Rockwell College

Rockwell College (Irish: Coláiste Charraig an Tobair), founded in 1864, is a voluntary day and boarding Catholic secondary school near Cashel, County Tipperary in Ireland.

The school has a rugby tradition and has won the Munster Schools Senior Cup 26 times and the Munster Schools Junior Cup 20 times with 22 full Irish internationals. Rockwell is run by the Spiritans. Its list of former pupils and teachers includes two Presidents of Ireland.

History

Rockwell College was founded in 1864 by two Spiritan priests (also known as the Holy Ghost Fathers) to provide education to the sons of Roman Catholics during a time when Penal Laws were still in place against the Catholic majority in Ireland.

Rockwell College played an important role in the development of the Irish State and several prominent figures of the Irish Revolutionary period taught at or attended the school. Éamon de Valera taught mathematics there as a young teacher and fellow 1916 Proclamation signatory Thomas MacDonagh attended as a pupil. In 1964, as part of the centenary celebrations President Éamon de Valera returned to the school, 60 years after he taught there.

In 1997, Pat O'Sullivan became Rockwell's first lay principal, and in 2012 Audrey O'Byrne became the college's first female principal.

Sister schools

• Blackrock College
• St Mary's College, Dublin
• St Michael's College, Dublin
• Templeogue College

Notable past pupils

Politics

Patrick Hillery, President of Ireland 1976–1990

Éamon de Valera, Taoiseach and President of Ireland (1959–1973), was a mathematics teacher at the school.

Fionán Lynch, Deputy Leader of Fine Gael, TD from 1918 to 1944, Leas-Cheann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann from 1938 to 1939 and Government Minister from 1922 to 1932

James John O'Shee, member of the Irish Parliamentary Party, MP for West Waterford (1895–1918) and co-founder of the Irish Land & Labour Association.

• Michael Heffernan, TD and Leader of the Farmers Party
• Joseph McDonagh, TD for Tipperary North 1918–1921
• Pierce McCan, TD for Tipperary East 1918–1919
• Tadhg Crowley, Irish revolutionary and Fianna Fáil Senator and TD for Limerick
• Henry Barniville, Senator
• Andrew Boylan, Fine Gael TD for Cavan–Monaghan
• Ruairí Brugha, Fianna Fáil TD, Senator and MEP
• Maurice Manning, Chancellor of National University of Ireland, Fine Gael Senator and president of the Irish Human Rights Commission

Andrew Fogarty, Fianna Fáil TD and member of Seanad Éireann.

William Quirke, Fianna Fáil Senator and Tipperary IRA leader during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War.

Denis Jones, Fine Gael TD for Limerick West, 1957–1977, and Leas-Cheann Comhairle

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