Charles Haughey: Saint or sinner?

The caricature that haunts the established history of late 20th century Ireland is one of a greed-driven, venal, ruthless figure who sacrificed all in the pursuit of power. Such a picture is only partly true

Charles Haughey in his Home Abbeville in North County Dublin in 1982

On the death of Charles Haughey in June 2006, his protégé and successor as Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said of the man he called ‘boss’: “Charles Haughey made a huge impact on Irish life over a 35-year political career. I have no doubt [history’s] ultimate judgement on Mr Haughey will be a positive one.”

Inherent in Ahern’s comments of Haughey was the fact that many saw Haughey’s influence on Irish political life as a largely malign one, a corrosive one.