HISTORY NOTES
Seán Lemass
Seán
Lemass was born on the 15th July 1899. He was of French Huguenot origins. He was educated in C.B.S. O’Connell School which was famous for
its supporting of ideas of revolution.
At the age of 15 he enlisted in the Volunteers and served in the company
commanded by de Valera. During the
Easter Rising he was posted in the G.P.O.
Following the surrender he was imprisoned in Richmond Barracks but was
given early release because of his young age.
He remained committed to the Republican cause and during the war of
Independence was interned in Ballykinlar from December 1920 until December
1921.
After
the Treaty Lemass joined the newly founded Garda Siochána but soon left to join
the Anti-Treaty forces. He fought in
the Four Courts under Rory O’Connor.
Following their surrender he escaped and joined the Tipperary Irregulars
to continue fighting the Civil War. In
October 1922 he became Minister of Defence in the Republican government set up
by de Valera but not recognised by anyone else. In December he was again imprisoned, being released in October
1923. While in prison he turned to
political methods to achieve his aims.
In 1924 he won the South Dublin by-election and abstained from the
Dáil. He supported cutting links with
the IRA and following de Valera’s speech to the Sinn Féin Ard-Fheis in March
1926 he backed the setting up of Fianna Fáil.
Et
was at Lemass’ insistence that Fianna Fáil was named Fianna Fáil the Republican
Party. He was an organiser and honorary
secretary of the party. He was the driving
force behind Fianna Fáil’s securing of 44 seats in the 1st election
of 1927 and 57 seats in the 2nd election, being chief
organiser. In August 1927 he entered the
Dáil for the first time, soon becoming chief spokesman for Fianna Fáil on
economic issues. In the 1932 Fianna
Fáil government he became Minister of Industry and Commerce. He pursued a policy of state intervention to
achieve protectionism, which the ‘economic war’ of the 1930s allowed him to do
under a patriotic guise. The Control of
Manufacturers Acts of 1932-1934 severely limited the number of foreign
industries setting up in Ireland.
Lemass also tried to achieve national self-sufficiency through the
setting up of the Sugar Co., the Turf Development Board, Bord Failte and Aer
Lingus.
On
September 2nd 1939 the Emergency Powers Bill was passed to prepare
the country for a war situation. Lemass
was appointed Minister for Supplies with responsibility for regulation,
storage, sale, purchase, and distribution of all goods. Nicknamed ‘Half-ounce Lemass’ he led by
example to ensure that the Irish people had adequate supplies for the duration
of the war. However imports decreased
making some products virtually impossible to get. To ease this situation Lemass set up Irish Shipping in 1941. The Ministry of Supplies’ last act was to
send food to Western Europe following the end of the war.
Lemass’
popularity suffered a temporary setback following the war, as he was associated
with the continued rationing of the 1940s.
During this time he was part of a group to plan Ireland’s economic
future. He began to turn his back on
protection in favour of the theory of increasing prosperity through government
spending and intervention. However he
was unable to implement these ideas as, between 1948 and 1951 he was in
opposition. Between 1951 and 1954,
while Minister for Industry and Commerce, his ideas were ignored by a mainly
conservative Fianna Fáil government.
Following the election defeat of 1954 Lemass once again became director of
organisations of the party. He reshaped
the organising committee and introduced a “National Recovery” plan. In March 1957 Fianna Fáil were returned to
power. Following de Valera’s election
as president Lemass became Taoiseach on 23rd June 1959.
Lemass’
main achievements as Taoiseach were in economics. He presided over the 5 year Programme for Economic
Expansion. This concentrated on
agriculture and industry with the preference on industry. Although the projected agricultural targets
were not met there was a 47% increase in industrial output. The 60s were economic boom years and a time
of social change. Living standards rose
by 50%. Emigration and unemployment
decreased. Lemass took an interest in
improving the educational system to keep up with industrialisation. In September 1966 Donough O’Malley, with
Lemass’ backing, announced the introduction of free post-primary education.
During
the 1960s Ireland played an important role in the UN, taking part in
peacekeeping duties around the world. The
Anglo-Irish Free Trade Agreement in 1965 broke down tariff barriers with
Britain. Lemass also favoured closer
links with Europe in order to open up more markets for Irish exports. Joining GATT also marked the end of Ireland’s
diplomatic isolation. Lemass favoured a
unification of people not territory and it was with this view that the O’Neill-Lemass
meetings took place in January and February 1965. The breaking out of the Troubles in 1969 soon overshadowed the
significance of these meetings. Lwmass presided
over the 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising before his retirement
in November 1966.
Lemass
spent most of his life participating in the making of Irish history. He was a founder and organiser of Fianna
Fáil. He spent years in the shadow of
de Valera before becoming Taoiseach in 1959, his time as a minister proving him
well qualified. As Taoiseach he was the
facilitator of economic, political, and social change. He was primarily a realist believing that “a
rising tide lifts all boats” and broke with the traditional Fianna Fáil
policies to create a modern Ireland.
