Maureen Haughey (; 3 September 1925 – 17 March 2017) was the wife of

Charles Haughey Charles James Haughey (; 16 September 1925 – 13 June 2006) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach on three occasions – 1979 to 1981, March to December 1982 and 1987 to 1992. He was also Minister for the Gaeltacht from ...

, who served as

Taoiseach The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the o ...

on three occasions.

Biography

She was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

, the eldest daughter of

Seán Lemass Seán Francis Lemass (born John Francis Lemass; 15 July 1899 – 11 May 1971) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1959 to 1966. He also served as Tánaiste from 1957 to 1959, 1951 to 1954 ...

, the recently elected TD for Dublin South and future

, and

Kathleen Hughes Kathleen Hughes (born Elizabeth Margaret von Gerkan; November 14, 1928) is an American actress. Early life Hughes' uncle, F. Hugh Herbert, was a playwright who authored ''Kiss and Tell'' and ''The Moon Is Blue''. Her desire to act was inspired ...

. After completing her secondary education she was struck down with

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...

in 1943. After spending a year recovering in hospital, she later studied at

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 33,284 student ...

(UCD) where she received a degree in commerce. During her studies at UCD, she was introduced to

. They married on 18 September 1951. They had four children: Eimear, Conor, Ciarán and Seán. Her husband was elected as a TD for

Dublin North-East Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cen ...

in 1957 before later serving in a range of ministerial positions including

Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

Agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people t ...

, Finance and Health and Social Welfare. He was elected leader of

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christia ...

and Taoiseach in 1979. During her time as wife to the Taoiseach she kept a low profile and had enjoyed a background role in her husbands' political career. Maureen Haughey's brother

Noel Lemass Noel Thomas Lemass (14 February 1929 – 13 April 1976) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance from 1969 to 1973. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for Dublin South-West from 1956 ...

also served as a Fianna Fáil TD, while her sister-in-law, Eileen Lemass, also served as a member of Dáil Éireann. Her youngest son, Seán Haughey, has served as

Lord Mayor of Dublin The Lord Mayor of Dublin ( ga, Ardmhéara Bhaile Átha Cliath) is the honorary title of the chairperson ( ga, Cathaoirleach, links=no ) of Dublin City Council which is the local government body for the city of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. Th ...

and was a TD and has previously been a

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In ...

. After stepping down as Taoiseach in 1992, Charles Haughey's retirement was dogged with controversy, with the

Moriarty Tribunal The Moriarty Tribunal, officially called the Tribunal of Inquiry into certain Payments to Politicians and Related Matters, was an Irish Tribunal of Inquiry established in 1997 into the financial affairs of politicians Charles Haughey and Michael ...

investigating a series of payments that he received from senior businessmen over an 18-year period. At one stage, he faced criminal charges for obstructing the work of the tribunal. He was also found to have spent large sums of Fianna Fáil money on Charvet shirts and dinners at the exclusive Le Coq Hardi restaurant in Dublin. In May 1999, gossip columnist

Terry Keane Terry Keane (1939 – 1 June 2008), born in Guildford, UK, was an Irish social columnist and fashion journalist. Life Born Ann Teresa O'Donnell in Guildford, Surrey, UK in 1939, Keane studied medicine at Trinity College, Dublin. She dropped out ...

revealed on '' The Late Late Show'' that Charles Haughey had conducted a 27-year relationship with her. Haughey was widowed on 13 June 2006, when her husband died of prostate cancer. They had been married for 55 years. In 2008, she left

Abbeville Abbeville (, vls, Abbekerke, pcd, Advile) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France. It is the chef-lieu of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital of ...

, her home of 39 years. She died on 17 March 2017, aged 91.

References

Bibliography

* Horgan, John, ''Seán Lemass - the Enigmatic Patriot''. (Gill and Macmillan, Dublin, 1997). {{DEFAULTSORT:Haughey, Maureen Burials at St. Fintan's Cemetery, Sutton 1925 births 2017 deaths Alumni of University College Dublin Children of Taoisigh Lemass family Spouses and partners of Taoisigh People from Fingal Haughey family