This is the first biographical work of one of the chief policymakers to have served the independent Irish state. It is also the only scholarly biography of a senior Fianna F il minister other than Sean Lemass. Sean MacEntee was in many ways a unique political personality. He was the most senior politician in the independent Irish state to have been born in what became Northern Ireland. Moreover, he was a fiercely independent thinker who left a voluminous collection of private papers. This capacious collection reflects MacEntee's insatiable interest in all aspects of government policy, not merely those for which he bore ultimate responsibility. The collection complements the official government files in the National Archives which, when viewed in toto, convey the full force of ministerial and departmental thinking and provide a comprehensive record of public policymaking from the 1930s to the 1960s.