Michael Gaughan (5 October 1949 – 3 June 1974[1]) was a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) hunger striker who died in 1974 in Parkhurst Prison on the Isle of Wight, England.

[5] Gaughan was arrested on 21 May 1971, and in December 1971, he was sentenced at the Old Bailey to seven years imprisonment for his role in an IRA fundraising mission, which involved robbing a bank in Hornsey, north London.

On 31 March 1974, Gaughan, along with fellow Mayoman Frank Stagg, joined the ongoing hunger strike by future Sinn Féin Member of the Legislative Assembly Gerry Kelly, Paul Holme, Hugh Feeney, sisters Dolours and Marian Price, and others.

[2][15][16] Gaughan's death caused controversy in English medical circles, as some forms of treatment can be classified as assault if administered without the express permission of the patient.

[7] After Gaughan's death, the British government's policy of force-feeding ended, and the remaining hunger strikers were given assurances that they would be repatriated to Irish prisons.

[6][19][20] On Saturday, his body was transported to Dublin, where it was again met by mourners and another IRA guard of honour, who brought it to the Adam and Eve's Franciscan church on Merchant's Quay, where thousands filed past as it lay in state.

[22][better source needed] Ballina republican Jackie Clarke presided at the last obsequies, and the oration at his graveside was given by Dáithí Ó Conaill, who stated that Gaughan had "been tortured in prison by the vampires of a discredited empire who were joined by decrepit politicians who were a disgrace to the name of Irishmen.

[7][26] Paddy Cooney, Minister for Justice at the time, claimed that the IRA intimidated businesses in the towns that the funeral procession passed through, forcing them to close.

[27] Michael Gaughan left a final message: I die proudly for my country and in the hope that my death will be sufficient to obtain the demands of my comrades.

[28][6]His death is referenced in the song "Take Me Home to Mayo," also known as "The Ballad of Michael Gaughan," composed by Seamus Robinson and performed and recorded by many Irish musicians, including Christy Moore, the Wolfe Tones, Wolfhound, Derek Warfield, and the Dublin City Ramblers.