Neal Blaney (5 November 1889 – 30 October 1948) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician, and long-serving member of the Oireachtas. Neal Blaney was born in Rosnakill, County Donegal, the fifth of six children of William Blaney, a small farmer, and Anna Blaney (née Sweeney). In 1913 Blaney joined the Irish Volunteers in Rosnakill and in 1914 was appointed company captain. He was the first president of the Rosnakill branch of Sinn Féin (founded 1916), and was active in Joseph O'Doherty's 1918 general election campaign. In 1920 he was appointed officer in charge of the Fanad Battalion, 1st Northern Division of the Irish Republican Army. During the Irish Civil War, Blaney was second-in-command of Anti-Treaty IRA Donegal no. 2 Brigade before being captured by Free State forces in December 1922. His