Father Francis Browne

Francis Patrick Mary Browne, SJ, MC & Bar (known as Father Browne) was a distinguished Irish Jesuit and a prolific photographer. His best known photographs are those of the RMS Titanic and its passengers and crew taken shortly before its sinking in 1912. He was decorated as a military chaplain during the First World War. His first introduction to photography was in 1897. Just prior to joining the Jesuits he went on a Grand Tour of Europe. For this trip his uncle Robert Browne, who raised and supported him, gave him his first camera and the pictures made on that journey showed great promise.

Due to illness and being away at war, there was period of a number of years when he had little opportunity to photograph but somehow his enthusiasm and artistic ability were still evident at the time of the Titanic’s journey. In following years up to the 1950’s he created almost 42,000 negatives in which he documented the life of the emerging Republic of Ireland and fascinating aspects of Australia, England and elsewhere. Francis Browne died in Dublin in 1960 and was buried in the Jesuit plot in Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin.