Geraldine Plunkett Dillon

Geraldine "Gerry" Plunkett Dillon (1891–1986) was an Irish republican and member of Cumann na mBan, best known for her memoir All in the blood. She was the sister of Joseph Mary Plunkett, a signatory of the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic. Early life and family Geraldine Plunkett Dillon, known to her family as Gerry, was born Geraldine Mary Germaine Plunkett in 1891 in Fitzwilliam Street, Dublin. She was the fourth child of the seven children of Count George Noble and Mary Josephine Plunkett (née Cranny). She had three sisters, Philomena, Mary, and Fiona, and three brothers, Jack, George and Joseph (known as Joseph Mary Plunkett). The family lived in a number of houses including on Upper Fitzwilliam Street, Marlborough Road, and later on Belgrave Road. Throughout her life Dillon had a difficult relationship with her mother, recalling that at age 6: "I decided to hate my mother." She cared for her brother Joseph after his return from travelling in 1912 when he had been hospitalised with influenza. They lived together at 17 Marlborough Road, Donnybrook, one of the family properties. Role in Irish Independence Her brother, Joseph, was a signatory of the 1916 Proclamation, and Dillon actively supported his involvement with the Irish Volunteers and the Irish Republican Brotherhood. She helped to smuggle gelignite and ammunition into Dublin by taking delivery of the two bags in February 1914 from Liam Mellowes. She was a friend of Michael Collins, who she met through Joseph in 1915 to help her when she had been left to manage the family finances and property while her mother was visiting the United States. In 1916, Dillon was living with Joseph at Larkfield House in Kimmage, the grounds of which were used as an Irish Volunteers training camp. In the run up to Easter 1916, the house was home to large number of Volunteers who came from London, Liverpool, and Glasgow. Joseph gave her a pistol, which she carried continuously in her jacket.