Lemass also encouraged Colley, Haughey and Blaney to withdraw in favour of Lynch, realising that they would not win the contest.

Lemass also initiated several changes in the Cabinet.

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.

Future Irish Taoiseach, Seán Lemass was involved in the killing of a Captain Bagely, also on Mount Street, while in two further incidents on the same street three more British agents were killed.

But as evidence of Bruton's complexity, he also kept a picture of former Fianna Fáil Taoiseach Seán Lemass, which had been hung there by Reynolds, and which Bruton kept because he viewed Lemass as the best and most reforming Taoiseach in the history of the state.

Seán Lemass was best-man ; he would also give the valedictory oration at O ' Dea's funeral in 1965.

The party also played up heavily on the personality of the party leader with the slogan " Let Lemass Lead On ".

His uncle, Noel Lemass, Jnr and aunt, Eileen Lemass were also members of Dáil Éireann.

Maureen Haughey's brother Noel Lemass, Jnr also served as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála ( TD ), while her sister-in-law, Eileen Lemass, also served as a member of Dáil Éireann.

In 1965, Terence O ’ Neill also invited and met with Sean Lemass, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Ireland, to promote economic cooperation.

Seán Lemass and Stephen Behan ( the father of Irish writers Brendan and Dominic Behan ) have also been put forward as members of the Apostles.

Following this, Lemass ' father wanted his son to continue with his studies and be called to the Irish Bar.

This appointment was particularly significant because Lemass was coming to the end of his premiership and wanted to prepare a successor.

The financial and economic portfolios were dominated by Lemass and other like-minded ministers who wanted to move away from protection to free trade.

The Fianna Fáil government under Seán Lemass awarded him the honour of a state funeral, which was attended by the cabinet, the leaders of all the main Irish political parties, and Éamon de Valera, then President of Ireland.

Many historians have suggested that Hillery was Lemass's first choice to succeed him, however others have said that the Lemass pecking order went as follows: Jack Lynch, Hillery and George Colley.

It was Lemass who encouraged him to stay and form a political party.

A series of behind-the-scenes negotiations resulted in O ' Neill issuing an invitation to Lemass to visit him at Stormont in Belfast.

Garvin places him with a cross party group including Gerard Sweetman and Daniel Morrissey of Fine Gael as well as Seán Lemass of Fianna Fáil who were pushing a modernising agenda.

In Professor Tom Garvin's review of the 1950s ' News from a New Republic ', he comes in for praise as a moderniser and Garvin places him with a cross party group including Daniel Morrissey of Fine Gael and William Norton of the Labour Party as well as Sean Lemass of Fianna Fáil who were pushing a modernising agenda

Garvin places him with a cross party group including Gerard Sweetman of Fine Gael and William Norton of the Labour Party as well as Seán Lemass of Fianna Fáil who were pushing a modernising agenda.

Hillery was invited by Lemass to allow his name to go forward for the leadership of the party, however, he declined explaining that he had no interest.

In 1962 Lemass appointed Haughey as Minister for Agriculture.

But the state-run Telifís Éireann, facing criticism from Lemass ' government for being too radical in other areas, agreed and largely ignored the O ' Higgins campaign.

Lemass himself, encouraged his Minister for Finance, Jack Lynch, to contest the party leadership.

A veteran of the 1916 Easter Rising, the War of Independence and the Civil War, Lemass was first elected as a Sinn Féin Teachta Dála ( TD ) for the Dublin South constituency in a by-election on 18 November 1924 and was returned at each election until the constituency was abolished in 1948, when he was re-elected for Dublin South – Central until his retirement in 1969.

On 18 November 1924 Lemass was elected for the first time as a Sinn Féin TD.

Lemass travelled around the country trying to raise support for Fianna Fáil.

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.

In 1933, Lemass set up the Industrial Credit Corporation to facilitate investment for industrial development ; in the climate of the depression investment had dried up.

De Valera became Taoiseach, while Lemass served in the new Government ( the new name for the cabinet ) again as Minister for Industry and Commerce.

Lemass became Minister for Supplies in 1939 following the outbreak of World War II ( known in Ireland, or Éire, as The Emergency ).

Lemass again returned as Minister for Industry and Commerce.

Lemass was confined to the Opposition benches for another three years.

Lemass returned as Tánaiste and Minister for Industry and Commerce.

A generation of leaders who had dominated Irish politics for over three decades had moved off the stage of history — although neither Fine Gael or Labour's new leaders initiated major policy changes on the level of Lemass '.

Although the White Paper entitled " Economic Development " was first introduced 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 upon his ascension in 1959.

Lemass appointed several young and intelligent men to the post of Minister for Education, including Patrick Hillery and George Colley.

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.

While Aiken was at the UN, Lemass played a major role in pressing for Ireland's membership of the EEC which in many ways became the chief foreign policy consideration during the 1960s.

Lemass, who had served his country for fifty years, now retired to the backbenches.

One story exists where Lynch, in spite of tremendous pressure from Seán Lemass and the entire Fianna Fáil party to stand for the leadership, only accepted the nomination after Máirín had agreed.

Lynch was promoted to Lemass ' old portfolio as Minister for Industry and Commerce.