Martin McAleese

Martin McAleese
Martin McAleese (left) with wife, Mary McAleese and Lech Kaczyński and his wife.
Senator
Incumbent
Assumed office May 2011
Constituency	Nominated by the Taoiseach
Personal details
Born	Belfast, County Antrim
Nationality	Irish
Political party	Independent
Spouse(s)	Mary McAleese
Children	3
Alma mater	Trinity College, Dublin
Profession	Dentist, Accountant
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Martin McAleese is a member of Seanad Éireann and the husband of the former President of Ireland, Mary McAleese.^[1]

Early life and education

He played with the Antrim Minors and was captain of the team in 1969. He trained and worked as an accountant and then qualified as a dentist.

He practiced as a dentist in Crossmaglen and Bessbrook, County Armagh. He moved to Dublin in 1972 and trained with Stokes, Kennedy, Crowley chartered accountants in Dublin. He later worked as financial controller for an Aer Lingus subsidiary. He went back to full-time education at Trinity College, Dublin in 1980 to train as a dentist.^[2]

Personal life

He married Mary Leneghan in 1976 and they lived first in Scholarstown, County Dublin for a short period and then for almost 12 years near Ratoath, County Meath. The couple have three children, Emma and twins SaraMai and Justin. The family moved to Rostrevor, County Down in 1987 when Martin set up practice in County Armagh.^[2]

Career

While his wife served as President of Ireland, McAleese initiated a series of meetings with senior loyalist paramilitary leaders to pursue peace negotiations. These actions did not take place without controversy, but have been widely viewed as instrumental in bringing loyalist paramilitary groups to peace talks.^{[citation needed]}

In May 2011, McAleese was appointed as a Senator by the Taoiseach Enda Kenny.^[3][4] In August 2011 he was appointed the Chancellor of Dublin City University, taking over from David Byrne.

References

1. ^ "Dr. Martin McAleese". Oireachtas Members Database. http://www.oireachtas.ie/members-hist/default.asp?housetype=1&HouseNum=24&MemberID=2387&ConstID=210. Retrieved 29 May 2011. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "People of Ireland". http://www.iol.ie/~dluby/people.htm. Retrieved 18 November 2011. 
3. ^ "McAleese appointed to Seanad". The Irish Times. 20 May 2011. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/0520/breaking59.html. 
4. ^ "Martin McAleese". ElectionsIreland.org. http://www.electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=10008. Retrieved 18 November 2011. 

Academic offices
Preceded by David Byrne	Chancellor of Dublin City University August 2011– present	Incumbent

Persondata
Name	Macaleese, Martin
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth
Place of birth	Belfast, County Antrim
Date of death
Place of death