National Archives - Bogus invites to president’s inauguration investigated

THE discovery of dozens of fake invitations for and ahead of the president’s inauguration in late 1976 sparked a Garda investigation into the elaborate but incompetent hoax.

Officials in the Department of the Taoiseach were made aware of the bogus invites through a sister of Dr Patrick Hillery, Mrs Mary Ryan, on November 25.

Dozens of the fake invitations had been sent to residents mainly in the town of Miltown Malbay in Co Clare (where Dr Hillery was born), purporting to come from the president-elect for the inauguration ceremony on December 3 and a reception afterwards at Áras an Uachtaráin.