Charles Haughey, who was born in 1925, was the leading politician of his generation. He formed the accountancy firm Haughey Boland in his 20s but concentrated on politics.
He was central to the modernising wing of Fianna Fáil of the 1960s which was associated with his father-in-law, the late Mr Sean Lemass, the opening of the economy and the replacement of Mr Eamon De Valera's isolationism and ascetism with full-blooded materialism and capitalism. Along with the late Neil Blayney he was perhaps the central figure in the Fianna Fáil fund-raising group, Taca. He was tipped to replace Mr Lemass as president of Fianna Fáil in 1966 but withdrew when the late Mr Jack Lynch entered the contest. He then had to wait until 1979 before his dream of leading the party came true.
Mr Haughey lived a lavish lifestyle in his mansion and estate in Kinsealy, Co Dublin. The truth about his finances remained a secret until the 1997 McCracken Tribunal. He lied to that tribunal, denying that he had ever received money from Mr Ben Dunne, but eventually was forced to accept that he had and that he'd known about this for some years. The tribunal chairman, Mr Justice McCracken, did not accept Mr Haughey's evidence that he left the management of his, Mr Haughey's financial affairs entirely to his friend, Mr Des Traynor, without knowing the details.
Two of the key Irish personnel involved in running the Ansbacher deposits, Mr Traynor and Mr Sam Field Corbett, were former Haughey Boland employees. Many of the figures now known to have had Ansbacher accounts were associates and supporters of Fianna Fáil and Mr Haughey. Some are known to have made substantial financial payments to him.