Alan Heusaff. July  23th 1921 - November 3rd 1999.
Tireless Fighter for Celtic Unity Dies.

As a consequence of the death of Alan Heusaff we present here articles refered to this great fighter of the Celtic cause signed by Manuel Castro, President of the Argentine Celtic League and Bernard Moffatt, Secretary General of the Celtic League (Europe). We also add some information about the early steps of the Celtic Cultural Movement in Argentina.

Alan Heusaff, a founder member and long time Secretary General of the Celtic League, has died at his home in Spiddal, Co. Galway, Eire.

Alan was born in Brittany in 1921 and was active in cultural movements, as a youth, eventually joining the Breton National Party in 1938. In the wave of French xenophobia which followed the Second World War and the hostility towards minorities in France, he left the country and, with many other Bretons, settled in Ireland. After a University degree course he joined the Irish Meteorological Service with which he remained until his retirement.

The Breton community in Dublin immediately became the focus for inter-celtic organization and an embryonic inter-celtic movement was established publishing An Aimsir Cheilteach. Formed in 1947, this functioned for several years. In 1961, the Pan Celtic Movement reorganized with the formation of the Celtic League in 1961 at Rhos, in Wales. Alan Heusaff was a founder and the first Secretary General of the League and remained in that role for twenty five years.

He was a tireless campaigner for all the Celtic countries and meticulous in ensuring, that meetings of the League, wore held on a rotational basis annually in all the countries whatever the logistics problems.

He also established the inter Celtic quarterly journal CARN, which has been produced now for almost thirty years, and provides inforrnation in both English and all the Celtic languages on the Celtic scene.

Latterly, as Secretary of the Leagues International Branch, he carried on liaison with the Celtic Diaspora and also acted as contact for the Leagues United States Branch. Well organized to the end, just months before his death, Alan arranged the transfer or records, on both his work for the Breton Movement and the Celtic League to the University of Aberystwyth. He was also in the process of handing over his present League duties to a newly appointed International Secretary.

Alan Heusaff was fortunate in that he was able to see in his life time some of the devolutionary moves which have occurred in the Celtic countries. However, he believed that the only future for the Celtic countries was as independent partners in a Celtic Confederation.

In the days inmediately prior to his death, he was liaising with me over the arresst of activists in Brittany, campaigning against the waveband reallocations being forced on an Irish language radio station and also promoting the rights of a Scottish child to be taught through the medium of Gaelic. He recognized the value of the big issues without forgetting the smull. He saw and appreciated the worth of the large Celtic countries without forgetting the efforts to maintain political identity, culture and language in the smaller countries like Mannin (Isle of Man) and Kernow (Cornwall).

Alan Heusaff may have died but the ideals he epitomized and the campaign for freedom within the Celtic countries, that he and the other founders of the Celtic League promoted, will go on until their goel is realized.

A Celtic Farewell to a Celtic Friend.

As a consequence of the death of Alan Heusaff we present here articles refered to this great fighter of the Celtic cause signed by Manuel Castro, President of the Argentine Celtic League and Bernard Moffatt, Secretary General of the Celtic League (Europe). We also add some information about the early steps of the Celtic Cultural Movement in Argentina.

Site in Internet of the Celtic League:
http://www.manxman.co.im/cleague/index.html

< Other notes.