Seán Lemass

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Seán Francis Lemass

3rd Taoiseach of Ireland
In office 23 June 1959 – 10 November 1966
Deputy	Seán MacEntee (1959-1965) Frank Aiken (1965-1966)
Preceded by	Eamon de Valera
Succeeded by	Jack Lynch
Born	15 July 1899 Dublin, Ireland
Died	11 May 1971 Dublin, Ireland
Political party	Fianna Fáil
Spouse	Kathleen Hughes
Profession	Politician

Seán Francis Lemass (15 July 1899 – 11 May 1971) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician and Taoiseach (Prime Minister) of the Republic of Ireland from 1959 until 1966.

A veteran of the 1916 Easter Rising, the War of Independence and the Civil War, Lemass was first elected as a Sinn Féin TD (Teachta Dála) for the Dublin South constituency in a by-election in 1924 and was re-elected at each election until his retirement in 1969. He was a founder-member of Fianna Fáil in 1926, and served as Minister for Industry & Commerce, Minister for Supplies, and Tánaiste (Deputy Taoiseach) in successive Fianna Fáil governments.

Lemass is remembered for his tireless work to develop Irish industry and for forging new links between the Republic and Northern Ireland in the 1960s. He is regarded by many in Fianna Fáil (and indeed by Fine Gael Taoisigh Garret FitzGerald and John Bruton) as the finest Taoiseach in the history of the Irish state and as "the architect of modern Ireland."

Contents 1 Early life 2 Alongside the "12 Apostles" 3 Anti-treaty 4 Personal life 5 Fianna Fáil 6 Minister for Industry & Commerce 7 Minister for Supplies 8 Stagnation 9 Taoiseach 1959–1966 9.1 New changes 9.2 The economy 9.3 Social change 9.4 Northern Ireland 9.5 Foreign policy 10 Retirement 11 Death 12 Legacy 13 Lemass quotes 14 Footnote 15 Governments 16 Political career 17 See also

[edit] Early life

John Francis Lemass was born in Dublin. He was the second of seven children born to John and Frances Lemass. Within the family his name soon changed to Jack and eventually, after 1916, he himself preferred to be called Seán. He was educated by the Irish Christian Brothers in Dublin, where he was described as studious (his two best subjects being history and mathematics).

One of Lemass' classmates was the popular Irish comedian Jimmy O'Dea. In January 1915 Lemass was persuaded to join the Irish Volunteers. His mature looks ensured he would be accepted as he was only fifteen-and-a-half at the time. Lemass became a member of the A Company of the 3rd Battalion of the Dublin City Regiment. The battalion adjutant was Eamon de Valera, future Taoiseach and President of Ireland. While out on a journey in the Dublin mountains at Easter 1916 Seán and his brother Noel met two sons of Professor Eoin MacNeill's. They informed the Lemass' of the Easter Rising that was taking place in the city. The following day (Monday) Seán and Noel were allowed to join the Volunteer garrison at the General Post Office. Seán was equipped with a shotgun and was positioned on the roof. However, by Friday the Rising had ended in ruins and all involved were imprisoned. Lemass, due to his age, was released from the 1,783 that were arrested. Following this, Lemass' father wanted his son to continue with his studies and to become a barrister. However, Seán now had a different view of the world.

[edit] Alongside the "12 Apostles"

Up until November 1920, Lemass remained a part-time member of the Volunteers. In that month, during the height of the Anglo-Irish War, 12 members of the Dublin Brigade of the IRA took part in an attack on British agents living in Dublin, whose names and addresses had been leaked to Collins by his network of spies.

The group was under the leadership of Michael Collins. The names of those who carried out Collins' orders on the morning of November 21, 1920 were not disclosed until author Tim Pat Coogan mentioned them in his acclaimed book on the history of the IRA, and he includes Lemass specifically as taking part in the killing of a British agent as a member of "Apostles" entourage, that killed eighteen British agents. That day 21 November 1920, became known as the original Bloody Sunday -- (not to be confused with the 1972 Bloody Sunday in Derry City) - the Royal Irish Constabulary attacked a Gaelic football game at Croke Park and shot at the crowd and players indiscriminately, killing fourteen civilians.

Lemass was arrested in December 1920, and interned at Ballykinlar, County Down, which would later become part of Northern Ireland.

NOTE: The "12 Apostles" were Joe Leonard, Seán Doyle, Jim Slattery, Bill Stapleton, Pat McCrae, James Conroy, Ben Barret and Patrick Daly. Mick McDonnell, the first leader, was later succeeded by Daly and, in January 1920, three men were added - Tom Keogh, Mick O'Reilly and Vincent Byrne. Byrne was the last of the "Apostles" to die -- in 1992 at the age of 92.

[edit] Anti-treaty

In December 1921, after the signing of Anglo-Irish Treaty, Lemass was released. During the debates of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in 1921, Lemass was one of the minority who opposed it along with de Valera. As a protest all the anti-Treaty side withdrew from the Dáil. In the Irish Civil War which followed Lemass was adjutant and second in command to Rory O'Connor when the group seized the Four Courts, the home of the High Court of Ireland. The occupation of the Four Courts eventually resulted in the outbreak of Civil War, when, under British pressure, the Free State side shelled the building on June 28 1922. As a result, fighting broke out in Dublin between pro and anti Treaty factions. The Four Courts surrendered after two days bombardment, however Lemass escaped with Ernie O'Malley some others. He was later re-captured and imprisoned again.

In June 1923, after the end of the civil war, Noel Lemass, Seán's brother an anti-Treaty IRA officer, was abducted in Dublin by a number of men, believed to be connected to the Irish Army or the Police CID unit [1]. He was held in secret until October when his body was found in the Dublin Mountains (see also Executions during the Irish Civil War). Seán Lemass was released from prison on compassionate grounds as a result of this. On 18 November 1924 Lemass was elected for the first time as a Sinn Féin TD.

[edit] Personal life

On 24 August 1924, Lemass married Kathleen Hughes. It must be pointed out that this marriage took place much to the disapproval of the bride's mother and father. The wedding took place in the Roman Catholic Church of the Holy Name, Ranelagh, County Dublin. Jimmy O'Dea, the well known comedian, acted as Lemass's best man.

Together Seán and Kathleen had a relatively small family, four children - Maureen (b.1925), Peggy (b.1927), Noel (1929-1976) and Sheila (b.1932). Maureen Lemass would later go on to marry a successor of Lemass as Fianna Fáil leader and a future Taoiseach, Charles J. Haughey.

[edit] Fianna Fáil

In 1926 de Valera, supported by Lemass, sought to convince Sinn Féin to abandon its policy of refusing to accept the existence of the Irish Free State, the legitimacy of its Dáil Éireann and of its abstentionist policy of refusing to accept election to it. However the effort was unsuccessful and in March 1926 de Valera, along with Lemass, resigned from the party.

At this point de Valera contemplated leaving public life, a momentous decision that could have changed the course of Irish history forever. It was Lemass who encouraged him to stay and form a party. In May de Valera, assisted by Gerald Boland and Lemass began to plan a new political party. This became known as Fianna Fáil (Soldiers of Ireland). Lemass began travelling around the country trying to get support for Fianna Fáil. Many former Sinn Féin TDs were persuaded to join. The new party was strongly opposed to partition but accepted the de-facto existence of the Irish Free State. It opposed the controversial Oath of Allegiance and campaigned for its removal; pending its removal the party announced that it would not take up its Dáil seats. A court case, taken in the name of Lemass and others was begun. However the assassination by the IRA of Kevin O'Higgins, the Vice-President of the Executive Council (deputy prime minister) led to the passing of a new Act requiring that all prospective Dáil candidates to take an oath guaranteeing that if elected they would take the Oath of Allegiance, a refusal to give the undertaking debarring someone from becoming a candidate in a general or by-election.

Faced with the threat of legal disqualification from politics, de Valera capitulated and took the Oath of Allegiance, while claiming that he was simply signing a slip of paper to gain a right of participation in the Dáil, not actually taking an Oath. On 11 August 1927, having signed the Oath of Allegiance in front of a representative of the Governor-General of the Irish Free State, all the Fianna Fáil TDs entered the Dáil.

[edit] Minister for Industry & Commerce

In 1932 Fianna Fáil won power in the Free State, remaining in power for 16 uninterrupted years. The party which Lemass had described as only a "slightly constitutional party" in 1929 was now leading the Irish Free State, a state de Valera and Lemass had a decade earlier fought a civil war to destroy. de Valera appointed Lemass as Minister for Industry and Commerce, one of the most powerful offices in the Executive Council (cabinet), and a position he would occupy in every de Valera government. Lemass had the two difficult tasks of developing Irish industry behind tariff walls, and convincing the Department of Finance regarding state involvement in industry. However, he worked hard and tirelessly for the industrial betterment of Ireland. In 1933 Lemass set up the Industrial Credit Corporation to facilitate supplying funds for setting up industry. A number of 'semi-state' companies modelled on the success of the ESB were also set up. These include the Irish Sugar Company, to develop the sugar-beet industry, Turf Development Board for turf development and an Irish airline, Aer Lingus. Years later Lemass described Aer Lingus as his "proudest achievement".

The Irish market was still too small for multiple companies to exist so practically all the 'semi-states' had a monopoly on the Irish market. While Lemass concentrated on economic matters, de Valera focused primarily on constitutional affairs, leading to the passage of Bunreacht na hÉireann, a new Irish constitution, in 1937. De Valera became Taoiseach, while Lemass served in the new Government (the new name for the cabinet) again as Minister for Industry and Commerce.

[edit] Minister for Supplies

Lemass moved to a new portfolio in 1939 following the outbreak of World War II (known in the Free State as The Emergency), becoming Minister for Supplies. It was a crucial role for the officially neutral Ireland (in fact, as since released government papers by Ronan Fanning, professor at University College Dublin, show, the neutrality was to a significant part fiction, with the Free State secretly aiding the Allies; the date of D-Day, for example, was decided because of weather forecasts from Ireland, which indicated the incoming weather systems from the Atlantic, the right weather being crucial to the success of the Normandy landings).

Officially neutral, the Free State had to achieve an unprecedented degree of self-sufficiency and it was Lemass's role to ensure this. The fact that he was charged with such a crucial role is indicative of he faith held in his abilities by de Valera. Lemass had the difficult task of organising what little resources existed. In 1941 the Irish Shipping Company was set up to keep a vital trickle of supplies coming into the country. However, petrol, gas and a number of basic foodstuffs remained in short supply. Lemass's seniority was shown when, following Sean T. O'Kelly's election as President of Ireland in 1945, de Valera chose Lemass over older cabinet colleagues to become Tánaiste (deputy prime minister).

[edit] Stagnation

In 1948, partly due to its own increasing isolation and also due to a republican backlash against its anti-IRA policies (which during the Emergency had seen the execution of IRA prisoners - in part due to IRA links with the Nazis), which had produced a rival republican party, Clann na Poblachta, Fianna Fáil lost power.

The First Inter-Party Government, made up of Fine Gael, Labour, National Labour, Clann na Talmhan, Clann na Poblachta and others, was formed under Fine Gael TD John A. Costello. In opposition, Lemass played a crucial role in re-organising and streamlining Fianna Fáil. As a result (and also due to internal crises within the Inter-Party government over the declaration of the Republic of Ireland (a description that replaced the Irish Free State as the twenty-six county state's name) and also the controversial Mother and Child Scheme)

In 1951 Fianna Fáil returned as a minority government. Lemass again returned as Minister for Industry and Commerce. Lemass believed that a new economic policy was needed, however de Valera disagreed. Seán MacEntee, the Minister for Finance, tried to deal with the crisis in the balance of payments. He was also unsympathetic to a new economic outlook. In 1954 the government fell and was replaced by the Second Inter-Party Government.

Lemass was confined to the Opposition benches for another three years. In 1957 de Valera, at the age of seventy-five, announced to Fianna Fáil that he planned to retire. He was persuaded however to become Taoiseach one more time until 1959, when the office of President of Ireland would become vacant. Lemass returned as Tánaiste and Minister for Industry and Commerce. In 1958 the first Programme for Economic Development was launched. de Valera was elected President of Ireland in 1959 and retired as Fianna Fáil leader and Taoiseach.

[edit] Taoiseach 1959–1966

(see also the Lemass Era)

On 23 June 1959, Seán Lemass was appointed Taoiseach on the nomination of Dáil Éireann. Many had wondered if Fianna Fáil could survive without de Valera as leader. However, Lemass quickly established his control on the party. Although he was one of the founder-members of Fianna Fáil he was still only fifty-nine years old, seventeen years younger than the nearly blind de Valera. Consequently, this change in leader and his lifelong devotion to economic matters left him more in tune with the needs of the 1960s in Ireland.

[edit] New changes

The change of personnel in Fianna Fáil was also accompanied by a change of personnel with James Dillon becoming leader of Fine Gael and Brendan Corish becoming leader of the Labour Party. A generation of leaders who had dominated Irish politics since for over three decades had moved off the stage of history. Lemass also initiated several changes in the Cabinet. He is credited with providing a transition phase between the old guard and a new generation of professional politicians.

Younger men such as Brian Lenihan, Charles J. Haughey, Patrick Hillery and Michael Hilliard were all given their first Cabinet portolios by Lemass, and ministers who joined under de Valera, such as Jack Lynch, Neil Blaney and Kevin Boland were promoted by the new Taoiseach. Similarly, several members of the old guard such as Paddy Smith, Seán MacEntee and James Ryan retired from politics during the Lemass era. Frank Aiken was the only founder-member of Fianna Fáil to survive Lemass as a member of the government and Dáil.

[edit] The economy

Lemass summed up his economic philosophy in one simple but often quoted phrase: "A rising tide lifts all boats." By this he meant that an upsurge in the Irish economy would benefit both the richest and the poorest. Although the White Paper entitled "Economic Development" was first intoduced in 1958 in de Valera's last government, its main recommendations formed the basis for the First Programme for Economic Expansion, which was adopted by Lemass as government policy. The programme, which was the brainchild of T.K. Whitaker, involved a move away from the protectionist policies that had been in place since the 1920s. Tax breaks and grants were also to be provided to foreign firms wishing to set up a company in Ireland. The programme also allowed for the spending of £220 million of state capital in investing in an integrated system of national development.

Following the introduction of this programme the policy of protection was eventually ended and the Control of Manufacturers Act, which had been in place since 1932 and had been introduced by Lemass himself, was also abolished. Although the implementation of the programme coincided with favourable trading conditions the results of the programme speak for themselves. Unemployment fell by a third, emigration reduced considerably and the population grew for the first time since the Famine. Agriculture was the only sector which failed to respond to the programme. A second programme was launched in 1963, with even more ambitious targets, however this was discontinued after Lemass left office in 1967.

The programme also paved the way for free trade. In 1960 Ireland signed the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), a worldwide agreement to reduce tariffs. In 1961 Ireland applied unsuccessfully for membership of the European Economic Community. Ireland's failure to join was said to be Lemass's biggest regret and disappointment as Taoiseach. Ireland eventually joined in 1973, two years after Lemass's death. 1965 paved the way for the signing of the Anglo-Irish Free Trade Agreement between Lemass's government and Harold Wilson's government.

[edit] Social change

As a result of the economic expansion there was an increase in industrialisation and urbanisation. An increase in prosperity also led to a move away from insularity and conservatism in Irish life. This was facilitated in no small part by the establishment of the state television service, Telefís Éireann on 31 December 1961. Television programmes, such as The Late Late Show and imported American and British ones, had a profound effect on a change in attitude. Subjects such as contraception, the Catholic Church and divorce were being discussed openly in a way which previous generations would never have imagined. The pontificate of Pope John XXIII and the Second Vatican Council also had a profound effect on the changing attititudes of Irish Catholics.

1963 saw the first visit of a sitting US President to Ireland. John F. Kennedy, the great-grandson of an Irish emigrant, returned came on an official visit. His visit seemed to symbolise a new age for the post Famine Irish. During his visit Kennedy visited relatives in County Wexford, as well as Dublin, Cork and Limerick. Kennedy later said that his four day-visit to Ireland was one of his most enjoyable. Kennedy later personally invited Lemass back to Washington in October of the same year. One month later the young President Kennedy would be dead.

In 1965 a new report called "Investment in Education" was published. After over forty years of independence the report painted a depressing picture of a system where no changes had taken place. Lemass appointed several young and intelligent men to the post of Minister for Education, including Patrick Hillery and George Colley. Under these people a slow process of change eventually began to take place. However, the must innovative change came in 1966 when Donagh O'Malley was appointed minister. Shortly after taking over O'Malley announced that from 1969 all schools up to Intermediate level would be free and free buses would provide transport for the students.

This plan had the backing of Lemass, however, O'Malley never discussed this hugely innovative and hugely expensive plan with any other cabinet ministers, least of all the Minister for Finance Jack Lynch. O'Malley had died by the time his brainchild came to fruition.

[edit] Northern Ireland

The failure of the IRA border campaign in the 1950s and the accession of Lemass as Taoiseach heralded a new policy towards Northern Ireland. The new Taoiseach played down the nationalist rhetoric which had done little to further the situation over the previous forty years. As long as the hardline Basil Brooke, 1st Viscount Brookeborough was Prime Minister of Northern Ireland there was little hope of a rapprochement. However, in 1963 Terence O'Neill, a younger man with a more pragmatic outlook, succeeded as Prime Minister. A friendship had developed between O'Neill's secretary, Jim Malley, and the Irish civil servant, T.K. Whitaker. A series of behind-the-scenes negotiations resulted in O'Neill issuing an invitation to Lemass to visit him at Stormont in Belfast.

On 14 January 1965, Lemass travelled to Belfast in the utmost of secrecy. The media and even his own Cabinet hadn't been informed until the very last minute. The meeting got a mixed reaction in the North, however, in the Republic it was a clear indication that the "Irish Cold War" had ended, or a thaw was prevailing at least. Lemass returned the invitation on 9 February of the same year by inviting O'Neill to Dublin.

Further meetings between ministers from both parts of the island occurred. The meetings heralded a new (but short-lived) era of optimism, although many unionists felt the 50th Anniversary celebrations of Easter Rising in 1966 were insulting to them. The refusal to acknowledge the civil rights campaign and the outbreak of violence in 1969 ended the optimism.

[edit] Foreign policy

The Lemass era saw some significant developments in Irish foreign policy. Frank Aiken served as Minister for External Affairs during the whole of Lemass's tenure as Taoiseach. At the United Nations he took an independent stance and backed the admission of China to the organisation, in spite of huge protests from the United States. Ireland played a large role at the UN, serving on the Security Council in 1962, condemning Chinese aggression in Tibet and advocating nuclear arms limitation. One of the main areas of foreign policy which emerged during the Lemass years was a debate over Ireland's neutrality.

Lemass was always sceptical about remaining neutral, particularly if Ireland were to join the EEC. Aiken was much more in favour of a neutral, independent stance. In 1962 Irish troops embarked on their first peace-keeping mission in the First Republic of the Congo. Nine soldiers were killed during this mission.

[edit] Retirement

In 1966 the Republic of Ireland celebrated the 50th anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising. The celebrations were alleged by some to have undone the good work that resulted from the Lemass-O'Neill meetings. Eamon de Valera, came within 1% of defeat in an Irish presidential election less than two months after the celebrations he played such a central part of. In November 1966 Lemass announced his decision to retire as Fianna Fáil leader and Taoiseach. The anniversary celebrations possibly cemented his decision.

On 10 November 1966, he officially announced to the Dáil with his usual penchant for efficiency, "I have resigned." That very day Jack Lynch became the new leader. He was the first Taoiseach that hadn't come through the Anglo-Irish War. Lemass, who had served his country for fifty years, now retired to the backbenches. He remained a TD until 1969.

[edit] Death

During the last few years of his leadership Lemass' health began to deteriorate. He had been a heavy pipe smoker all his life, smoking almost a pound of tobacco a week in his later life. At the time of his retirement it was suspected that Lemass had cancer, however this assumption was later disproved. In February 1971, while attending a rugby game at Lansdowne Road, Lemass became unwell. He was rushed to hospital and later told by his doctor that one of his lungs was about to collapse.

On Tuesday, May 11, 1971 Seán Lemass, a man often described as the finest individual ever to occupy the office of Taoiseach^{[citation needed]}, died in the Mater Hospital in Dublin, aged 71.

[edit] Legacy

Seán Lemass remains one of the most highly regarded of Taoisigh, being described even by later Fine Gael Taoisigh Garret FitzGerald and John Bruton as the best holder of the office, and the man whose cabinet leadership style they wished to follow. (Bruton hung a picture of Lemass (and John Redmond (Irish Parliamentary Party leader)) in his office.) Some historians have questioned whether Lemass came to the premiership too late, arguing that had he replaced De Valera as Fianna Fáil leader and Taoiseach in 1951 he could have begun the process of reform of Irish society and the industrialisation of the Republic of Ireland a decade earlier than 1959, when he eventually achieved the top governmental job. Others speculate whether he had been able to achieve some of his policy reforms he did initiate in the 1950s precisely because de Valera was still the leader, his opponents being unwilling to challenge him given that he appeared to have de Valera's backing.

What is not in doubt is that Eamon de Valera and Sean Lemass held diametrically different visions of Ireland; De Valera's was of a pastoral rural based society "given to frugal living", Lemass has a vision of a modern industrialised society, a member of the EEC.

Seán F. Lemass has been called "Ireland's Pope John XXIII."^{[citation needed]} As Pope John replaced Pope Pius XII, so Lemass replaced another old man of towering intellect who embodied tradition, Eamon de Valera. Like Pope John, Lemass appeared like an old man in a hurry for change, who in a few short years changed his society in a way few thought imaginable. Like Pope John, Lemass saw old problems in new ways, in his case his new rapprochement with Northern Ireland.

Like Pope John's reforms within Roman Catholicism with Vatican II, some of Lemass's changes proved double edged swords; of his new ministers embodied lower standards of behaviour than their predecessors - Charles Haughey retired as Taoiseach under a cloud in 1992, with a Tribunal of Inquiry later investigating his financial impropriety, while other ministers in the 1960s were linked to dubious fundraising efforts for Fianna Fáil and associations with property developers.

Perhaps the ultimate parallel between the elderly Irish prime minister and the elderly pope, who both came to power at the end of the 1950s and had short periods in power, is the universal affection with which both men are held, and the extent to which their successors are compared to the two old men in a hurry who took power at the end of the 1950s within a year of each other, and brought change in a speed, scale and depth no one could have thought possible.

[edit] Lemass quotes

• 'Fianna Fáil is a slightly constitutional party...but before anything we are a republican party.' (1928)
• 'A rising tide lifts all boats.' (Lemass speaking about the upsurge in the Irish economy).
• 'The historical task of this generation, as I see it, is to consolidate the economic foundations of our political independence.' (1959)
• 'First and foremost we wish to see the re-unification of Ireland restored. By every test Ireland is one nation with a fundamental right to have its essential unity expressed in its political institutions.' (1960)
• 'The country is, I think, like an aeroplane at the take-off stage. It has become airborne; that is the stage of maximum risk and any failure of power could lead to a crash. It will be a long time before we can throttle back to level flight.' (1961)
• 'A defeatist attitude now would surely lead to defeat...We can't opt out of the future.' (1965)
• 'I regret that time would not stand still for me so that I could go on indefinitely.' (1966)

[edit] Footnote

¹ Lemass, the pragmatist, wanted to call the new party simply The Republican Party. De Valera, attached to Gaelic symbolism, insisted on the Irish language name Fianna Fáil (meaning 'soldiers of destiny' (after contemplating the name Fine Gael (meaning 'family of the Gael') which ironically became the name of the main opposition party to Fianna Fáil later). The eventual formal name for the new party chosen was a combination of De Valera's Irish and Lemass's English ideas. It was indicative of Lemass's status in 1926 that his preferred choice of name was included in the final title, albeit in secondary location to De Valera's chosen name.

² In 1929 Lemass himself was not above resorting to extra-legal behaviour. He discussed with the IRA the possibility of attacking Remembrance Day ceremonies due to be held in College Green in the centre of Dublin and which drew thousands of people. However the discussed attack never took place and Lemass broke off contact with the IRA soon afterwards. National Archives of Ireland files.

[edit] Governments

The following governments were led by Lemass:

• 9th Government of Ireland (June 1959–October 1961)
• 10th Government of Ireland (October 1961–April 1965)
• 11th Government of Ireland (April 1965–November 1966)

[edit] Political career

Preceded by: Patrick McGilligan	Minister for Industry & Commerce 1932 – 1939	Succeeded by: Seán MacEntee
Preceded by: Newly Created Position	Minister for Supplies 1939 – 1945	Succeeded by: Office Ceases to Exist
Preceded by: Seán MacEntee	Minister for Industry & Commerce 1941 – 1948	Succeeded by: Daniel Morrissey
Preceded by: Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh	Tánaiste 1945 – 1948	Succeeded by: William Norton
Preceded by: William Norton	Tánaiste 1951 – 1954
Preceded by: Thomas F. O'Higgins	Minister for Industry & Commerce 1951 – 1954
Preceded by: William Norton	Tánaiste 1957 – 1959	Succeeded by: Seán MacEntee
	Minister for Industry & Commerce 1957 – 1959	Succeeded by: Jack Lynch
Preceded by: Eamon de Valera	Leader of the Fianna Fáil Party 1959 – 1966	Succeeded by: Jack Lynch
	Taoiseach 1959 – 1966

Deputy Prime Ministers of Ireland Tánaistithe na hÉireann
Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh | Seán F. Lemass | William Norton | Seán MacEntee | Frank Aiken | Erskine H. Childers | Brendan Corish | George Colley | Michael O'Leary | Ray MacSharry | Dick Spring | Peter Barry | Brian Lenihan | John P. Wilson | Bertie Ahern | Mary Harney | Michael McDowell
Vice-Presidents of the Executive Council Kevin O'Higgins | Ernest Blythe | Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh

Prime Ministers of Ireland Taoisigh na hÉireann
Éamon de Valera | John A. Costello | Seán Lemass | Jack Lynch | Liam Cosgrave | Charles Haughey | Garret FitzGerald | Albert Reynolds | John Bruton | Bertie Ahern
Previous prime ministerial offices under earlier constitutions Príomh Aire 1919—1921 Cathal Brugha | Éamon de Valera President of the Irish Republic 1921—1922 Éamon de Valera | Arthur Griffith Chairman of the Provisional Government 1922 Michael Collins | W.T. Cosgrave President of the Executive Council 1922—1937 W.T. Cosgrave | Éamon de Valera

Leaders of Fianna Fáil
Éamon de Valera (1926-1959) | Seán F. Lemass (1959-1966) | Jack Lynch (1966-1979) | Charles J. Haughey (1979-1992) | Albert Reynolds (1992-1994)  | Bertie Ahern (1994-)

[edit] See also

• List of people on stamps of Ireland