During the course of the meetings, he came into ‘constant touch’ with senior Sinn Féin representatives at the Treaty negotiations, and was later asked to become a member of the organising committee. On accepting a place on the committee, Prendiville was placed on the ‘Training’ sub-committee and offered a position in the Civic Gua rd.
In May 1922 he was one of five officers abruptly removed from their posts in an incident called the Kildare Mutiny, where trainee Civic Guards protested at the appointment of former RIC officers to the Civic Guard.
After that he lived in Kilmainham where he married Hanna O’Leary. He died in Dr. Steeven’s Hospital 1948.
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Service Record
Edmund Prendiville #57225
Age when appointed: 25 8/12
Height: 5′ 9″ 5/8
Native County: Kerry
Religion: Catholic
Recommendations: H.C. Hart
Trade or Calling: Farmer
Appointment: 8th Oct 1895; Reappointed 1st Nov 1895 with loss of former service
Allocation: Monaghan 3rd April 96; Cork W.R. 25/4/00; Reserve 30/3/12; Tipperary S.R. 1/12/15
Transfers:
Promotions: P. Assistant Sergeant 1/10/03; P. Sergeant 1/8/06
Rewards / Marks of Distinction / Favourable records: 3/12/08; 27/7/21
Punishments:
Reason for leaving: Discharged unfit by surgeon 11/Oct/1895; Disbanded 3/4/22 Tipp S.R. No 14, CA £195.0.0 [ref]
His brother James Prendiville (1871) joined on the same day, and his service record is on the same page. He served mostly in Cork E.R.
Another brother Maurice (1875) was also in the R.I.C., but was killed in Youghal on December 3rd 1920 [1] [2]
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His RIC Stations
(from the nominal rolls, lists of sergeant in charge, and other references)
Carrickmacross – 1897 1898
Monaghan 1898-1899
Millstreet 1903-1905: Acting Sergeant
Union Hall 1905-1906: Acting Sergeant in Charge:
Union Hall 1906-1909: Sergeant in Charge (1907)
Dunmanway 1910 , 1911: (1910)
Drinagh 1911: Sergeant in charge (census)
Kilsheehan J.S. with Waterford (Clonmel District) +1915-1910: Sergeant in charge. (1916 , 1917 , 1919 , 1920)
Clonmel 1920:
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Pension
Awards of Pension:
26 years 5 months in the force. 5 years 8 months in the current rank. Aged 52; discharged 3/Apr/1922; Pension £195.0.0
Pension Leger (1922-1924): Temporary appointment in the Civic Guard @ £400 per annum since 4/4/22
Address: 4/Nov/22 Ossory Hotel 4 Domiank(?) St, Dublin
Pension cancelled 13/Dec/22 (likely because he was being paid in the Civic Guard
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Mentions in the Newspapers
(for the Millstreet area)
MILLSTREET PETTY SESSIONS (Before Captain Gosselein, R.M., the chair; Dr. R. R. Leader, William C. Casey, Jeremiah J. Corkery, and H. A. B. Wallis), District-Inspector Beirne summoned John Connor for obstructing and assaulting Acting-sergeant Prenderville in the discharge his duty on the 23rd June.
Mr. J. J. Lenehan, solr., defended.
The Acting-sergeant deposed that the date mentioned received a warrant for the arrest of a man named John F. Hickey. He proceeded to execute it that evening. He went to the house of defendant and saw Hickey bolt out the back-door. Witness went after him to arrest him in the yard, when defendant came before him and roughly pushed him back and said: “You must not get out there.” He put his back to the door, which bolted, and asked witness to read the warrant for him, which witness did after a time. Connor then wanted to get the warrant into his own hand to read it, which witness refused. Defendant then pushed him hack roughly again. He asked defendant if he knew the seriousness his acts. Mr. Linehan said he believed the ink was scarcely dry on the warrant, and the police should know well that Hickey never evaded arrest, but always gave up. He characterised the proceedings in Connor’s house as high-handed.” Chairman. —The Sergeant got a warrant to execute and should so. Mr. Linehan—Did Connor use word warrant at all? Did he not ask for your authority to enter his house ?
Witness —No; asked me to read the warrant for him. Did Constable Heron lay hands on Connor and say; you don’t leave him out that door you will find yourself where Hickey is ? I did not hear him. Constable John Heron stated he entered defendant’s house a minute or so after the Acting-Sergeant, and saw Connor jostling with him and his back to the door. He was preventing him from following Hickey out the door. He did not hear Connor ask him for the warrant. Mr. Linehan said his case was that Hickey had been in the house a half-hour previous to get flies to fishing, and had left before the police came in. Michael Moynihan deposed that he was not in the house when the Sergeant came in. Mr. Linehan – What passed between Acting-sergeant and Connors?
Witness —He said something, I don’t know what, but Connor went to the door and told the Sergeant show his authority. The Sergeant after a while read the warrant, and Connors then left the door. He did not see Connors put a hand on the Acting-sergeant. Thomas Corcoran swore that when the Acting-sergeant came in he asked him what authority he had. The Sergeant went to the back-door and Connors stopped him, after he read the warrant Connor passed from the door. He did not see him push him roughly. Denis Hickey deposed that John Hickey was not in the house at the time, and if the Sergeant saw him at the back-door, he must have seen through witness and a brick wall. There was a cross-case for assault against the Acting-sergeant. The Chairman said the majority of the Bench decided to convict, and fined John Connors 5s, and 6s extra cost. [Cork Examiner – Wednesday 03 August 1904]
MILLSTREET PETTY SESSIONS. (Before Messrs. A. J. McDermott, R.M. ( the chair); H. A. B. Wallis, William C. Casey, and Dr. R. R. Leader). Acting-Sergeant Edmond Prenderville, Inspector of Weights and Measures, summoned Mr. John Long, butter buyer, Kanturk, having a 561 b. weight ozs. light in his place of business. Mr. J. J. Lenahan, solr., said he appeared Mr. Long, who could not attend that day, being a buyer for a firm by whom he was engaged at business, but if the magistrates considered it necessary he would have him present if they adjourned it. He had witness prove how the weight came there. Jid not belong to his client, and he never used it. To Acting Sergeant Prenderville—What date was it and day of the week when you un this weight? Witness—lt was on the 8th Inst. cannot say what day of the week it was, but it not a Friday, the market day. As a matter of fact, how would the operate against him as a buyer! Witness—Against himself. Daniel Carroll, examined by Mr. Lenahan swore he was employed by Mr. Long on market days to bring him weights and scales for his day’s business. At the time was not able to attend, and a man, M. Broker, was sent to get the weights, and only went next door to a Mr. Cronin and took a rusty weight which was never used. The one brought by witness was there still, and to be seen. The other weight was brought under a mistake by a man who was not right in his head.
The prosecutor said, then when a false weight was found on a business premises the presumption is that it is there for use. There was a previous conviction against defendant for taxing a 56 lb. weight 8ozs light, and in the case of a second conviction the penalty was £20.
Chairman—The man should have his weights in order. After Mr. Lenahan’s explanation that weight was brought by mistake and never used, Mr. McDermott said a fine of 2s. 6d. would meet the case, and defendant should be careful in future. [Cork Examiner – Wednesday 31 August 1904]
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The Outbreak of Mutiny in the Civic Guard
(later known as the ‘Kildare Mutiny’)
On the morning of 15 May 1922, the training of the Civic Guard came to an abrupt halt following the protest committee’s decision to issue Staines with an ultimatum in response to the recent senior appointments within the force. The ultimatum, signed by the representatives of seven of the companies of men, was issued by Daly and Sellars through the adjutant’s office in the form of a letter ‘demanding the immediate expulsion of five particular ex-RIC men, and threatening drastic action in case of non-compliance with the demand’. The committee considered the promotion of the five listed men as a betrayal to the body of recruits who had served in the IRA, and they cited four reasons for their ultimatum. First, they objected to ‘the high offices the five members held in the Civic Guard’. Second, they claimed that the five men had already exerted excessive influence over the commissioner. Third, the committee stated that the five men organised a recent increase in the recruitment of ex-RIC men to the Civic Guard. Fourth, the committee concluded that the RIC training methods employed by the men merely served to mould ‘the new Irish police force … into a second edition of the Royal Irish Constabulary’. The five members of the headquarters staff cited for expulsion were Deputy Commissioner Patrick Walsh, Private Secretary Jeremiah Maher and Superintendents Edmond Prendiville, James Brennan and Bernard O’Connor, despite the fact that each of these men appeared to have aided the IRA during the War of Independence.
…
SUPERINTENDENT Edmond Prendiville was born in County Kerry in 1871. He joined the RIC at the age of twenty-four and served in the counties of Monaghan, Limerick and Cork, and in the city of Belfast. Six years after joining the RIC, Prendiville was promoted to sergeant. He remained at this rank for the following eighteen years until he was demobilised from the force on 3 April 1922. The following day, he was enlisted into the Civic Guard. Prendiville claimed that he had approached a senior Sinn Fein member during the War of Independence about his intention to retire from the force and stated that ‘he advised me not to on any account, that I was much more useful where I was’. Before his demobilisation, Prendiville had been serving in Clonmel, County Tipperary, and was active in the RIC Representative Body. He was part of a delegation that travelled three times to London in 1921 to discuss future policing arrangements in Ireland with Sir Hamar Greenwood. During the course of the meetings, he came into ‘constant touch’ with senior Sinn Féin representatives at the Treaty negotiations, and was later asked to become a member of the organising committee. On accepting a place on the committee, Prendiville was placed on the ‘Training’ sub-committee and offered a position in the Civic Guard: ‘I didn’t ask to get into the Civic Guard, I was simply invited in there and did my best. [5]
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Edmond and his Family
Birth of Edmond Prendiville at Rathea, Ballyhorgan, Listowel on January 24th 1870, to Mary Prendiville (Stack) and John Prendiville a farmer.
(He was the oldest of about 12 siblings)
1901 census: Haven’t found him … he should be in Monaghan somewhere
TRANSFERS 18 March 1905: Sergeant John Lee is transferred from Millstreet, and has taken command of Castletownsend. Acting-Sergeant Edmond Prendiville is also transferred from Millstreet, and has taken command of that pretty sea-side station, Union Hall, and is appointed Weights and Measures Inspector for the district of Union Hall and Rosscarbery. Sergeant J. W. B. Johnston, in consequence the abolition of Caheragh, is allocated to Millstreet. [Weekly Irish Times – Saturday 18 March 1905]
1911 census: Residents of a house 13 in Paddock (Drinagh, Cork)
| Surname | Forename | Age | Sex | Relation to head | Religion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prendville | Edmond | 38 | Male | – | Roman Catholic |
| Dillon | Michael | 26 | Male | – | Roman Catholic |
| McEvoy | Stephen | 25 | Male | – | Roman Catholic |
| Brick | William | 22 | Male | – | Roman Catholic |
Married Hanna O’Leary on Jan 16th 1923 in Dublin (Superintendant Civic Guard)
Marriage of Edmond Prendiville and Hanna O’Leary at Sandymount Church Dublin, on January 16th 1923 by Fr. Michael T MacSweeny C.C; He a superintendent Civic Guard; Depot Phoenix Park; son of John Prendiville a farmer; she a widow of 17 Newbride Avenue, the daughter of Arthur O’Leary a farmer.
No children I presume.
Death of Edmond Prendiville of 11 Mayfield Rd, Kilmainham, at Dr. Steeven’s Hospital on December 22nd 1948; married; 78 yrs; Police Pensioner; hypertension cardiac failure.
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Resources
[ancestry]
[ancestry: multiple trees]
FindMyPast: Edmond Prendiville
