Born in New York in 1882, Éamon de Valera moved to Ireland at the age of two, and would go on to become one of the country's most influential political figures of the 20th century.

In 1913, de Valera joined the Irish Volunteers where he strongly resisted opposition to Home Rule, and in 1916 he was commander of an occupied building during the Easter Rising.

Following the rising, he would go on to have a long and successful political career. Most famously, de Valera was elected president of Ireland in 1959. By the time he retired in 1973 he was the oldest elected head of state in the world, at the age of 90.

This documentary is an insight into one of Ireland's most significant political figures.

First Broadcast 1967

An Irish radio documentary from RTÉ Radio 1, Ireland - Documentary on One - the home of Irish radio documentaries