MERRIMAN SUMMER SCHOOL:THE PERCEPTION of the late Dr Patrick Hillery as a reserved and reticent figure was flawed and misleading, the author of a forthcoming biography on the late president, cabinet minister and EEC commissioner has told the Merriman Summer School.
Dr John Walsh, a researcher at the Centre of Contemporary Irish History in Trinity College Dublin, said Hillery's image had mainly derived from the 14 years he served as president, when his public reticence was determined more by the constraints of office than his own preferences.
"The conventional view took little account of his force of character and toughness, especially in pursuing key policy objectives," he told the gathering in Ennis.
Although Hillery had an intense dislike of self-promotion, he had been a pivotal figure in Irish public life for over three decades, from when he was appointed minister for education in 1959 to when he left Áras an Uachtaráin as "an independent and respected office" in 1990.
"He gave his allegiance to institutions rather than people.
"His dedication to institutions was based on a profound commitment to basic political values - democracy, social justice and an inclusive nationalism," Dr Walsh said.
Hillery became a significant political figure after being appointed minister for external affairs in 1969, ensuring that he was seen as a potential Taoiseach, "even if this was a distinction he would have preferred to do without".
Hillery's handling of the outbreak of the Troubles, Dr Walsh said, through a series of diplomatic manoeuvres, including presenting the Irish case to the UN Security Council, helped prevent the greater catastrophe of the State abandoning democratic nationalism and backing physical force republicanism in the North.
"He was [ Jack] Lynch's most prominent and effective ally in the internal struggle against the taoiseach's opponents, who sought both to overthrow the party leader and enforce a hawkish policy on the North.
"There was certainly little sign of reticence in Hillery's resolute opposition to hard-line nationalism or his assertive conduct of Anglo-Irish negotiations in the early 1970s," Dr Walsh said.
He had also played a major role in negotiating Ireland's accession to the EEC "on generally favourable terms". It was his "most valuable and enduring contribution to the modernisation of Irish society".
In his first cabinet appointment, as minister for education, he had opened up the system to international influences through adopting an Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development initiative to conduct national pilot studies on long-term educational needs. He had initiated the development of comprehensive schools, "the first major initiative by the Irish state to provide for broad-based second-level education outside the specific area of technical instruction", and proposed the establishment of regional technological colleges, "the beginning of a dramatic development of higher technical education".
"The department under Hillery adopted a proactive function in managing and directing the expansion of the educational system for the first time," Dr Walsh said.
The late president's achievement had been overshadowed by the accomplishments of his successors, especially Donogh O'Malley, but also "by O'Malley's skilful use of the media to promote himself and his initiatives".
As commissioner for social affairs, Hillery "took the leading role in converting the egalitarian aspirations of the European Commission into reality". The core element of the social action programme was equal pay and, at personal cost, he had clashed with the government over its attempt to delay the implementation of the equal pay directive.
"While the prospects for his reappointment by the national coalition were never favourable, there is little doubt that the public clash with the government over equal pay sealed his fate," Dr Walsh added.
His agreement to serve as president of Ireland was "out of a sense of duty to the institutions of the Irish state and a belief that he could not refuse the opportunity to stabilise the office" following the resignation of Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh.
Dr Walsh noted that Hillery was an unconventional politician in that he held an elusive ambition to be a country GP in his native Miltown Malbay. He was a reluctant TD but his unwillingness to serve as a minister soon faded as he became committed to policy change.
Guided by firm political convictions, including belief in equality of opportunity, Lemass's economic strategy, a peaceful solution in the North and participation in European integration, it was "a passion for achievement, not ambition, which drove Hillery throughout his career".
• Dr Walsh's authorised biography of Hillery is due to be published before the end of the year.