Garret FitzGerald
Ireland was no longer a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, but in 1973 had joined the European Economic Community (EEC), now known as the European Union (EU). FitzGerald, with his innovative views, energy and fluency in the French language, won Ireland a status in European affairs far beyond the country's size and ensured that the first Irish presidency of the European Council in 1975 was a noted success.