"Views of Four Presidencies" (2004)
Online Gallery
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Notice issued by President Douglas Hyde dated 6 January 1940, convening a meeting of the Council of State at Áras an Uachtaráin at 4pm on 8 January 1940.
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Memorandum dated 15 November 1938, regarding the playing of the British national anthem when the President is present.
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Memorandum dated 15 November 1938, regarding the playing of the British national anthem when the President is present.
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Memorandum dated 15 December 1942, commenting on the wishes of British Ambassador to Ireland, Sir John Maffey, to secure tenancy of the former Private Secretary’s Lodge, formerly part of the Presidential grounds.
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Memorandum dated 15 December 1942, commenting on the wishes of British Ambassador to Ireland, Sir John Maffey, to secure tenancy of the former Private Secretary’s Lodge, formerly part of the Presidential grounds.
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Letter from Luigi Einaudi, President of Italy, dated 20 June 1952, to President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh.
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Memorandum dated 1 May 1943, regarding requests for autographs and photographs of President Douglas Hyde.
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Memorandum dated 20 November 1937, concerning the design, supply and custody of the seal of the President of Ireland, which was approved by the Executive Council of the Irish Free State on 15 September 1937.
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Memorandum dated 23 February 1950, setting out the procedures for the flying of the presidential and papal flags on the president’s car during the visit of Cardinal Gilroy to Ireland in February 1950.
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Copy letter from the Office of the President dated 16 August 1939, to the Secretary, Establishments (Special), Department of Finance, regarding the possible financial effects – if any – on the Office, in the event of a major war.
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Memorandum dated 12 April 1951, recording the visit of Taoiseach John A. Costello to President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh, advising the President that Dr. Noel Browne, Minister for Health, wished to tender this resignation as a member of the government and that it should be accepted.
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Memorandum dated 12 April 1951, recording the visit of Taoiseach John A. Costello to President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh, advising the President that Dr. Noel Browne, Minister for Health, wished to tender this resignation as a member of the government and that it should be accepted.
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Memorandum dated 29 June 1938, concerning the first call of Taoiseach Eamon de Valera on President Douglas Hyde.
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Letter dated 30 November 1956, from P. O’Dalaigh of St Mary’s, county Longford, to President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh.
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Letter from Fergus Williams, representative of the West Cork Save-the-Railway Organisation, dated 31 January 1961, to the Secretary to the President.
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Telegram dated 18 March 1952, from Harry S. Truman, President of the United States, to President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh, thanking him for the gift of a basket of shamrock on Saint Patrick’s Day.
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Telegram dated 27 July 1962, to President Eamon de Valera in which the Right Honourable the Earl of Longford pleads for clemency for James Kelly, sentenced to death for murder.
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Copy of formal proclamation dated 18 March 1965, issued by President Eamon de Valera, dissolving the 17th Dáil.
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Sketch plan dated 6 June 1941, of the proposed air raid shelter at Áras an Uachtaráin.
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Photograph dated 31 December 1942, illustrating ploughing in the grounds of Áras an Uachtaráin.
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Telegram dated 22 November 1963, from President Eamon de Valera to Mrs. Jackie Kennedy, in which he extends to her his sympathy and that of the Irish people on the death of her husband, President John F. Kennedy.
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Letter dated 19 October 1958, from the Apostolic Nuncio, Emmanuel Gerada, to President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh, informing him of the death of Pope Pius XII which occurred at 2.58 that morning.
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Photograph of President Douglas Hyde with participants in the Cumann Drámaídheachta na Sgol competition at the awards ceremony in Áras an Uachtaráin, 30 March 1939.
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Telegram dated 28 November 1951, from Queen Elizabeth, the future Queen Mother, to President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh, thanking him for his message of sympathy during the recent illness of her husband, King George VI.
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Letter from Buckingham Palace dated February 1952, in which Queen Elizabeth II and the Queen Mother express their appreciation to President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh for the flowers sent to Windsor for the funeral of King George VI.
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Note of telephone conversations on 28 July 1952 with the Irish Embassy in Paris, regarding the death of Eva Peron and the sending of a wreath and message of sympathy from President Ó Ceallaigh to the Argentinian President, Juan Peron, on the death of his wife.
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Photograph of President Douglas Hyde with participants in the Cumann Drámaídheachta na Sgol competition at the awards ceremony in Áras an Uachtaráin, 30 March 1939.
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Letter from Prince Rainier of Monaco dated 2 February 1961, to President Eamon de Valera, in which he accepts with ‘great pleasure’, the invitation from the President for himself and Princess Grace to attend the International Festival of Music and Arts in Dublin in June of that year, in which the National Operatic Orchestra of Monaco is participating.
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Letter from Prince Rainier of Monaco dated 2 February 1961, to President Eamon de Valera, in which he accepts with ‘great pleasure’, the invitation from the President for himself and Princess Grace to attend the International Festival of Music and Arts in Dublin in June of that year, in which the National Operatic Orchestra of Monaco is participating.
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Copy of letter dated 1 October 1955, from Theodor Heuss, the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, to President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh, in which he thanks the Irish people for the humanitarian aid sent to Germany and presents them with a fountain by the sculptor Josef Wackerle to ‘convey the gratitude we feel deep in our hearts to the Irish People’.
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Letter from Richard Nixon, President of the United States of America, dated 30 June 1972, to President Eamon de Valera, introducing Ronald Reagan, Governor of California.
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Commemorative booklet of the visit to Ireland of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the President of India, 21-24 September 1964.
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Invitation from Eric Gorman, Secretary of the National Theatre Society Limited, dated 2 May 1938, to Dr. Douglas Hyde. He expresses the wishes of the Directors that the President-elect attend the first performance of his play ‘Casadh an tSugáin’ by the Abbey Company at the Abbey Theatre on 9 May 1938.
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Memorandum dated 1 January 1940, regarding Monsieur Wenceslas T. Dobrzynski, the Polish Consul General, his attitude towards Ireland and his status. It is noted that Monsieur Dobrzynski’s position since September 1939 is honorary and that he is ‘inclined to regard Ireland as rather hostile to his country, apparently for the reason that Ireland has not taken up arms against Germany’.
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Memorandum dated 1 January 1940, regarding Monsieur Wenceslas T. Dobrzynski, the Polish Consul General, his attitude towards Ireland and his status. It is noted that Monsieur Dobrzynski’s position since September 1939 is honorary and that he is ‘inclined to regard Ireland as rather hostile to his country, apparently for the reason that Ireland has not taken up arms against Germany’.
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Letter from Maud Gonne McBride dated 8 June 1939, to President Douglas Hyde, thanking him for his kind invitation to a garden party at Áras an Uachtaráin. She regrets she cannot attend because of the ‘horrid coercion act’ which he is about to sign.
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Memorandum regarding Patrick Kavanagh dated 27 July 1943, referring to his attendance at a Red Cross reception at Áras an Uachtaráin. Mr. Kavanagh was there as a member of the press but ‘behaved throughout the reception as if he were one of the principal guests’ – ‘on his feet he wore sandals without socks, and generally looked untidy and not altogether clean’. As a result, the decision was taken to enter a caveat on his social card.
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Memorandum regarding Patrick Kavanagh dated 27 July 1943, referring to his attendance at a Red Cross reception at Áras an Uachtaráin. Mr. Kavanagh was there as a member of the press but ‘behaved throughout the reception as if he were one of the principal guests’ – ‘on his feet he wore sandals without socks, and generally looked untidy and not altogether clean’. As a result, the decision was taken to enter a caveat on his social card.
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Copy of menu dated 23 June 1945, for lunch at Áras an Uachtaráin to celebrate the inauguration of the new President, Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh, on 25 June 1945.
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Copy of Christmas card sent to family and friends by President Ó Ceallaigh and his wife Phyllis, December 1951. As well as wishing the recipients a Happy Christmas, the card commemorates the life of Eamonn Ceannt, one of the signatories of the 1916 proclamation of independence.
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Memorandum dated 5 June 1946, concerning the proposal that President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh and Mrs. Ó Ceallaigh shake hands with all the guests due to attend the summer garden party at Áras an Uachtaráin. It was estimated that it would take approximately 3-4 hours to shake hands with all 3,000 guests, longer than the duration of the party itself. As the situation would become ‘so wearisome’ to hosts and guests and ‘would in a short time lose all appearance of dignity’, the proposal was rejected.
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Letter dated 2 July 1947, from Desmond Leslie to President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh on the birth of his son, Shane, asking the President if he will ‘honour our child by accepting the post of Godfather’, an honour which the President declined.
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Letter from William F. Connell, secretary of the Soloheadbeg Memorial Committee, dated 19 January 1950, to the Secretary to the President. Connell outlines the arrangements for a reception for President Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh and the particulars of the unveiling of the memorial at Soloheadbeg, Co. Tipperary, on 22 January 1950.
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Telegram dated 2 June 1964, from Mrs. Margaret Foley-Mosley, Ottawa, Canada, to President Eamon de Valera, on the occasion of his visit to Canada, which notes ‘Your magnificent visage and bearing, sir, at 81, almost makes possible childhood dreams of Tir-Na-Nog’.
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Official portrait dated 14 July 1945, of President Séan T. Ó Ceallaigh, for display in Irish diplomatic and consular offices abroad.
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Photograph of President Douglas Hyde having his portrait painted by the artist William Conor, 8 November 1938. President Hyde is seated to the right hand side of the portrait with William Conor standing to the left of the painting.
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Cover of music score ‘Chicken in the Pot’, a gift sent by American composer Frankie Izzo to President Eamon de Valera and Sinéad Bean de Valera, on the occasion of their 60th wedding anniversary on 8 January 1970.
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Cover of music score ‘Ball and Chain’, a gift sent by American composer Frankie Izzo to President Eamon de Valera and Sinéad Bean de Valera, on the occasion of their 60th wedding anniversary on 8 January 1971.
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Typescript press release, issued 15 May 1964, announcing arrangements for the visit of President de Valera to the United States of America from 26 to 30 May 1964. The press release details a scheduled meeting with U.S. President Johnson, an address to a Joint Meeting to the United States Senate and the House of Representatives and various social functions.
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Typescript press release, issued 15 May 1964, announcing arrangements for the visit of President de Valera to the United States of America from 26 to 30 May 1964. The press release details a scheduled meeting with U.S. President Johnson, an address to a Joint Meeting to the United States Senate and the House of Representatives and various social functions.
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Photograph of President Eamon de Valera inspecting the troops at Dublin Castle on the day of his inauguration as President of Ireland, 25 June 1959.
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Photograph of President Eamon de Valera inspecting the troops at Dublin Castle on the day of his inauguration as President of Ireland, 25 June 1959.
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Photograph of President Erskine Childers, on the occasion of his inauguration as President of Ireland, 25 June 1973, at Dublin Castle. Also pictured are Mrs. Rita Childers and former president, Eamon de Valera.
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Photograph of President Erskine Childers, leaving Dublin Castle with a guard of honour on the occasion of his inauguration as President of Ireland, 25 June 1973.
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Photograph of President Eamon de Valera, Ronald Reagan, Governor of California, and his wife Nancy Reagan, at Áras an Uachtaráin, on the occasion of Reagan’s visit to Ireland in July 1972.
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Signatures of Prince Rainier Grimaldi III of Monaco, his wife Princess Grace and children Caroline and Albert, in the Áras Visitors’ Book, 29 August 1963.
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Signature of Eduard Hempel, German Ambassador to Ireland, in the Áras Visitors’ Book, 1 January 1940.
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Signature of the future Poet Laureate, Sir John Betjeman, in the Áras Visitors’ Book, 13 April 1943.
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Signature of the tenor Count John McCormack, in the Áras Visitors’ Book, 7 October 1938.
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Poem entitled ‘Canada’, composed in October 1940 by President Douglas Hyde.
