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Transcript

Jack Lynch Replaced Sean Leamass As Taoiseach on the 10th Of November 1966

One of the most poignant addresses to the nation ever broadcast.

In a special broadcast, Taoiseach Jack Lynch appeals to people of both traditions in the north and south.

On this island, there is no solution to be found to our disagreements by shooting each other. There is no real invader here. We are all Irish in all our different kinds of ways.”

Lynch was always described as - the real Taoiseach, honest Jack, and one of Irish politics true gentlemen.

But behind the gentlemanly demeanour, there was a remarkable strength of character and political courage that helped him navigate the arms crisis that would have ended the careers of most party leaders. How many Taoisigh could have fired two senior ministers and seen a third resign in protest yet still manage to survive and flourish in the aftermath? Very few. But more importantly, he was from Cork.